senator

As Senator Harry Reid retires from Washington, eight stories were put together to highlight a career that spans decades.

Here is one of them, and to read the rest, visit the Las Vegas Sun story.

Hometown is bracing to lose its greatest champion

When this tiny desert town’s most famous former resident visited in recent years, he sat in the same corner booth at Terrible’s Road House while his entourage of black sport-utility vehicles lined the parking lot.

Vail Resorts has called on the United States Congress to approve the Lake Tahoe Restoration Act of 2015. This Act provides $415 million in funding and reauthorizes important Lake Tahoe restoration activities that began in 1997 and refocuses federal, state and local efforts toward reducing wildfire threats, improving water quality and clarity, and combating invasive species. All of these are important to the local economy at one of the most visited lakes in the world.

All candidates for South Lake Tahoe City Council were given the same questions. With just one day to go to the elections, we will be featuring their answers and a video of their interview with Tahoe Regional Young Professionals through the day.

Trey Riddle, 38 years old, Bartender, 3 years in South Lake Tahoe

Discuss your interest in serving on City Council. What is your prior experience in working with civic, community or governmental organizations?

Nevada is one of the few states that celebrate its Admission Day, and boy do we throw a party. A parade, competitions of strength and facial hair, hot air balloons, bloody marys, a carnival, pow wow, and free chili are just a few of the festivities awaiting the capital city on Saturday.

The party begins Friday this year with a ribbon cutting celebration of the 'new' downtown. The Nevada State Museum hits its 75th Anniversary this year and will have a day full of fun and surprises. Keep reading to see where you need to take advantage of all the best this holiday weekend has to offer.

More money is headed to preserve and restore Lake Tahoe. In Washington Wednesday the U.S. Senate passed its $415 million version of 2015's Lake Tahoe Restoration Act by a vote of 95-3.

The money for Lake Tahoe is part of the $10 billion Water Resources Development Act of 2016.

This is the first time the funding legislation to reauthorize the Lake Tahoe Restoration Act has cleared the full Senate even though its has succeeded at the committee level several times.

Protecting Lake Tahoe and the Sierra Nevada is the job of many stakeholders. Its not just a local job, not just a California job, not just a Nevada job, not just a national job, and as witnessed through President Obama's visit to the Lake Tahoe Summit Wednesday, it can only be successful through partnerships of all of those entities along with agencies, local and private investment.

On Tuesday, August 29, the day before the Summit, California Senator Diane Feinstein hosted a lunch for local officials, agencies and federal counterparts, described as the "Lake Tahoe Stakeholders Luncheon".

"We're here to celebrate because we love Lake Tahoe," Nevada Senator Harry Reid said at the 20th annual Lake Tahoe Summit on Wednesday. Reid, who started the focus on Lake Tahoe along with President Bill Clinton and Vice President Al Gore with the first Summit in 1997.

"Like a World Series team who can't rest on their laurels," said Reid, "we need to build on progress."

Reid went on with his World Series antidote and introduced the "All Star Lineup" at the 20th Summit, his last in office as he won't be seeking reelection after serving the state in Washington since 1987.

We welcome President Obama to Lake Tahoe, which is admired for its great depth and clarity and beautiful alpine surroundings. As Tahoe’s public water agencies, we are hard at work on a water infrastructure initiative to enhance critical preparedness needs and hazard mitigation in the wildland-urban interface against the threat of catastrophic wildfire.

With President Barack Obama visiting Lake Tahoe for a landmark 20th annual Lake Tahoe Summit this month, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency has published a special summit edition of Tahoe in Depth.

This special edition of the award-winning newspaper tells the story of 20 years of summits at Lake Tahoe—from the organization and importance of the first-ever summit and the successful work it sparked, to major issues such as climate change that will confront the Tahoe Region in the decades to come.

Lake Tahoe was at a crossroads in 1997. The lake’s famous water clarity, once measuring 100 feet, was declining year after year because of stormwater pollution from roads and developed areas and erosion from streams damaged by logging and cattle grazing.

The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency Governing Board on Wednesday recognized the extraordinary, lifelong contributions of Coe Swobe. Swobe is considered the “father of TRPA” for his bipartisan work to create the agency and its mission to conserve and restore Lake Tahoe’s environment. Swobe died on May 26, 2016 at age 87.

As a Nevada State Senator, Swobe brokered the landmark 1969 agreement between then Nevada Gov. Paul Laxalt and then California Gov. Ronald Reagan and the two state legislatures to create TRPA and the nation’s first environmental bi-state compact.

The flag is flying half-staff at the TRPA offices today in honor of the passing of Coe Swobe who has been called the “Father of the Tahoe Bi-State Compact.”

Former Nevada State Sen. Coe Swobe died Thursday of liver failure at the age of 87.

