Guinn v. Legislature of the State of Nevada
Nevada Supreme Court
76 P.3d 22 (2003)

- Written by Sean Carroll, JD
Facts
Nevada’s 2004 fiscal year began on July 1, 2003. Despite many attempts, the Nevada state legislature (defendant) failed to approve a balanced budget by the beginning of the fiscal year, violating its duty under the state constitution. This failure resulted in the failure of the legislature to appropriate sufficient funding for public education, another of its constitutional duties. Through an amendment approved by ballot initiative, the constitution required that the legislature pass bills that increased public revenues by a two-thirds majority. After the amendment, however, the constitution still required only a simple majority vote for appropriations. The legislature was unable to pass a budget that met the two-thirds threshold. The lack of appropriate funding for public education left schools unfunded for the 2003–04 school year. Kenny Guinn (plaintiff), the governor of Nevada, filed a petition with the Nevada Supreme Court for a writ of mandamus, asking the court to order the legislature to pass a balanced budget that funded public education. The Nevada Supreme Court directed the state legislature to reconvene and pass a balanced budget to fund public education by a simple majority. Eleven days later, the legislature passed a balanced budget with sufficient education funding by a two-thirds majority. A group of 20 legislators filed a petition for rehearing the supreme court and filed a motion asking the supreme court to withdraw its opinion.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Per curiam)
Dissent (Maupin, J.)
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