SB 292: Child-advocate lawyer bill stalls at Legislature

Senate Bill 292, which would mandate lawyers be assigned to represent child clients in abuse, neglect and parental termination cases, will be pulled from consideration due to its prohibitive fiscal impact, Sen. Terry Care confirmed Wednesday afternoon.

Care, officially the author of the bill that was crafted by the state’s uniform law commission, said he endorses the goals of SB 292, but if implemented as written it would immediately cost Clark County up to $10 million a year. The bill passed out of the Senate recently, but sources confirmed the Assembly will not act on it.

The bill’s presence generated controversy within the child advocacy community. Volunteers with the Court Appointed Special Advocate’s office expressed concern this week that SB 292 would effectively push them aside in favor of child-advocate lawyers. The bill, in fact, didn’t eliminate the CASA role, but it did promise to double the number of lawyers needed to represent young clients.

Read John L. Smith's April 28 column: In Nevada, it's never the right time to do our best to protect neglected kids