Under existing law, the board of trustees of a school district in which more than 75,000 pupils are enrolled (currently only the Clark County School District) is composed of 11 members, of whom: (1) seven voting members are elected from election districts established by the board of trustees; (2) one nonvoting member is appointed by the board of county commissioners of the county in which the school district is located; and (3) three nonvoting members are appointed by the governing bodies of the three most populous incorporated cities in the county in which the school district is located, with each governing body appointing one member. Existing law prohibits a nonvoting member from voting on the election of officers of the board of trustees or serving as an officer of the board of trustees. (NRS 386.165) Section 1 of this bill provides that the appointed members of the board of trustees of a school district in which more than 75,000 pupils are enrolled have the same duties, rights and responsibilities as the members of the board of trustees who are elected to the office. Section 1 prohibits a board of trustees from adopting a policy, bylaw or practice or otherwise restricting or curtailing the duties, rights or responsibilities of a member based on whether the member was elected or appointed to office. Section 3 of this bill authorizes appointed members of a board of trustees to participate in the appointment of a member to fill a vacancy among the elected members of the board of trustees. Section 4 of this bill authorizes appointed members of a board of trustees to serve as officers of the board of trustees. The Nevada Constitution prohibits, with certain exceptions, a person from being elected to any state office or local governing body if he or she has served in that office, or at the expiration of his or her current term if he or she is so serving, will have served, 12 years or more. (Nev. Const. Art. 15, § 3) Section 2 of this bill prohibits a person, elected or appointed, from serving as a trustee for any school district or combination of school districts for 12 years or more. Existing law establishes the salaries for the members of the board of trustees of school districts based on the population of the county in which the school district is located. Under existing law, the salary of a member of the board of trustees of a school district in a county whose population is 100,000 or more (currently Clark and Washoe Counties) is $750 per month. (NRS 386.320) Section 5 of this bill increases the salary of an elected member of the board of trustees of a school district in a county whose population is 700,000 or more (currently only the Clark County School District) to an amount equal to the base salary of a county commissioner of that county. Existing law establishes the base salary of such a county commissioner as an amount equal to 112.551 percent of the amount of the base annual salary for a county commissioner that was in effect on January 1, 2015. (NRS 245.043) Section 5 authorizes the board of county commissioners in a county whose population is less than 700,000 (currently all counties other than Clark County), or an appointing authority of an appointed member of a board of trustees in a county whose population is 700,000 or more (currently only Clark County), to provide additional compensation for a member of the board of trustees such that the salary of the member is equal to the salary of a county commissioner in that county. Section 5 requires the salary of a member of the board of trustees to be paid from the funds of the school district, except that any additional compensation authorized to be paid by the board of county commissioners or an appointing authority must be paid from the funds of that entity. Section 8 of this bill limits the salary increase authorized in section 5 for the elected members of the boards of trustees of a school district in a county whose population is 700,000 or more to those members who were elected to a term of office that begins on or after January 1, 2027, including members who are reelected to a term of office that begins on or after that date. Section 8 prohibits the salary of an appointed member of the board of trustees of a school district in a county whose population is 700,000 or more from being increased by the appointing authority without the consent of the member during any term that is being served on January 1, 2027. Section 9 of this bill prohibits a school district from reducing the compensation for teachers and other educational personnel and support staff to fund the increase in compensation for elected members of a board of trustees required by section 5. Section 6 of this bill prohibits a board of trustees from conducting certain business related to the members of the board of trustees and their duties at a meeting that has been designated as a work session or workshop. Section 6 also requires appointed members to be included in the membership of a board of trustees for the purposes of calculating the existence of a quorum for the transaction of business. Existing law authorizes a board of trustees to accept on behalf of and for the school district certain gifts or bequests of money or property. (NRS 386.390) Section 7 of this bill, subject to certain limitations, authorizes a member of the board of trustees to solicit such a gift or bequest on behalf of and for the school district.

Statutes affected:
As Introduced: 386.320
Reprint 1: 386.165, 386.240, 386.270, 386.310, 386.320, 386.330, 386.390
BDR: 386.320