NV Energy

Last week, I wrote about how the pressures of the final hours of the Nevada Legislature result in lots of bad lawmaking. Today, Anjeanette Damon details some really odious bits of sausage making, including a measure to benefit NV Energy that could cost rate payers $1 billion.

This episode supports the contention that the 120-day session limit makes for very bad legislating. Limiting the number of days the Legislature meets does not limit the mischief that can cause. It simply gives the lobbyists and inside wheeler-dealers all the power, while shutting out the public.

CARSON CITY – The argument goes like this: every Nevadan would only pay 50 cents per person for a great renewable energy program.
Energy lobbyist Ted Ko even held up two shiny quarters during a legislative hearing to make the point.
But legislators are considering more than a dozen renewable energy bills this session,  and some lawmakers fear that a few dollars here and there will add up to significantly higher utility bills for their constituents if all of these bills pass.

By Andrew Doughman
CARSON CITY — The Legislature played host to a former director of the CIA yesterday, who came to voice support for a renewable energy bill.
James Woolsey, director of the CIA between 1993 and 1995, said the passage of the bill is a matter of national security.
Senate Bill 184 would establish a “feed-in tariff” program in Nevada, which would allow small-scale solar, wind, geothermal and other energy producers to “feed in” their energy to the grid.

CARSON CITY – Nevadans would no longer see education board representatives on their ballots if a proposal before the Legislature passes.
Assembly Bill 548, recommended by an education task force, would give the governor the power to appoint the superintendent and state board of education.

At the request of Spread the Word Nevada, a local children's literacy nonprofit group, Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval flew in from Carson City to Las Vegas on March 31 to read at Cambeiro Elementary School.

This was his last stop after visiting three other schools in Las Vegas, which concluded the governor's reading tour as part of Read Across America and Nevada Reading Month. During his first school visit in Reno on March 2 Sandoval signed a proclamation declaring March 2011 Nevada Reading Month.

UPDATE 4PM: Power was restored to about around 3,900 NV Energy customers in south Carson City and north Douglas County at about 3:30 this afternoon.

NV Energy reports crews continue work at the substation where the outage happened but managed to get electricity back on to the affected areas. Officials also revised the number of homes and businesses affected during the outage to around 3,900.

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A power outage this afternoon is affecting about 6,000 NV Energy customers in southern Carson City and northern Douglas County.

A trio who allegedly stole scrap copper from a Washoe County construction site and brought it to Carson City to strip and burn it of its insulation, face felony theft charges.

Aaron Clack, Melissa Clack, and Josh Stevens, all from Carson City, were arrested Thursday in the Deer Run Road area after black smoke was reported coming from inside a brick structure. The case is being handled by the Department of Alternative Sentencing. Aaron Clack also faces an additional drug charge, authorities said.

Two men and a woman are reportedly in custody after Carson City authorities were called to a fire in the hills above Deer Run Road. The fire, said to involve copper wiring, was doused at about 3:30 this afternoon.

An investigation is underway and NV Energy has been contacted. One of those in custody was reportedly injured in the fire and was treated by paramedics. Investigators have reportedly found gasoline and bolt cutters near the origin of the fire, according to police scanner reports.

CARSON CITY – The U.S. Chamber of Commerce released a first-of-its-kind economic study today identifying stalled energy projects – including 10 in Nevada – that are costing billions of dollars in lost gross domestic product.
The study says the delays are costing the state’s economy $66.9 billion in GDP and that 86,700 jobs a year could be created in Nevada during the construction phase of the projects.

Highway 395 at Muller Lane in Minden has been reopened, according to the Douglas County Sheriff's Office.

Muller Lane, however, is still closed as NV Energy crews continue their work. There is currently no estimated time of reopening Muller Lane.

From the Douglas County Sheriff's Office: The closure of Highway 395 near Muller Lane in Minden will continue until approximately 6 p.m. It had originally been thought to be opened by 4 p.m. The repair is taking longer than initially expected.

This Saturday, Feb. 12, is the opening day of the 2011 fishing seasons for the following waters in Lyon County:

— The Fort Churchill Cooling Ponds, near Wabuska.
— Applicable open waters (Bass Pond, Beaver Slough, Crappie Pond, Hinkson Slough, North Pond and the Walker River), all on the Mason Valley Wildlife Management Area (MVWMA), near Yerington.

All of the waters listed above will close on Sept. 30. If you are interested in fishing at any of those waters on Opening Day, here is some miscellaneous information:

Fort Churchill Cooling Ponds:

Leroy Raymond Yeoman, 31, and Shane Robert Donovan, 22, were arrested Wednesday afternoon after an NV Energy employee reported witnessing the men cutting up a passive reflector microwave tower located in the mountains east of Sedge Road.

According to the arrest report, the NV Energy employee was dispatched to the tower location after the company lost the microwave feed from Geiger Grade. When he arrived, he said he observed the subjects cutting up the tower with a power saw and loading the metal in a pickup truck and trailer. The employee said the men admitted tearing it down for scrap.

Plans to install solar panels at five Carson City schools can proceed on schedule, a district court judge ruled today.

