He spent the bulk of his career — 15 years — in wind energy, followed by five years in solar and the past five and a half years in natural gas, which, he said, opened the door for him to build relationships in all levels of government in Nevada.

In 2023, in spite of Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo’s fierce criticism of the Steve Sisolak administration on the campaign trail, he kept even more. Ten out of the 17 cabinet appointments announced by Lombardo Friday were Sisolak holdovers

In this week’s edition of Indy Environment, we talk to an author who recently looked at the history of public lands policy in the West and what it might mean for the future.

This week’s Indy Environment looks at the steps Nevada is taking to create a more organized and more efficient grid in the West.

This week’s Indy Environment newsletter looks at the Glasgow climate conference, what’s at stake and how those involved in Nevada climate policy are watching the talks.

The state’s Green Building Tax Abatements program is still in heavy use — a state report estimated more than $25 million in property taxes were abated through the 2020 fiscal year, with $105 million in property taxes abated since 2010. State budget analysts say that more than 160 buildings in the state — from Park MGM, Wynn/Encore and even the T-Mobile Arena — enjoy partial property tax abatements through the program.

Although Democratic lawmakers overwhelmingly approved a 2050 net-zero emissions goal two years ago, the two pieces of natural legislation — and the debates around them — show that tensions remain in the party (which controls both the legislative and executive branches) over how to best move forward on facilitating a transition toward decarbonization.

This week’s Indy Environment newsletter looks at a hearing Tuesday on AB380, legislation that would require gas utilities to go through a comprehensive planning process meant to consider the effects of decarbonization on their operations and ratepayers.

That’s why the state’s Interim Finance Committee is meeting this Monday, and is set to accept more than $633 million in federal grant dollars from the federal CRRSA bill to go toward emergency rental assistance and education spending.

The goal is clear: To reduce statewide greenhouse gas emissions to net-zero by 2050. The challenge is how to get there.

This week's Indy Environment newsletter looks at the state's comprehensive climate strategy to move toward a goal of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

This week's Indy Environment newsletter looks at legislation introduced by Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto as an alternative to the Navy's proposed expansion of the Fallon Range Training Complex.

But out of more than $17.6 million in loans granted through the program, the Office of Energy leadership says that only $3.7 million of that initial sum has been paid back, with $11.8 million considered “bad debt” and written off by the state as of Tuesday. There are five loans — cumulatively worth about $2 million — that are still being actively paid off.

Signing the executive order was the most recent step for Sisolak — the state’s first Democratic governor in 20 years — in aligning Nevada with national and worldwide efforts to combat the effects of climate change, including signing up the state in March to meet the emission reduction targets as part of the U.S. Climate Alliance.

The announcement marks a significant shift for an executive branch that was early to embrace renewable energy, but until recently had shied away from making explicit policy statements on an issue that scientists say is playing a role in rising temperatures, more extreme wildfires and increased variability of mountain snowpack, the source of drinking water for most Nevadans.

Schieve is scheduled to headline a campaign kickoff event for Britton Griffith, an executive with Reno Engineering and city planning commissioner, on Oct. 24 at the Lake Mansion in Reno. Griffith is one of two challengers running against Brekhus, running for her third term to represent Ward 1, which covers portions of downtown and west Reno.

Supportive testimony dominated most of the hearing Tuesday on SB358, a bill by Democratic Sen. Chris Brooks that would increase the state’s Renewable Portfolio Standard from the current 25 percent by 2025 mark to 50 percent by 2030. Even the handful of opponents to the bill insisted that they supported an increase to the standard and only quibbled with a portion of the methodology behind the RPS.