Nevada’s wildfire season is testing more than our firefighters. It is testing the system we have built to respond when communities are threatened.

Nevada’s firefighting system depends heavily on cooperation. Local fire departments, the Nevada Division of Forestry, federal agencies, neighboring jurisdictions and the Nevada National Guard share people, equipment and resources when fires overwhelm any one agency.

That system works because people step up for one another. But this fire season is also showing how stretched it can become.

The Nevada Division of Forestry has a base firefighting budget of roughly $4.5 million, while an average fire year can cost around $24 million. Nevada often has to rely on contingency funding and legislative advances to cover the difference.

And while we rightly talk about the cost of fighting fires, we also need to talk about the cost of preventing them.

Nevada’s state forester estimates that every $1 invested in reducing wildfire fuels can save roughly $4 in future firefighting costs.

As Nevada prepares for the 2027 Legislative Session, wildfire policy should be part of our conversation about Creation Care.

Are we adequately funding prevention before a fire starts?

Are firefighters and local departments receiving the resources they need?

Are our communities prepared to evacuate and care for neighbors who may need additional assistance?

And are we building a wildfire system prepared for the Nevada of tomorrow — or continuing to borrow enough resources to make it through today?

Creation Care means more than responding when the smoke appears. It means investing in our communities, caring for the people protecting them, and stewarding creation before disaster strikes.

In rural Nevada, giving birth can already mean a long drive. If maternity units close, that drive could become even longer.

A recent KFF analysis found Nevada has some of the longest travel times in the nation between rural hospitals that provide maternity care and the next in-state hospital with those services. In some cases, the next option may be more than two hours away.

That distance matters during labor. It can mean delayed emergency care and greater risk for both parents and babies.

Medicaid helps sustain rural maternity care, financing nearly half of births in rural communities nationwide. When coverage is reduced or hospitals lose Medicaid revenue, small rural hospitals may find it even harder to keep labor-and-delivery services open.

Nevada already has maternal-health deserts. Every family—whether they live in Reno, Las Vegas, Elko, Ely, Fallon, or a rural community in between—deserves timely, safe, affordable care before, during, and after pregnancy.

Maternal health is rural health.
Maternal health is health justice.
And it must be a Nevada priority.

Read more from KUNR and KFF.

New data required by Nevada’s 2025 AB 420 shows that Clark County School District police used force in 11 incidents involving 21 people during the 2025–26 school year. Eighteen of those people were Black, two were Hispanic, and one was white. Twelve were under age 18.

AB 420 was passed after students, families, and advocates raised concerns about pepper spray and other uses of force in schools. While the final law did not prohibit pepper spray, it required school districts to begin publicly reporting use-of-force data.

This first report is an important step toward transparency—but it also leaves critical questions unanswered. The data does not link each incident to the person’s age, race, school, or type of force used. Nevada must be able to evaluate whether force is being used fairly, safely, and only when truly necessary.

Every student deserves a school community rooted in dignity, belonging, care, and opportunity. Public reporting should lead to stronger accountability, meaningful community oversight, racial-equity review, and greater investment in prevention: counselors, restorative practices, mental-health supports, and de-escalation.

Transparency is a beginning. Nevada must now use this information to ensure our schools are places where every student can learn and thrive.

Read More from The Nevada Independent and Nevada Current.

Nevada voters who plan to vote by mail are getting a clear message from Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar:

Mail your ballot early.

But that doesn’t mean voters should wait until Election Day to put their ballot in the mail.

Secretary Aguilar recommended that Nevadans who use the mail return their ballot at least one week before Election Day, November 3.

If you are holding onto your ballot closer to Election Day, he recommends returning it at a polling location or authorized ballot drop box instead.

That matters in Nevada.

About 44% of Nevada voters vote by mail, giving our state one of the higher rates of mail-ballot participation in the country.

So what should Nevada voters know?

If you vote by mail, return your ballot early.

A good target: mail it by October 27 — one week before Election Day.

If Election Day is getting close, consider returning your ballot at an authorized drop box or polling location rather than relying on mail delivery.

And remember: the Supreme Court ruling means the proposed new federal postal requirements will not take effect for the 2026 election.

Voting is one way we participate in the shared work of our communities. Being prepared, knowing the rules, and making a plan can help every eligible voter exercise that responsibility.

Make your voting plan now. Vote the whole ballot. And if you’re voting by mail — vote early.

Fall in Reno is getting hotter, and that affects more than when we reach for a sweater.

Since 1970, Reno has experienced 44 above-normal fall days, with fall temperatures rising nearly 8°F. Longer heat seasons can bring higher cooling bills, greater strain on the electric grid, and increased health risks for children, older adults, outdoor workers, unhoused neighbors, and people with chronic health conditions.

Climate change is not a distant concern. It is showing up in our utility bills, our workplaces, our homes, and our public health.

Creation care means building a Nevada where everyone has access to safe housing, affordable energy, shade, cooling, and protection from extreme heat.

Seek justice. Show love.

Source: KUNR / Climate Central