Carson City District Court Sr. Judge Deborah Agosti said it was her opinion that the Carson City School District acted within the scope of the law when it came to a joint bid opportunity with the city of Sparks to install the panels.

On Monday the Northern Nevada Building and Construction Trades Council filed a petition in Carson City District Court to stop progress on the nearly $11 million project.

Good news for Carson City NV Energy customers. The Public Utilities Commission of Nevada has approved an overall decrease in electric rates for NV Energy’s Northern Nevada electric customers effective Saturday, Jan. 1.

For the typical residential customer using 745 kilowatt hours of electricity per month, it means a decrease of approximately 1.8 percent or $1.57 per month from $87.97 to $86.40.

Millions of dollars in solar energy projects slated for the Carson City School District hang in the balance after a lawsuit was filed on Monday by a Nevada construction union.

The Northern Nevada Building and Construction Trades Council filed a petition in District Court to stop Carson City School District’s plan to build solar energy arrays at five separate school locations in Carson City. A hearing is set for Thursday, 9 a.m. in Carson City District Court.

By Nevada News Bureau staff
CARSON CITY – Nevada Republican Gov.-elect Brian Sandoval announced today his selection of 29 Nevadans to serve on his transition advisory team, including Bill Bible, former president of the Nevada Resort Association, and state Sen. Dean Rhoads, who backed Sen. Harry Reid’s re-election bid.
The diverse group of community leaders from across Nevada will provide input and feedback to Sandoval on a wide range of issues.

The Nevada Highway Patrol remains busy today attending to a number of weather-related accidents between Carson City and Reno, Trooper Chuck Allen reports.

With a winter storm warning in effect until 4 p.m. today followed by a blast of cold weather through Wednesday, conditions on Northern Nevada roads remain icy and will likely continue that way through the holiday travel period.

For the 19th consecutive year, the Carson City Shade Tree Council will host its annual Fall Tree Care Seminar on November 3, 2010. The Seminar will be held in the Sierra Room at the Community Center from 8:30 am until 4 pm and is open to all tree care professionals and tree lovers in the community. The Community Center is located at 851 East William Street in Carson City.

The Seminar will be broadcast on Carson City’s public access television stations.

By Nevada News Bureau
(Updated at 3:20 p.m. on Oct. 13, 2010)

Here's some good news for those who've come to expect bad news: Beginning today NV Energy will slash its overall electric rates by 6.73 percent for Northern Nevada customers.

With the adjustment, electric rates will have dropped nearly 19 percent since January 2009, company officials say, bringing the rollback electric prices to 2005 levels.

If you're having problems logging into Facebook this afternoon, you're not alone. A widespread outage has been reported, stretching well beyond Carson City and Lake Tahoe.

Ironically, Twitter users are tracking the developments.

Update 6:30 — Traffic lights on South Carson from Koontz Lane to Old Clear Creek Road were out for a couple of hours this afternoon due to a power outage.

We have confirmed that power was restored to the area at about 6:15, and all traffic lights are working now.

The power is back on, traffic lights are now working and cleanup continues tonight after a freakish thunderstorm brought heavy wind gusts, lightening and rain through a portion of Carson City.

A flash flood warning issued for Carson City has expired but continues through 6:15 p.m. in central Douglas County, according to the National Weather Service in Reno. Rain and heavy winds have punched the region, with reports of power outages in east and west Carson City.

In addition, the westbound lane of Highway 50 going up to Spooner Summit is closed, with Nevada Highway Patrol diverting traffic. No word yet on the cause for the closure.

A power line snapped and a transformer is down in the area of Spear and Nevada streets near Division. Carson City fire crews and the Carson City Sheriff's Office closed portions of traffic in the area. The downed power lines did not arc and were not live on the ground, according to fire personnel on the scene.

A must-attend event for the whole family is the RSVP Annual 4th of July Celebration in Mills Park, which runs July 1-4, with a fireworks show on Sunday night. Join in on the fun during this four-day carnival that features rides, arts, crafts, novelties, great food and drinks. The fireworks show begins at 9:15 p.m., at the park, courtesy of RSVP, Carson City Toyota/Scion and Wells Fargo Bank, Carson Nugget, Gold Dust West, NV Energy, Carson City Office of Business Development, Adele's Restaurant and Lounge, and Inland Empire Shows. Call (775) 687-4680, ext.4.

CARSON CITY – Gov. Jim Gibbons today appointed Anthony Dazzio to the Nevada Commission on Economic Development.

Written by NV Energy Public Information Officer Karl Walquist:

The effort to reconstruct the historic Virginia & Truckee Railroad is receiving a boost from NV Energy with a $100,000 grant to the Northern Nevada Railway Foundation, the fund-raising arm of the Nevada Commission for the Reconstruction of the V&T Railway.

NV

You may have heard that there are some big financial incentives for slapping energy-generating solar panels on the roofs of your home and/or business. There are. But time to apply to get those incentives was running out. So NV Energy extended the deadline to apply. So, you now have until April 21st to get those applications in to NV Energy in Reno. Call them for an application or e-mail NV Energy at RenewableGenerations@NVEnergy.com.

NV Energy has agreed to buy wind energy from a company constructing a huge wind farm 30 miles east of Ely.