Lombardo signs trio of special session bills in jovial bipartisan ceremony

Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo on Friday signed bills related to cybersecurity, health care and starting up a proactive state program that could supplement programs, such as food stamps, in case of future government shutdowns.

The jovial bipartisan ceremony, also attended by other state officials and stakeholders, was held in Nevada’s Las Vegas government complex.

Flanked by lawmakers, Lombardo signed multiple copies of Assembly bill 1, Senate Bill 3 and Senate Bill 5. They posed for photos.

Bills signed

AB 1 came in response of a ransomware attack that crippled Nevada’s IT infrastructure and disrupted state services earlier this year.

The law establishes a centralized “Security Operations Center” under the state’s chief information officer’s office and the “Cybersecurity Talent Pipeline Program.”

It requires annual reporting from the center, “authorizes school districts to use state cyber services and strengthens statewide cyber defenses amid rising threats,” Lombardo’s office said.

“It’s important that we react in concert,” Lombardo added.

The law is crucial to prioritize the issue instead of waiting a “significant amount of time” to react to a future threat, he said.

“I think the state — everybody associated with the state — and what we do in the cyber field is going to make a difference as a result,” Lombardo said.

Senate Bill 3 creates the “Silver State General Assistance Program” to modernize Nevada emergency services “during federal aid disruptions.”

The law was introduced as a response to lapses of funding to federal programs, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which paused benefits in November for about half-a-million Nevadans during the federal government shutdown.

The state stepped in to provide tens of millions of dollars to infuse dollars into Nevada’s food banks to supplement nutritional aid to food insecure residents.

The program sets up a process to provide temporary monetary or in-kind assistance to affected providers.

Lombardo said that the state went through “nuances” to provide the emergency dollars during the shutdown.

“This codifies it now, that we wont have to have questions into the future of how we can address those emergency needs,” Lombardo said.

Senate Bill 5 led to the creation of the state’s “Health Care Access and Recruitment Program” that advocates for private investment and employment.

“Further, it supports long-term growth in Nevada’s physician, nursing, behavioral health, and specialty workforces and establishes competitive grants to expand clinical services and provider capacity,” Lombardo said. “Finally, it ensures oversight and accountability for funded projects.”

Added Lombardo: “There could be an argument that it wasn’t necessary for a special session to conduct this, but I can argue the other way; that we constantly discuss the void of medical services in the state of Nevada, and it’s better that we address it sooner than later.”

Democrat leaders react

Senate Majority Leader Nicole Cannizzaro and Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager, both Democrats, attended the ceremony.

In remarks to the media, they highlighted the bills.

“Leading up to the special session, it was many months and weeks worth of work,” Cannizzaro said. “And as we confronted new challenges approaching that special session, it just became that much more intense for us to be able to find those solutions for Nevadans.”

Looking ahead to the 2027 Legislature, Cannizzaro said she expects legislators to continue introducing bills that address affordable health care and housing.

Asked what proposed special session legislation he wished had survived the special session, Yeager answered Assembly Bill 5: a $95 million state transferable film tax credit program to develop a film studio in Summerlin.

“Unemployment is really high here still, around the country,” he said. “I think bringing a new industry to Nevada would’ve been really, really good, not just for the jobs here but for the economic diversification.”

Added Yeager: “Every time we have a downturn in this country, it really hurts Nevada because of our reliance on tourism. I think that was a real missed opportunity for the state.”

Noting a close vote, he said he appreciated the discussion on the topic for second consecutive session.

Earlier this year, Yeager announced he’s not running for re-election in 2026.

He said he doesn’t know if the film tax credits will be re-introduced by fellow lawmakers in the future.

“I think we have really have to lay the groundwork, though,” Yeager said. “I think nobody wants to go through more contentious hearings with the same outcome, so we have to be sure that it makes sense.”