“Lake Tahoe and the state of Nevada lost a stalwart champion in Coe Swobe,” said Joanne S. Marchetta, TRPA’s Executive Director. “Coe directed his passion for the lake into a lasting legacy that serves as an international symbol of cooperation in protecting an irreplaceable natural resource.”

It once housed The Shiek, a boat named in honor of Rudolf Valentino, friend and frequent guest to the Pope Estate in South Lake Tahoe. The Shiek was the biggest and fastest boat of its time on Lake Tahoe.

In the late 1800's it housed the boats of William Tevis who owned the 75 acre sprawling estate along the South Shore.

It was 174 years ago, on Valentine's Day in 1844, when John C. Frémont and Charles Preuss “discovered” Lake Tahoe as they were making the first crossing across the Sierra Nevada in winter. The pair had been hired by Congress to explore the Colombia River region to the Pacific Ocean with famous scouts Kit Carson and Thomas Fitzpatrick.

The Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA) will “make a real difference for families and communities” struggling with drug addiction, U.S. Senator Rob Portman of Ohio said Saturday. He spoke about the bill, which has bipartisan support, in a weekly Republican address.

“This epidemic does not discriminate,” Senator Portman said. “Zip codes don’t matter. It’s affecting our cities, suburban areas, and rural counties. Young or old, rich, middle class or poor, black, white, Hispanic or Asian. The grip of addiction affects all of us.”

The winners for the 8th annual Blue Ribbon Awards were announced Thursday night to a sold out dinner and ceremony at Montbleu Resort Casino and Spa. 300 community members attended to celebrate the winners of seven awards that honor exceptional South Shore businesses for their excellence in service, entrepreneurship, tourism and experience.

Nevada residents who live at the lake will soon be able to attend Lake Tahoe Community College at a reduced tuition rate instead of the higher out-of-state tuition fees other non-residents pay.

Decisions made in Congress over the next few months may well determine the extent to which Lake Tahoe remains blue and clear, with healthy forests, resilient watersheds, and its ecology protected from the threat of new aquatic invasive species.

For two decades, the Lake Tahoe Environmental Improvement Program (EIP) has provided guidance for the shared investments made by our federal, state and local governments, homeowners, and businesses to restore and protect Tahoe’s unique environmental qualities and enhance its diverse public recreation opportunities.

Responding to continued drone interference in fighting wildfires, Senator Ted Gaines (R-El Dorado) today announced plans to introduce legislation to help protect emergency responders engaged in their life-saving work. Senate Bill 168, co-authored by Assemblyman Mike Gatto (D-Glendale), grants immunity to any emergency responder who damages an unmanned aircraft in the course of firefighting, air ambulance, or search-and-rescue operations.

History shows time and time again our greatest accomplishments at Lake Tahoe are achieved when people work together. In the past, Tahoe was known as a place where unproductive interactions between stakeholders led to a stunning decay in our environment and our economic vitality, creating a region that seemed frozen in time.

We face major environmental challenges at Tahoe, including the uncertainties of climate change. And as Albert Einstein said, “We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.”

The following is an opinion article from the Reno Gazette Journal and reprinted here:

It doesn't matter if you love or hate Democratic Sen. Harry Reid to agree that the announcement of his retirement just dramatically reduced our state's political power in Washington D.C.

Nevada will go from a state whose issues were often at the center of debate because of Reid's position as minority leader to a state without a congressional power player in either party.

This letter was given to South Tahoe Now for publication.
September 26, 2014

Governor Jerry Brown
c/o State Capitol, Suite 1173
Sacramento, California 95814

Re: Support for SB 850 State Senator Block – Pilot Baccalaureate Program for
California Community Colleges

Dear Governor Brown:

I am writing to you to urge your signature into law of SB 850 (“The Bill”) by State Senator Block. The Bill as is valuable to our State’s future to increase the education and training of residents of our State.

100 gallons of invasive Eurasian Watermilfoil were removed from the Upper Truckee River by 14 League to Save Lake Tahoe volunteers on August 5.

The volunteers worked on the 1,000 foot stretch of the river near the Tahoe Keys Marina. This infestation was the first to be identified and removed by trained Eyes on the Lake volunteers. It was also the first confirmed new infestation discovered at Lake Tahoe in several years. A follow-up volunteer effort will take place later this month to ensure the infestation is completely gone.

This year, Lake Tahoe Community College (LTCC) is celebrating its 40th year of serving the Lake Tahoe Basin and surrounding communities. In my three years working at LTCC, it is clear to me that the college is here in this beautiful location because a group of dedicated people had a vision of higher education in Tahoe, and the determination to make sure it happened. We are now at a crossroads due to changes in funding, community college priorities, and statutes.

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