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- 83rd Session (2025)
Assembly Bill No. 96–Committee
on Government Affairs
CHAPTER..........
AN ACT relating to land use planning; requiring the governing
body of certain cities and counties to include a heat
mitigation plan in the conservation element of the master
plan; and providing other matters properly relating thereto.
Legislative Counsel’s Digest:
Existing law requires a planning commission to develop a master plan as a
comprehensive, long -term ge neral plan for the physical development of the city,
county or region. A master plan may include certain elements as appropriate to the
city, county or region, with the exception of certain cities and counties which must
include all or a portion of certain elements in a master plan. (NRS
278.150-278.170)
Sections 1 and 3 of this bill require that the master plan in a county whose
population is 100,000 or more (currently Clark and Washoe Counties) includes a
heat mitigation plan. Section 2 of this bill set s forth the requirements for the heat
mitigation plan, which is to be included as part of a conservation element of a
master plan, including a plan to develop heat mitigation strategies such as public
cooling spaces, public drinking water and shade over paved surfaces.
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. NRS 278.150 is hereby amended to read as follows:
278.150 1. The planning commission shall prepare and adopt
a comprehensive, long -term general plan for the physical
development of the city, county or region which in the
commission’s judgment bears relation to the planning thereof.
2. The plan must be known as the master plan, and must be so
prepared that all or portions thereof, except as otherwise provided in
subsections 3, 4 and 5, may be adopted by the governing body, as
provided in NRS 278.010 to 278.630, inclusive, as a basis for the
development of the city, county or region for such reasonable period
of time next ensuing after the adoption thereof as may practically be
covered thereby.
3. In counties whose population is less than 100,000, if the
governing body of the city or county adopts only a portion of the
master plan, it shall include in that portion an aboveground utility
plan of the public facilities and services element, as described in
subparagraph (3) of paragraph (e) of subsection 1 of NRS 278.160.
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4. In counties whose population is 100,000 or more but less
than 700,000, if the governing body o f the city or county adopts
only a portion of the master plan, it shall include in that portion:
(a) A conservation plan of the conservation element, as
described in subparagraph (1) of paragraph (a) of subsection 1 of
NRS 278.160;
(b) The housing elemen t, as described in paragraph (c) of
subsection 1 of NRS 278.160;
(c) A population plan of the public facilities and services
element, as described in subparagraph (2) of paragraph (e) of
subsection 1 of NRS 278.160; [and]
(d) An aboveground utility plan of the public facilities and
services element, as described in subparagraph (3) of paragraph (e)
of subsection 1 of NRS 278.160 [.] ; and
(e) A heat mitigation plan of the conservation element, as
described in subparagraph (2) of paragraph (a) of subsection 1 of
NRS 278.160.
5. In counties whose population is 700,000 or more, the
governing body of the city or county shall adopt a master plan for all
of the city or county that must address each of the elements set forth
in paragraphs (a) to (h), inclusive, of subsection 1 of NRS 278.160.
Sec. 2. NRS 278.160 is hereby amended to read as follows:
278.160 1. Except as otherwise provided in this section and
NRS 278.150 and 278.170, the master plan, with the accompanying
charts, drawings, diagrams, schedules and reports, may include such
of the following elements or portions thereof as are appropriate to
the city, county or region, and as may be made the basis for the
physical development thereof:
(a) A conservation element, which must include:
(1) A conservation plan for the conservation, development
and utilization of natural resources, including, without limitation,
water and its hydraulic force, underground water, water supply,
solar or wind energy, forests, soils, rivers and other waters, har bors,
fisheries, wildlife, minerals and other natural resources. The
conservation plan must also cover the reclamation of land and
waters, flood control, prevention and control of the pollution of
streams and other waters, regulation of the use of land in stream
channels and other areas required for the accomplishment of the
conservation plan, prevention, control and correction of the erosion
of soils through proper clearing, grading and landscaping, beaches
and shores, and protection of watersheds. The con servation plan
must also indicate the maximum tolerable level of air pollution.
