The Nevada Assembly passed AB1, Friday evening, 37-4. The vote is part of the Special Session, called by Governor Brian Sandoval. The session was called to allow tax $335 million in tax incentives and infrastructure costs to bring Faraday Future to the Silver State. The electric car company plans on unveiling its first car, January 4, and has chosen North Las Vegas to build it's 3 million square foot factory. AB1 establishes a workforce development program for new and established businesses that will prepare people for manufacturing jobs.
The Senate spent most of the day, making an amendment to SB1. The bill deals with abatements, incentives and infrastructure of the project. Most of the sticking points revolve around water issues. To speed up the process, lawmakers decided to take the water language out of that bill, and draft AB2, that addresses those issues.
"We have to be certain that we have enough groundwater, number one, and then if not enough ground water, then we'll have to build a pipeline from certain portions of southern Nevada into the APEX area," Sen. Aaron Ford (D) Las Vegas said.
Mike Willden is Sandoval's Chief of Staff. He says the basin has plenty of ground water, but the key is making sure nobody's water rights are being affected by the project.
"Water is one of the top priorities in this state," Willden said. "So everybody watches really closely about how much water is allocated and used."
"We just want to make sure that that's all buttoned up and we're not making grand changes to water law that's been case law for 50 years," Sen. Ben Kieckhefer (R) Reno said.
If the bill passes, the Southern Nevada Water Authority will be responsible for the water infrastructure and purveying the water. It is part of a $120 million package for infrastructure.
"Highways, rails, water, drinking water, sewer, storm water, fire station, there's a long list of projects," Willden said.
Faraday Future is expected to create 4,500 jobs, and another 9,000 indirect jobs. Besides the water issues, lawmakers say the plan is similar to the Tesla deal but on a smaller scale. They say the economic impact is just as important though.
"It's a similar feel. I think the excitement is there that this is going to be a transformational economic development project for Nevada, in particular southern Nevada, and that has a lot of people excited," Kieckhefer said.
"This is an opportunity to fulfill our obligations under our blueprint to Nevada, to continue to expand and protect the middle class," Ford said.
Lawmakers say they are optimistic that the bills will be passed, soon. Most expect the Special Session to last through Saturday and possibly into Sunday.
