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NEVADA

It's not over till it's over

In an incredible turn of events, a child welfare reform bill was passed in Nevada.

Home School Legal Defense Association wrote the language for Senate Bill 402, which requires all social workers to be trained in their duty to protect parents' constitutional and statutory rights during a child abuse or neglect investigation. The bill also requires social workers to inform parents of the specific allegations at the initial time of contact. (Up until this point, social workers would often refuse to tell innocent families the accusations against them.)

HSLDA provided legal arguments in support of SB 402 and sent out e-lerts at key junctures encouraging our members to call the Senate. HSLDA Senior Counsel Christopher Klicka negotiated with law enforcement associations, convincing them to drop their opposition to the bill. The bill passed the Senate.

However, despite our best efforts, the chairman of the Assembly Committee on Health and Human Services refused to schedule a hearing for the bill, simply letting it die. This removed what we thought was the bill's last chance at passing. All hope seemed dead. The next session was not for another two years. It looked like child welfare reform would just not happen this year in Nevada.

But Frank Schnorbus, a Nevada homeschool leader, and Senator Maurice Washington, the bill's sponsor, did not lose hope. They put their heads together and found a way to attach SB 402 to another bill. After Barbara Dragon, another Nevada homeschool leader, testified in support of the amended bill, it passed committee. Senate Bill 402 passed the entire legislature on June 6, 2005. A few weeks later, the governor signed it into law. We learned once again that it is not over till it's over!

The restrictions in this bill will provide strong constitutional protection for homeschoolers and other citizens of Nevada.