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(2) A heat mitigation plan, including, without limitation,
access to public cooling spaces, public drinking water, cool
building practices, shade over paved surfaces and other mitigation
measures to address heat in the community. Shade over paved
surfaces may include, without limitation, shade structures and
urban tree canopies, with preference for native tree or drought -
tolerant species.
(3) A solid waste disposal plan showing general plans for the
disposal of solid waste.
(b) A historic preservation element, which must include:
(1) A historic neighborhood preservation plan which:
(I) Must include, without limitation, a plan to inventory
historic neighborhoods and a st atement of goals and methods to
encourage the preservation of historic neighborhoods.
(II) May include, without limitation, the creation of a
commission to monitor and promote the preservation of historic
neighborhoods.
(2) A historical properties pre servation plan setting forth an
inventory of significant historical, archaeological, paleontological
and architectural properties as defined by a city, county or region,
and a statement of methods to encourage the preservation of those
properties.
(c) A housing element, which must include, without limitation:
(1) An inventory of housing conditions and needs, and plans
and procedures for improving housing standards and providing
adequate housing to individuals and families in the community,
regardless of income level.
(2) An inventory of existing affordable housing in the
community, including, without limitation, housing that is available
to rent or own, housing that is subsidized either directly or indirectly
by this State, an agency or political subdi vision of this State, or the
Federal Government or an agency of the Federal Government, and
housing that is accessible to persons with disabilities.
(3) An analysis of projected growth and the demographic
characteristics of the community.
(4) A determination of the present and prospective need for
affordable housing in the community.
(5) An analysis of any impediments to the development of
affordable housing and the development of policies to mitigate those
impediments.
(6) An analysis of the charac teristics of the land that is
suitable for residential development. The analysis must include,
without limitation:
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(I) A determination of whether the existing infrastructure
is sufficient to sustain the current needs and projected growth of the
community; and
(II) An inventory of available parcels that are suitable for
residential development and any zoning, environmental and other
land-use planning restrictions that affect such parcels.
(7) An analysis of the needs and appropriate methods for the
construction of affordable housing or the conversion or
rehabilitation of existing housing to affordable housing.
(8) A plan for maintaining and developing affordable
housing to meet the housing needs of the community for a period of
at least 5 years.
(d) A land use element, which must include:
(1) Provisions concerning community design, including
standards and principles governing the subdivision of land and
suggestive patterns for community design and development.
(2) A land use plan, including an inventory and classification
of types of natural land and of existing land cover and uses, and
comprehensive plans for the most desirable utilization of land. The
land use plan:
(I) Must, if applicable, address mixed -use development,
transit-oriented dev elopment, master -planned communities and
gaming enterprise districts. The land use plan must also, if
applicable, address the coordination and compatibility of land uses
with any military installation in the city, county or region, taking
into account the location, purpose and stated mission of the military
installation.
(II) May include a provision concerning the acquisition
and use of land that is under federal management within the city,
county or region, including, without limitation, a plan or state ment
of policy prepared pursuant to NRS 321.7355.
(3) In any county whose population is 700,000 or more, a
rural neighborhoods preservation plan showing general plans to
preserve the character and density of rural neighborhoods.
(e) A public facilities and services element, which must include:
(1) An economic plan showing recommended schedules for
the allocation and expenditure of public money to provide for the
economical and timely execution of the various components of the
plan.
(2) A population p lan setting forth an estimate of the total
population which the natural resources of the city, county or region
will support on a continuing basis without unreasonable impairment.
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(3) An aboveground utility plan that shows corridors
designated for the co nstruction of aboveground utilities and
complies with the provisions of NRS 278.165.
(4) Provisions concerning public buildings showing the
locations and arrangement of civic centers and all other public
buildings, including the architecture thereof and the landscape
treatment of the grounds thereof.
(5) Provisions concerning public services and facilities
showing general plans for sewage, drainage and utilities, and rights -
of-way, easements and facilities therefor, including, without
limitation, any ut ility projects required to be reported pursuant to
NRS 278.145. If a public utility which provides electric service
notifies the planning commission that a new transmission line or
substation will be required to support the master plan, those
facilities mu st be included in the master plan. The utility is not
required to obtain an easement for any such transmission line as a
prerequisite to the inclusion of the transmission line in the master
plan.
