by carsoncityjournal | Jul 22, 2020 | Uncategorized
Governor Sisolak is avoid legislative half-time by diving right in to the second half of planning for our coping with the lingering Covid-19.
Governor Sisolak is barely wrapping up his first legislative launch to tightly manage state revenues due to the Corona Virus – but now he’s digging in to the second half of his budgetary journey to keep Nevada financially above water. Here’s his message to the legislature and to the citizens of Nevada:
His focus: law enforcement reform, fixing the state’s unemployment system and setting standards for business and employee safety to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Governor’s Sisolak’s view of all things Legislative:
I convened the Legislature for the current special session, which is now on Dday number 12, to take the necessary legislative actions to address state government’s top priority – the historic $1.2 billion budget deficit caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, my Administration’s other top priorities still remain as critical as ever, including our need to manage the public health crisis and protect the health and safety of Nevadans.
Since the start of this budget special session, we have also been working to manage our increases in cases and hospitalizations as they hit record numbers. While it was my previous intention to call an immediate subsequent special session to discuss extraordinary policy issues that I believe cannot and should not wait until the regularly scheduled 2021 legislative session, I have serious reservations about having our lawmakers convene again for a similar – or longer – period of time in the midst of this spike in our State.
To be clear: our State is in a dangerous situation, and it is necessary for my administration to dedicate all of our time and energy toward mitigating the spread and addressing the increases we are currently facing.
My goal is still to issue a proclamation for a second special session, but I will only do so when I am confident the Legislature, in coordination with my office, has fully reviewed all policy items and is ready to conduct a thorough, organized and efficient second special session. This is the responsible decision to make in order to protect the time needed to address the ongoing COVID-19 crisis.
Critical policy issues I am planning to include for the second special session:
- Addressing criminal and social justice policy reform
- Working to ensure Nevadans, businesses, workers and the unemployed have the support and protections they need as they battle COVID-19, including the following:
- Ensuring Nevadans can exercise their fundamental right to vote in a way that does not dangerously expose them to increased risk of COVID-19 infection
- Helping stabilize Nevada businesses so they don’t suffer continued economic hits and establishing safety standards for the workers who are keeping our economy going
- Removing statutory barriers impeding the work of Nevada’s unemployment insurance program
by carsoncityjournal | Jul 22, 2020 | Uncategorized
Aaron Ford
Nevada AG
Attorney General Ford Helps School Districts Bring Internet Connectivity and Products to Students Learning From Home
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Benefits Result from 2019 T-Mobile Settlement
Carson City, NV – Today, Nevada Attorney General Aaron D. Ford announced that his office will help local school districts bring T-Mobile’s new “T-Mobile Project 10Million” Broadband Access for Education Program to Nevada students learning from home when the initiative launches. When T-Mobile’s Project 10Million program becomes available, it will help provide qualifying student households with access to broadband products and Internet services before the start of the 2020-2021 school year. Under the terms of the settlement, T-Mobile will be offering qualifying students free service and hotspots, as well as reduced cost devices. In order to achieve this goal, T-Mobile will be aligning with the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) qualification criteria for credentialing and eligibility.
In November 2019, AG Ford and his Bureau of Consumer Protection negotiated a settlement with T-Mobile to resolve antitrust concerns surrounding T-Mobile’s merger with Sprint. Bringing T-Mobile’s Project 10Million to Nevada is one of several benefits from that settlement. Through this settlement, AG Ford and his Bureau of Consumer Protection have been working with the Nevada Department of Education to connect T-Mobile and Nevada school districts with eligible households. These households will gain access to this new program when it formally launches.
“Thousands of local students are thwarted from distance learning programs because they don’t have Internet access and devices in their homes,” said Attorney General Aaron D. Ford. “Under my Administration, Nevada families always come first, and I’m thrilled to connect T-Mobile with Nevada’s school districts to bring distance learning into the homes of many young Nevadans in need.”
