Gov. Brian Sandoval signs 33 bills into law, vetos 2 bills

CARSON CITY — Gov. Brian Sandoval signed 33 bills into law and vetoed two bills on Monday, approving measures aimed at boosting school safety and creating a new state park.

The two bills Sandoval vetoed:

■ Assembly Bill 249, which would allow convicts to get their criminal records sealed if the conviction is tied to possession of up to 1 ounce of marijuana. In his veto message, Sandoval noted that the bill would have required judges to seal records and said that it’s best to handle those case by case. Sandoval noted that other legislation he’s recently signed reforms the overall process for sealing criminal records.

■ Assembly Bill 407, which would have designated the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and Desert Research Institute “land grant” institutions. Sandoval said the system has worked well for the state’s land grant institution, the University of Nevada, Reno. He also expressed concerns that the change would disrupt the state’s higher education and divide scarce federal dollars.

Among the bills Sandoval signed:

■ Senate Bill 487, which implements a 10 percent tax on retail marijuana sales, a key part of Sandoval’s budget plan.

■ Senate Bill 344, which sets the criteria for packaging and advertising recreational marijuana at the manufacturing and distribution level. Specifically, the law prevents the new industry from branding and marketing in a way that appeals to children.

■ Senate Bill 536, which appropriates funding to establish the Walker River State Recreation Area, a major part of Sandoval’s Explore Your Nevada initiative. The donation of three ranch properties will bring more than 12,000 acres into public use and open access to the East Walker River. Through the appropriation, the new park has $1.3 million in general fund dollars for cabins and campgrounds. There’s also $1.2 million in federal dollars. Overall, nearly $8 million will go into the park in the next two years.

■ Assembly Bill 362, which is one of two pieces of legislation highlighted by experts and advocates in Broken Trust, a three-part Las Vegas Review-Journal investigation into a sexual misconduct crisis in the Clark County School District. AB362, also called the SESAME Law, after a national nonprofit, requires applicants to disclose past allegations, say so if they left their job with pending allegations and say so if they had a license suspended or revoked while there were pending allegations.

Contact Ben Botkin at bbotkin@reviewjournal.com or 775-461-0661. Follow @BenBotkin1 on Twitter.