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- 83rd Session (2025)
Assembly Bill No. 543–Committee on Ways and Means
CHAPTER..........
AN ACT relating to state property; revising certain provisions
relating to the lease of certain state real property for grazing
or pasturage rights and the sale of agricultural products
produced on such real property; requiring certain money
received for the grazing of livestock and the sale of
agricultural products be deposited in the Account for
Maintenance of State Parks within the Division of State Parks
of the State Department of Conservation and Natural
Resources; and providing other matters properly relating
thereto.
Legislative Counsel’s Digest:
Under existing law, the Administrator of the Division of State Lands of the
State Department of Conservation and Natural Resources is authorized to lease
certain land owned by the State of Nevada for certain purposes, including for the
purpose of grazing livestock, and sets forth the manner in which the fee for the
lease of land for the grazing of livestock is determined. (NRS 322.010, 322.075)
Section 3.5 of this bill repeals this provision. Section 2.5 of this bill authorizes the
Administrator of the Division of State Parks of the Department, for any real
property owned by the State and assigned to the Division for administration, to: (1)
lease grazing and pasturage rights in and to the real property; or (2) sell agricultural
products produced on the real property. Section 2 .5: (1) requires, with certain
exceptions, the Administrator to advertise the lease or sale for bids; and (2)
authorizes the Administrator to negotiate the lease or sale under certain
circumstances after advertising for bids. Sections 1.3 and 1.7 of this bill provide
that this authority gr anted to the Administrator of the Division of State Parks is an
exception to the authority granted to the Administrator of the Division of State
Lands to lease state lands.
Existing law creates the Account for Maintenance of State Parks within the
Division of State Parks and requires that money deposited in the Account must only
be used to repair and maintain state parks, monuments and recreational areas. (NRS
407.0762) Sections 2.5 and 3 of this bill require that any money collected for the
lease of real property owned by the State and assigned to the Division for
administration for grazing or pasturage or the sale of agricultural products produced
on such real property must be deposited in the Account and used in the area or
region in which the money was collected.
Section 2 of this bill makes conforming changes to internal references.
EXPLANATION – Matter in bolded italics is new; matter between brackets [omitted material] is material to be omitted.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN
SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. (Deleted by amendment.)
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Sec. 1.3. NRS 322.010 is hereby amended to read as follows:
322.010 Except as provided in NRS 334.070 and 504.147 [,]
and section 2.5 of this act, the Administrator of the Division of
State Lands of the State Department of Conservation and Natural
Resources, as ex officio State Land Registrar, may lease any land
except contract land now or hereafter owned by the State of Nevada,
or which may hereafter be granted to it by the United States of
America, upon terms as provided in NRS 322.020, 322.030 and
322.040.
Sec. 1.7. NRS 322.050 is hereby amended to read as follows:
322.050 Except as otherwise provided in NRS 334.070 and
504.147 [,] and section 2.5 of this act, the Administrator of the
Division of State Lands of the State Department of Conservation
and Natural Resources, as ex officio State Land Registrar, may, in
addition to the authority to lease provided in NRS 322.010, 322.020
and 322.030, lease or grant easements over or upon any land now or
hereafter owned by the State of Nevada, or which may hereafter be
granted it by the United States of America, upon terms as provided
in NRS 322.060. Leases or grants of easements over or upon
contract lands may be made only with the consent of the contracting
party, who must be paid all money received from any such leas e or
grant. Leases or grants of easements over or upon any lands which
are used by any office, department, board, commission, bureau,
institution or other agency of the State of Nevada may be granted
only with the concurrence of the agency.
Sec. 2. NRS 218E.405 is hereby amended to read as follows:
218E.405 1. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 2,
the Interim Finance Committee may exercise the powers conferred
upon it by law only when the Legislature is not in a regular or
special session.
2. During a regular or special session, the Interim Finance
Committee may also perform the duties imposed on it by NRS
228.1111, subsection 5 of NRS 284.115, NRS 285.070, subsection 2
of NRS 321.335, NRS 322.007, subsection 2 of NRS 323.020,
NRS 323.050, su bsection 1 of NRS 323.100, subsection 3 of NRS
341.126, NRS 341.142, paragraph (f) of subsection 1 of NRS
341.145, subsection 3 of NRS 349.073, NRS 353.220, 353.224,
353.2705 to 353.2771, inclusive, 353.288, 353.335, 353.3375,
353C.224, 353C.226, paragraph (b) of subsection [4] 6 of NRS
407.0762, NRS 428.375, 433.732, 439.4905, 439.620, 439.630,
445B.830, subsection 1 of NRS 445C.320 and NRS 538.650. In
performing those duties, the Senate Standing Committee on Finance
and the Assembly Standing Committee on Ways and Means may
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meet separately and transmit the results of their respective votes to
the Chair of the Interim Finance Committee to determine the action
of the Interim Finance Committee as a whole.
