Nevada
Southern Nevada visitation up slightly in November, LVCVA reports
Visitation to Southern Nevada was up less than 1 percent in November, but most other tourism indicators were down from a year ago, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority reported late Tuesday.
LVCVA officials said the declines were the result of tough comparisons to last year when the inaugural Formula One Las Vegas Grand Prix produced record results in several categories.
Kevin Bagger, vice president of the LVCVA Research Center, said visitation in November was up 0.6 percent to 3.3 million, thanks to the Formula One race and the Specialty Equipment Market Association automotive aftermarket trade show, one of the Las Vegas calendar’s largest annual events.
“November saw higher weekend occupancy vs. last year (89.1 percent, up 0.4 points) but lower midweek occupancy (78.9 percent, down 2 points) as overall hotel occupancy for the month reached 81.4 percent, down 0.5 points,” Bagger said. “While down compared to the record-shattering levels tied to last year’s inaugural F1 race, monthly average daily room rates this year saw the second-highest on record for the month of November, reaching $198.72, down 20.3 percent year over year.”
The declines mirrored downturns in the number of passengers seen at Harry Reid International Airport, 4.7 million, down 2.1 percent, and the average daily automobile traffic on Interstate 15 at the California-Nevada border, 44,916, down 2 percent.
There was a net decrease in midsize and small meetings in Las Vegas during the month resulting in a total 548,200 convention visitors, off 8.4 percent from a year ago.
Clark County’s gross gaming revenue has yet to be reported by the Nevada Gaming Control Board.
Despite the late-year decline – October was the second month in 2024 to have fewer visitors than the previous year – Las Vegas is still on track to have a higher total in 2024 than 2023. After 11 months, 38.3 million had visited the city, up 2.2 percent from a year ago.
Other indicators aren’t as robust, with the 5.7 million convention attendance off 1.3 percent, hotel room occupancy down 0.1 point to 83.7 percent and I-15 traffic at the California border down 0.6 percent.
Still, airport traffic is on track for a record 2024 with 53.6 million passengers so far, up 1.4 percent, and the average daily room rate up 0.7 percent to $193.12 a night.
Two other Southern Nevada cities were on opposite ends of November results.
Laughlin saw visitor volume increase 5.9 percent for the month to 94,000, with occupancy down 0.7 points to 42.4 percent and room rates down 0.5 percent to $55.08. For 11 months, Laughlin visitation is up 3.3 percent to 1.2 million, the occupancy rate is down 1.5 points to 50.3 percent, and the average room rate is down 0.9 percent to $60.82.
Mesquite’s visitor volume in November fell 10.8 percent to 66,000 with occupancy down 3.7 points to 72.9 percent and room rates up 9.3 percent to $89.65 a night.
For 11 months, Mesquite visitation is down 8.8 percent to 778,000, the occupancy rate is down 4.5 points to 74.5 percent, and the average room rate is up 10.2 percent to $83.19.
Contact Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Follow @RickVelotta on X.
Nevada
Oregon lands commitment from Nevada punter
Oregon has found its next Australian punter.
Bailey Ettridge, who averaged 44.66 yards on 47 punts at Nevada this season, committed to transfer to the Ducks on Sunday. He has three seasons of eligibility remaining.
From Lara, Australia, Ettridge had 15 punts over 50 yards and 18 inside opponents’ 20-yard lines this season. He also had two carries for 26 yards, both of which converted fourth downs.
Ettridge replaces James Ferguson-Reynolds, who is averaging 41.64 yards on 33 punts for UO this season. Ferguson-Reynolds and Ross James are both out of eligibility after the season.
Ettridge is the first scholarship transfer to Oregon this offseason and his addition gives the Ducks 81 projected scholarship players in 2026. He is the lone punter presently on the roster.
No. 1 Indiana (14-0) vs. No. 5 Oregon (13-1)
- When: Friday, January 9
- Time: 4:30 p.m. PT
- Where: Mercedes Benz Stadium, Atlanta
- TV: ESPN and ABC
- Stream: You can watch this game on DIRECTV (free trial) or with Sling (a Sling day pass to watch this game and more is just $4.99). Streaming broadcasts for this game will be available on these streaming services locally in Oregon and Washington, but may not be available outside of the Pacific Northwest, depending on your location.