“Having high-quality access to the Internet should not be based on zip code,” added State Superintendent for Public Instruction Jhone Ebert. “All of Nevada’s children deserve to have a device and connectivity to reach their teachers, primary resources and the global community. Thanks to the hard work of our attorney general and his Bureau of Consumer Protection, this settlement seeks to address a serious need and inequity brought to the forefront by the COVID-19 pandemic and shift to distance learning.”
Additional information about how T-Mobile will be addressing the needs of students during the COVID-19 crisis through T-Mobile’s Project 10Million is available here. Information on how T-Mobile has connected more than 750,000 students across nearly 1,000 schools and school districts in the past several weeks during the COVID-19 pandemic is available here.
Settlement With T-Mobile:
AG Ford and his office worked with T-Mobile and Sprint to negotiate specific settlement terms in the best interests of Nevada consumers and employees. In addition to T-Mobile’s Project 10Million, key commitments in this settlement placed an emphasis on T-Mobile deploying a network that would cover over 90 percent of the State’s population and save employee jobs post-merger.
“While the commitment to keeping hundreds of local jobs was important prior to the pandemic, with so much unemployment it has become even more critical now,” said Attorney General Aaron D. Ford. “T-Mobile agreed to retain a 450 employee Sprint call center and convert it into a T-Mobile Experience Center, and to offer employment with similar duties and pay to every retail Sprint and T-Mobile employee post-merger.”
Additional highlights of key commitments in the settlement that are advanced include:
- Deploy 5G Network: Within three years of the close of the merger, T-Mobile will deploy a 5G network in Nevada with at least 64 percent of the State’s population having access to download speeds equal to or greater than 100 Mbps. Within six years of the close, the network will cover at least 94 percent of Nevada’s general population and 83 percent of Nevada’s rural population, with access to download speeds equal to or greater than 100 Mbps.
- Low-Price Mobile Plan Commitment: For at least six years, T-Mobile will offer all Nevada consumers new, low-priced plans that include unlimited talk, text and at least 2 GB of data for $15 per month, and 5 GB of data for $25 per month. Furthermore, T-Mobile will incrementally increase the amount of data provided under both plans, so that each plan’s data allotment will nearly double within four years.
- Commitment to Preserve Nevada Jobs: All retail T-Mobile and Sprint employees in Nevada will receive an offer of employment with T-Mobile, with comparable duties and wages. T-Mobile will also maintain the existing Sprint call center in Las Vegas by converting it to a T-Mobile Customer Experience Center, with at least 450 employees for the entire six-year term of the agreement. The agreement protects the rights of employees to participate in unions or organized labor; and T-Mobile will launch a paid apprentice program, selecting at least 10 apprentices per year, including at least three management or professional trainees.
- Philanthropic Contribution for Minorities, Women, Small Businesses and Nevada Native-American Tribes: T-Mobile will make a charitable contribution of $30,000,000 in three equal installments over a three-year period to fund programs through grants that enhance entrepreneurial opportunities and workforce development for, and expand small businesses owned by, minorities and women in the State of Nevada. The recipients and use of these grants will be at the discretion of Nevada’s attorney general. Funds may also be used to pre-pay or reimburse costs associated with eligible broadband improvements made for the benefit of Nevada’s Native American Tribes under a program administered by the Nevada Governor’s Office of Science, Innovation and Technology.
by carsoncityjournal | Jul 22, 2020 | Uncategorized
Corona Virus
Update…
Quad-County COVID-19 Update: One Death, Seven New Cases, and Three Recoveries
(Carson City, NV) – Carson City Health and Human Services (CCHHS) is reporting an additional death due COVID-19 in the Quad-County region. The individual is a female Carson City resident in her 60’s with underlying health conditions.
CCHHS is also reporting seven new positive cases and three additional recoveries of COVID-19. This brings the total number of cases to 532, with 382 recoveries and nine deaths, 141 cases remain active.
The new cases are:
• A female Douglas County resident in her 70’s with no connection to a previously reported case.
