Nevada bill to temporarily drop cage-free egg rule heads to governor

A bill to temporarily suspend Nevada’s cage-free egg sale rule is heading to the governor’s desk after passing through the Legislature unanimously this week.

Assembly Bill 171 is intended to address egg shortages and the rising cost of eggs during a long-running avian flu outbreak that has significantly affected the national egg supply chain. Tens of millions of egg-laying hens have died or have been culled to address the outbreak, leading to egg inflation. Egg prices are predicted to rise another 20.3 percent this year, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Another layer of challenge for Nevadans is the state’s cage-free egg law, which requires most eggs produced and sold in the state to come from cage-free hen flocks.

Sponsored by Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager and Assembly member Howard Watts, both D-Las Vegas, AB 171 would authorize the state’s quarantine officer to order the temporary suspension of cage-free egg requirements during “any ongoing event that negatively impacts the national supply chain for egg products or shell eggs,” according to the bill. Events could include a foreign animal disease outbreak or a federally declared disease emergency or national disaster.

The bill has moved quickly through the Legislature, which is not even two weeks into the session. Yeager said on the first day of the session the bill would get priority because of the legislative body’s effort to make “life more affordable for those whom we serve.”

“To that end, we will be fast-tracking legislation to lower food prices for Nevadans — specifically eggs,” he said during the Feb. 3 floor session.

It passed unanimously in the Assembly on Tuesday and in the Senate on Wednesday. Assembly member Heidi Kasama, R-Las Vegas, and state Sen. James Ohrenschall, D-Las Vegas, were excused absent from their chamber’s respective votes.

The legislation now heads to the governor’s desk, where it could be signed into law. Gov. Joe Lombardo’s office had not announced when he may consider the bill as of Wednesday afternoon.

AB 171 would allow only a 120-day suspension at a time. It also allows no more than two temporary suspensions in a calendar year and requires the state quarantine officer to give no less than 14 days’ notice of the suspension’s ending.

It also gives state officials the ability to explore other regulatory suspensions during a particular event, such as allowing the sale of grade B eggs or streamlining rules for owners of small flocks to sell eggs. The bill includes a requirement to report potential price discrepancies to the Legislature after 60 days.

No health and food safety regulations would change because of this bill, lawmakers and state agriculture officials said during hearings this week.

It would go into effect at the time of the governor’s approval.

Contact McKenna Ross at mross@reviewjournal.com. Follow @mckenna_ross_ on X.