3. The Chair of the Interim Finance Committee may app oint a
subcommittee consisting of six members of the Committee to
review and make recommendations to the Committee on matters of
the State Public Works Division of the Department of
Administration that require prior approval of the Interim Finance
Committee pursuant to subsection 3 of NRS 341.126, NRS 341.142
and paragraph (f) of subsection 1 of NRS 341.145. If the Chair
appoints such a subcommittee:
(a) The Chair shall designate one of the members of the
subcommittee to serve as the chair of the subcommittee;
(b) The subcommittee shall meet throughout the year at the
times and places specified by the call of the chair of the
subcommittee; and
(c) The Director or the Director’s designee shall act as the
nonvoting recording secretary of the subcommittee.
Sec. 2.5. Chapter 407 of NRS is hereby amended by adding
thereto a new section to read as follows:
1. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 2, for any real
property owned by the State and assigned to the Division for
administration, the Administrat or may, in accordance with the
requirements of this section:
(a) Lease, for a term of not more than 5 years, grazing and
pasturage rights in and to the real property; or
(b) Sell any agricultural product of any kind, including,
without limitation, any crop, that is produced on the real property.
2. The Administrator may not lease rights in or to real
property or sell agricultural products pursuant to subsection 1 if
such a lease or sale would:
(a) Interfere with the use of the real property for the
outstanding scenic, recreational, scientific or historical
importance of such real property; or
(b) Conflict with the provisions of any special act relating to a
particular area.
3. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 6, if the
Administrator inten ds to carry out a lease or sale pursuant to
subsection 1:
(a) The Administrator shall advertise for bids and reserve in
such advertising the right to reject any or all bids received; and
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- 83rd Session (2025)
(b) If the Administrator finds that the highest or best bid
received pursuant to paragraph (a) is less than the amount that
should be paid, the Administrator:
(1) May reject all bids and instead negotiate with any
interested person for such lease or sale; and
(2) Shall not accept any price negotiated pursuant to
subparagraph (1) if the price is less than the highest bid received
by the Administrator for the same lease or sale.
4. If the deed to any real property assigned to the Division for
administration contains a covenant or provision giving to the
grantor an option to meet the highest bid for any lease offered by
the Administrator for grazing or pasturage rights in or to such
real property or the sale of agricultural products produced on such
real property, the Administrator shall comply with the terms of the
covenant or provision in the deed.
5. The Administrator may enter into a lease with or sale to a
state agency without advertising for bids if the rent agreed to be
paid by the state agency for the lease or the sale price agreed to be
paid for any agricu ltural products to be sold is, in the opinion of
the Administrator, equal to the amount that would be obtained by
the Administrator by advertising for bids.
6. Any money collected pursuant to this section for the lease
of the grazing or pasturage rights in or to real property assigned to
the Division for administration or the sale of agricultural products
produced on such real property must be deposited in the Account
for the Maintenance of State Parks within the Division created by
NRS 407.0762. The mone y deposited in the Account pursuant to
this section must be accounted for separately for each area
assigned to the Division for administration, or if the Administrator
has organized the areas into regions pursuant to NRS 407.065, for
each region and must o nly be used in the area or region in which
the money was collected.
Sec. 3. NRS 407.0762 is hereby amended to read as follows:
407.0762 1. The Account for Maintenance of State Parks
within the Division of State Parks is hereby created in the State
General Fund. Except as otherwise provided in NRS 407.0765, any
amount of fees collected pursuant to paragraphs (d), (e) and (f) of
subsection 1 or subsection 2 of NRS 407.065 in a calendar year,
which is in excess of the amounts authorized for expenditure from
that revenue source in the Division’s budget for the fiscal year
beginning in that calendar year, must be deposited in the Account.
2. Any amount of the money collected pursuant to section 2.5
of this act must be deposited in the Account.
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3. The interest and income earned on the money in the
Account, after deducting any applicable charges, must be credited to
the Account.
[2.] 4. The money in the Account does not lapse to the State
General Fund at the end of any fiscal year.
[3.] 5. The money deposited in the Account pursuant to
[subsection] subsections 1 and 2 must only be used to repair and
maintain state parks, monuments and recreational areas.
[4.] 6. Before the Administrator may expend money pursuant
to subsection [3:] 5:
(a) For emergency repairs and projects with a cost of less than
$25,000, the Admini strator must first receive the approval of the
Director.
(b) For projects with a cost of $25,000 or more, other than
emergency repairs, the Administrator must first receive the approval
of the Director and of the Interim Finance Committee.
Sec. 3.5. NRS 322.075 is hereby repealed.
Sec. 4. This act becomes effective upon passage and approval.
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