Nevada
‘Winnemucca Day’ helps fuel Backus, Wolf Pack to 58-40 win over Utah State
RENO, Nev. (Nevada Athletics) – Nevada Women’s Basketball returned to Lawlor for the first game of 2026, hosting Utah State.
The Pack picked up its first conference win of the season with the 58-40 victory over the Aggies.
Freshmen showed out for the Pack (5-9, 1-3 MW) with Skylar Durley nearly recording a double-double, dropping 12 points and grabbing nine rebounds. Britain Backus had five points to go along with two rebounds and a season high four steals.
Junior Izzy Sullivan also had an impactful game with 17 points, going 6-for-11 from the paint and grabbing five boards. She also knocked down Nevada’s only two makes from beyond the arc, putting her within one for 100 career threes.
The Pack opened up scoring the first four points, setting the tone for the game. It was a close battle through the first 10 as Utah State (6-7, 2-2 MW) closed the gap to one.
However, Nevada never let them in front for the entire 40 minutes.
Nevada turned up the pressure in the second quarter, holding Utah State to a shooting drought for over four minutes. Meanwhile, a 5-0 scoring run pushed the Pack to a 10-point lead.
For the entire first 20, Nevada held Utah State to just 26.7 percent from the floor and only nine percent from the arc, going only 1-for-11.
For the Pack offense, it shot 48 percent from the paint. Nevada fell into a slump coming out of the break, only scoring eight points.
It was the only quarter where the Pack was outscored.
The fourth quarter saw the Pack get back into rhythm with a 6-0 run and forcing the Aggies into another long scoring drought of just under four and a half minutes.
Durley had a layup and jumper to help with securing the win.
Nevada will remain at home to face Wyoming on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.
Copyright 2026 KOLO. All rights reserved.
Nevada
EDITORIAL: Nevada’s House Democrats oppose permitting reform
Politicians of both parties have promised to fix the nation’s broken permitting system. But those promises have not been kept, and the status quo prevails: longer timelines, higher costs and a regulatory maze that makes it nearly impossible to build major projects on schedule.
Last week, the House finally cut through the fog by passing the Standardizing Permitting and Expediting Economic Development Act. As Jeff Luse reported for Reason, the legislation is the clearest chance in years to overhaul a system that has spun out of control.
Notably, virtually every House Democrat — including Reps. Dina Titus, Susie Lee and Steven Horsford from Nevada — opted for the current regulatory morass.
The proposal addressed problems with the National Environmental Policy Act, which passed in the 1970s to promote transparency, but has grown into an anchor that drags down public and private investment. Mr. Luse notes that even after Congress streamlined the act in 2021, the average environmental impact statement takes 2.4 years to complete. That number speaks for itself and does not reflect the many reviews that stretch far beyond that already unreasonable timeline.
The SPEED Act tackles these failures head on. It would codify recent Supreme Court guidance, expand the projects that do not require exhaustive review and set real expectations for federal agencies that too often slow-walk approvals. Most important, it puts long-overdue limits on litigation. Mr. Luse highlights the absurdity of the current six-year window for filing a lawsuit under the Environmental Policy Act. Between 2013 and 2022, these lawsuits delayed projects an average of 4.2 years.
While opponents insist the bill would silence communities, Mr. Luse notes that NEPA already includes multiple public hearings and comment periods. Also, the vast majority of lawsuits are not filed by members of the people who live near the projects. According to the Breakthrough Institute, 72 percent of NEPA lawsuits over the past decade came from national nonprofits. Only 16 percent were filed by local communities. The SPEED Act does not shut out the public. It reins in well-funded groups that can afford to stall projects indefinitely.
Some Democrats claim the bill panders to fossil fuel companies, while some Republicans fear it will accelerate renewable projects. As Mr. Luse explains, NEPA bottlenecks have held back wind, solar and transmission lines as often as they have slowed oil and gas. That is why the original SPEED Act won support from green energy groups and traditional energy producers.
Permitting reform is overdue, and lawmakers claim to understand that endless red tape hurts economic growth and environmental progress alike. The SPEED Act is the strongest permitting reform proposal in years. The Senate should approve it.
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