Freshman Assemblyman Gregory Koenig is sponsoring AB277. It  would provide an extra safety net for rural health care facilities across Nevada by designating them as “emergency rural hospitals.”

“Becoming a justice of the peace, I know, will be very exciting. And I will go to whatever lengths I have to to make sure that I have all of the knowledge.”

In an August 2021 email to an Elko County deputy district attorney, Steninger laid out the group’s interest in having “the rural counties … announce plans to shift to paper ballots,” which they believed would make the rest of the state “obliged to follow suit.”

Rural voters could still prove pivotal in an election that remains within the polling margin of error, with a strong — or weak — rural performance changing the dynamics in urban Clark or Washoe counties. 

Richard Cusolito believes he’s saving lives by distributing clean syringes and needles to people who use drugs in this rural area of northeastern Nevada — but he knows some residents disagree.

Marchant said his plan with Kampf involves using “paper ballots with anti-counterfeit measures,” conducting voting and counting “on a precinct-level basis” and livestreaming — though he did not specify what would be streamed. 

Visitors may soon have a new reason to stop in Tonopah — Stash Fine Cannabis Company plans to bring a “farmer’s market” experience to customers in the town of 2,100, providing cannabis products.

Nye and Esmeralda counties could soon be joined by two more rural jurisdictions, Elko and Lyon, whose commissioners are set to discuss alternatives to electronic voting machines later this week.

During the Wednesday county commission meeting, Gilbert railed against Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak and the state’s COVID-19 emergency declaration, as he pitched his services to the county.

State election officials and the Department of Justice intervened last week to thwart an attempt by Lander County commissioners to audit the county’s electronic voting machines.

Right off the main drag through downtown Goldfield, across from a supposedly haunted hotel passing the occasional wild burrow, there is a building straight out of a classic Western film. 

Lyon County commissioners voted 3-2 on Thursday to rename the county’s justice complex after former President Donald Trump.

Colin Robertson, head of the state’s Division of Outdoor Recreation, called for more federal funding for land management along with investment in rural communities to help better manage resources stressed by the pandemic, which drove more campers to remote areas even as jobs decreased in outdoor recreation.

The Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe is one of many tribes around the state and country moving quickly through the vaccine rollout process, opening appointments and eligibility to the general tribal population 18 and over. There are more than 2,000 enrolled members of the tribe in Northern Nevada.

In a special edition of the IndyMatters podcast, Blockchains CEO Jeff Berns sat down with The Nevada Independent to answer questions about the company’s plans, its funding, its relationship with the governor, and its push to acquire water in rural Nevada.

Gov. Steve Sisolak’s Home Means Nevada political action committee raised more than $830,000 in the last three months of last year, including $500,000 from Nevada Gold Mines — a joint venture between mining giants Barrick and Newmont — and another $260,000 from the pharmaceutical lobbying group PhRMA, according to campaign finance documents filed Wednesday.

The Nevada Independent spoke with Gray for a 30-minute conversation on the mining industry’s priorities this session, and what it would consider a victory when lawmakers adjourn in about three months.

Carson City District Court Judge James Wilson issued the order on Thursday, striking a blow against efforts led by rural Nevada counties and Nevada Gold Mines to disqualify the proposed constitutional amendments. If any of the measures pass during the 2021 legislative session, they would proceed to the 2022 ballot for consideration by voters.

The Lyon County resolution would allow businesses to determine whether and how to implement certain practices as they see fit and the sheriff and district attorney may use their discretion not to enforce or respond to complaints related to violations of Gov. Steve Sisolak’s emergency directives.

This week’s Indy Environment newsletter looks at the potential for lithium mining in Nevada as Gov. Steve Sisolak focuses on encouraging the “new energy economy.” Lithium is an essential ingredient for electric vehicles, but it can be challenging to bring projects online.