(6) A school facilities plan showing the general locations of
current and future school facilities based upon information furnished
by the appropriate county school district.
(f) A recreation and open space element, which must include a
recreation plan showing a comprehensive system of recreation areas,
including, without limitation, natural reservations, parks, parkways,
trails, reserved riverbank strips, beaches, playgrounds and other
recreation areas, including, when practicable, the locations and
proposed development thereof.
(g) A safety element, which must include:
(1) In any county whose population is 700,000 or more, a
safety plan identifying potential types of natural and man -made
hazards, including, without limitation, hazards from floods,
landslides or fires, or resulting from the manufacture, storag e,
transfer or use of bulk quantities of hazardous materials. The safety
plan may set forth policies for avoiding or minimizing the risks from
those hazards.
(2) A seismic safety plan consisting of an identification and
appraisal of seismic hazards such as susceptibility to surface
ruptures from faulting, to ground shaking or to ground failures.
(h) A transportation element, which must include:
(1) A streets and highways plan showing the general
locations and widths of a comprehensive system of major traffic
thoroughfares and other traffic ways and of streets and the
recommended treatment thereof, building line setbacks, and a
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system of naming or num bering streets and numbering houses, with
recommendations concerning proposed changes.
(2) A transit plan showing a proposed multimodal system of
transit lines, including mass transit, streetcar, motorcoach and
trolley coach lines, paths for bicycles and pedestrians, satellite
parking and related facilities.
(3) A transportation plan showing a comprehensive
transportation system, including, without limitation, locations of
rights-of-way, terminals, viaducts and grade separations. The
transportation plan may also include port, harbor, aviation and
related facilities.
(i) An urban agricultural element, which must include a plan to
inventory any vacant lands or other real property owned by the city
or county and blighted land in the city or county to deter mine
whether such lands are suitable for urban farming and gardening.
The plan to inventory any vacant lands or other real property may
include, without limitation, any other real property in the city or
county, as deemed appropriate by the commission.
2. The commission may prepare and adopt, as part of the
master plan, other and additional plans and reports dealing with such
other elements as may in its judgment relate to the physical
development of the city, county or region, and nothing contained in
NRS 278.010 to 278.630, inclusive, prohibits the preparation and
adoption of any such element as a part of the master plan.
Sec. 3. NRS 278.170 is hereby amended to read as follows:
278.170 1. Except as otherwise provided in subsections 2, 3
and 4, the commission may prepare and adopt all or any part of the
master plan or any element thereof for all or any part of the city,
county or region. Master regional plans must be coordinated with
similar plans of adjoining regions, and master county and city plan s
within each region must be coordinated so as to fit properly into the
master plan for the region.
2. In counties whose population is less than 100,000, if the
commission prepares and adopts less than all elements of the master
plan, it shall include in its preparation and adoption an aboveground
utility plan of the public facilities and services element, as described
in subparagraph (3) of paragraph (e) of subsection 1 of
NRS 278.160.
3. In counties whose population is 100,000 or more but less
than 7 00,000, if the commission prepares and adopts less than all
elements of the master plan, it shall include in its preparation and
adoption:
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(a) A conservation plan of the conservation element, as
described in subparagraph (1) of paragraph (a) of subsection 1 of
NRS 278.160;
(b) The housing element, as described in paragraph (c) of
subsection 1 of NRS 278.160;
(c) A population plan of the public facilities and services
element, as described in subparagraph (2) of paragraph (e) of
subsection 1 of NRS 278.160; [and]
(d) An aboveground utility plan of the public facilities and
services element, as described in subparagraph (3) of paragraph (e)
of subsection 1 of NRS 278.160 [.] ; and
(e) A heat mitigation plan of the conservation element, as
described in subparagraph (2) of paragraph (a) of subsection 1 of
NRS 278.160.
4. In counties whose population is 700,000 or more, the
commission shall prepare and adopt a master plan for all of the city
or county that must address each of the elements set forth in
NRS 278.160.
Sec. 4. The provisions of NRS 354.599 do not apply to any
additional expenses of a local government that are related to the
provisions of this act.
Sec. 5. This act becomes effective on July 1, 2026.
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