• A female Carson City resident in her 60’s with a recent travel history to California.
• A male Lyon County resident in his 20’s with no connection to a previously reported case.
• A female Carson City resident in her 30’s with no connection to a previously reported case.
• A male Douglas County resident in his 30’s with no connection to a previously reported case.
• A female Douglas County resident in her 60’s with no connection to a previously reported case.
• An adult male Lyon County resident in his teens with a connection to a previously reported case.
Carson City Health and Human Services is working to identify close risk contacts to prevent further spread of the disease. Due to medical privacy requirements and to protect their identity, no further information about the cases will be released.
Carson City
-260 Total Cases (+2 from 7/20)
-73 Active (-1 from 7/20)
-180 Recovered (+2 from 7/20)
-7 Deaths (+1 from 7/20)
Douglas County
-109 Total (+3 from 7/20)
-30 Active (+2 from 7/20)
-78 Recovered (+1 from 7/20)
Lyon County
-161 Total (+2 from 7/20)
-37 Active (+2 from 7/20)
-122 Recovered (+0 from 7/20)
– 2 Deaths (+0 from 7/20)
Storey County
-2 Total (+0 from 7/20)
-0 Active (+0 from 7/20)
-2 Recoveries (+0 from 7/20)
TOTAL
-532 Total Cases (+7 from 7/20)
-141 Active (+3 from 7/20)
-382 Recovered (+3 from 7/20)
-9 Deaths (+1 from 7/20)
-13 Hospitalizations (+0 from 7/20)
Drive-Thru COVID-19 Testing for Quad-County Residents Without Symptoms
There is one drive-thru COVID-19 testing event for Quad-County residents without symptoms this week. Testing is free of charge; first come, first served, no appointments or reservations.
• July 23, 8 to 11am, Carson High School, 1111 N. Saliman Rd., Carson City, 400 tests available.
For those who are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 or have questions, call the Quad-County COVID-19 Hotline Monday through Friday, 8 am to 5 pm. Spanish speakers are available. The phone number is (775) 283-4789.
by carsoncityjournal | Jul 22, 2020 | Uncategorized
by carsoncityjournal | Jul 22, 2020 | Uncategorized
WNC reopens July 27th
Students and community members will be welcomed back on WNC’s campuses starting July 27.
Phase 3 also includes remaining employees who didn’t return in Phases 1 and 2 coming back to campus on July 1.
At the heart of WNC’s reopening plan is ensuring the safety and well-being of its students, faculty, staff and visitors. To provide that safety the college is asking visitors to practice social distancing and to wear a face covering while on WNC’s three campuses.
Students or anyone visiting the campus not wearing a mask can be told to do so and will be asked to leave if they do not comply. Exceptions will be made for individuals who can’t wear a face covering due to a medical condition, disability or who are unable to remove a mask without assistance. Persons exempted from wearing a face covering should wear a non-restrictive alternative, such as face shield.
Because plans are in flux and match mandates from Gov. Steve Sisolak, refer to this webpage for updates.
All employees return to work as “normal” as possible in Phase 3.
WNC will work to secure as much PPE as possible, although supplies are limited. Employees who need PPE should contact the Office of Human Resources.
WNC is working on being as flexible as possible with the various needs of our employees. The HR office, led by Melody Duley will be the point of contact for requesting return to work exemptions.
by carsoncityjournal | Jul 21, 2020 | Uncategorized
Sheriff’s deputies go through the evidence of the incident.
2:50 pm Tuesday – Fifteen year old boy pulled a gun at the Mills Park Skate Park. He cocked the gun and pointed it at a nearby child. Somebody call the sheriff’s office. Boy scurries off with the gun heading south toward Robinson Street. Deputies think the boy dropped the gun while running through backyards. They capture him.
2:55pm Boy detained by deputies on Robinson. Deputies think they know where the boy dropped the gun. They find the gun – no bullets it. It was suspected the boy had bullets in the gun earlier. Boy in custody.
