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AB 544

Relating to: a statewide retail food establishment food grading system, providing an exemption from emergency rule procedures, granting rule-making authority, and providing a penalty. (FE)

2025-2026 Regular Session Introduced by Margaret Arney and 3 co-sponsors

AB 544 shifts DPBH licenses to expire one year after issuance (anniversary-based), not Dec 31, with annual renewals; effects staggered dates and ongoing compliance after 2026.

Read first time and referred to Committee on Consumer Protection
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WeVote Research Nonpartisan
Bill Summary · AB 544

AB 544 — Summary (2025 session)

Status: Enacted (Chaptered). Effective date: January 1, 2026.

Purpose / Intent

AB 544 revises the statutory expiration and renewal timing for licenses issued by the Division of Public and Behavioral Health (DPBH), Department of Health and Human Services, by moving from calendar-year expirations to anniversary-based, 1-year expirations. The change is intended to align license expirations with the date of issuance rather than all licenses expiring uniformly on December 31.

Key provisions

  • Amends NRS 449.089:
    • Current law (prior to this act): Licenses issued under NRS 449.029–449.2428 expire on December 31 following issuance and are renewable annually.
    • New rule (as amended by AB 544): Each license issued under NRS 449.029–449.2428 expires one year after the date it was issued. Licenses remain renewable annually upon reapplication and payment of applicable fees (including fees prescribed under NRS 457.240 and NRS 449.050), unless the Division determines after investigation that the facility failed to meet statutory or regulatory requirements.
  • Existing reapplication content requirements (statements of compliance, specific documentation for various facility types) remain in place.
  • Section that originally provided specific transitional rules for licenses held on a particular date was deleted in later amendments.
  • Effective date: January 1, 2026.

Who is affected

  • Licensees regulated under NRS 449.029 to 449.2428, inclusive, including (but not limited to):
    • Hospitals, psychiatric hospitals, psychiatric residential treatment facilities
    • Skilled nursing facilities, intermediate care facilities
    • Hospice programs, ambulatory surgical centers, clinics, rural clinics
    • Agencies providing in-home personal care or nursing services
    • Residential facilities for groups, community-based living arrangements, and other medical facilities defined in those statutes
  • The Division of Public and Behavioral Health (DPBH), which administers licensing and renewals.
  • State fiscal/administrative operations (fiscal note: effect on state — Yes; effect on local government — No).

Procedural/timeline aspects

  • The statutory change takes effect January 1, 2026. From that date forward, any license issued or renewed will expire one year after its issuance/renewal date.
  • AB 544 removed an earlier transitional provision that would have explicitly extended certain pre‑existing licenses to their 2026 anniversary dates and required DPBH assistance to determine those dates; that transitional text was deleted in later amendments prior to enrollment.

Potential impacts / practical considerations

  • Licensing renewals will become staggered across the year based on each license’s issuance or renewal date, rather than clustering at year-end.
  • Administrative workload for DPBH may shift from a concentrated year-end processing period to a steadier year‑round cadence; the bill’s fiscal note indicates a state impact.
  • Licensees will need to track individual anniversary dates for renewals; fee timing and budgeting for facilities may change accordingly.
  • Substantive licensing standards, renewal criteria, and fees remain governed by existing NRS provisions; this bill changes only the timing of expiration and renewals.

Reference

  • Amends: NRS 449.089 (licenses issued under NRS 449.029–449.2428).
  • Effective: January 1, 2026.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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