Paul Boger

Reno

Reno Bureau Chief and Journalist at KNPR-FM (Las Vegas, NV)

Politics and Government Reporter/Producer for Nevada Public Radio. Based in Reno. Retweets ain't endorsements. My opinions are mine alone. [email protected].

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Articles

First deadline in Carson City scraps hundreds of bills. Here's what that means

1 week ago | knpr.org | Paul Boger

Nevada’s state lawmakers meet every two years for four months to work out a two-year budget. They sift through hundreds of bills. Some of those bills get heard, others don’t even get lip service. Then some bills face deadlines. One deadline was last week. Another is five weeks from now. Surviving the deadline means they have a chance for final approval. Not surviving means they are mostly dead—and we’ll explain what that means in a minute.
Roughly 300 bills die in the Nevada Legislature on deadline day

1 week ago | knpr.org | Paul Boger

Hundreds of bills are dead after Friday's first major legislative deadline of Nevada’s 83rd Legislative Session. Roughly 300 bills and resolutions are no longer up for consideration after the Nevada Legislature’s first house committee passage deadline. Most of those bills never received a committee hearing.
Investigation leads to Nevada bill to close probate loophole

2 weeks ago | knpr.org | Paul Boger

In another example of how Nevada needs to catch up to the rest of the country, there’s a little-known law that lets nearly anyone sell the home of a deceased person who doesn’t leave behind a will. And many times, as has been the case in Nevada, the people who take control of the property and sell it for profit never have contact with the surviving family members. The story came out in January 2024. But Nevada’s legislature only meets once every two years.
Amid global financial worry, Nevada lawmakers are trying to prep a state budget

2 weeks ago | knpr.org | Paul Boger

As the stock markets fall from steep global tariffs imposed by the Trump administration, as people worry about their declining 401Ks, and as Nevada’s government retirees fret over PERS, their pensions — there’s more. In 2022, about $10 billion came to Nevada governments from the feds, almost 30% of all revenues to Nevada governmental bodies. But the Trump Administration is targeting its state funding, and cuts are already being made.
Group in Nevada aims to get solar on more rooftops

3 weeks ago | knpr.org | Paul Boger

Nevada is one of the sunniest states in the country and Las Vegas has just four fewer days of sunshine than Phoenix, on average. And Nevada has had laws on the books since 1997 that would allow homes with solar panels to transfer excess power to the grid, lowering their power bills. That’s almost 30 years. So, as experts say solar power is becoming less expensive than traditional electricity generators, why aren’t more homes throughout Nevada covered with solar panels?
Two Nevada bills target drivers who blow through red lights, construction zones

3 weeks ago | knpr.org | Paul Boger

We see other drivers run red lights every day. Not just the tail-end of the light, it’ll be red for a second or two and people still plow right through. It’s a dangerous practice that police say has increased road deaths. Last year, more than 400 people died on Nevada roads, making it one of the worst years on record for traffic fatalities. State data showed a 12% increase in traffic deaths in Clark County alone.
This Nevada bill would set a health standard for outdoor workers

4 weeks ago | knpr.org | Paul Boger

Nevada lawmakers are considering a measure that would expand worker protections to include air quality standards. Senate Bill 260 would require employers to monitor the air quality index and, when the air becomes unhealthy, provide workers with personal protective equipment, such as respirators. They’d also have to provide workers with an indoor area with filtered air to rest. Workers would also not be required to work if the air quality becomes very unhealthy, according to the index.
Water is a precious resource in Nevada. These bills could change how it's used

1 month ago | knpr.org | Paul Boger

There’s no question Nevada’s in the middle of a brutal drought. Some even think it’snot a drought, that this is the geological norm and it won’t be ending. Water managers say Nevada has conserved well, but conservation is no longer the long-term answer. State lawmakers are seeking ways to save and protect every drop of water the state holds. Several bills introduced in the Nevada Legislature aim to do just that. How would they work?
Nevada voters pack town hall to voice concerns about Trump policies

1 month ago | knpr.org | Paul Boger

Hundreds of northern Nevada voters gathered in Reno on Wednesday night to voice concerns about President Donald Trump and his administration’s latest actions to limit the size and scope of the federal government. Public backlash against cuts by DOGE continues to simmer. Voters at the Reno town hall expressed concerns about the threat of authoritarianism, as well as Elon Musk’s influence on the federal budget.
Nevada is owed $32M for firefighting in California. Will the state get that money?

1 month ago | knpr.org | Paul Boger

Nevada neighbors California, a state with a torrid history of wildfires. So it’s natural to assume that when those fires happen, our forestry experts will come to their aid, and that’s been happening for years. However, a recent audit found that while providing services and equipment to other states to fight fires in recent years, Nevada’s Division of Forestry didn’t get paid an estimated $32 million, the value for those services.