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Commission debates grant rules: tighten completeness checks and limit promotional grants
Summary
Commissioners pressed staff to tighten application completeness checks, require clear landowner letters and use procurement rather than grants for promotional/marketing videos; AG counsel said safety/training videos may be grant‑eligible but pure promotion likely is not.
A major portion of the Aug. 12 meeting centered on how grants are evaluated and what the commission will fund. Chair White and several commissioners pressed staff to enforce NAC/NRS requirements more strictly and to treat incomplete applications consistently.
Chair White highlighted regulatory language requiring applications be complete and urged staff to ensure applicants explicitly mark ‘not applicable’ on items that do not apply. ‘‘An application that is submitted to the commission to apply for a grant must comply with the provisions… If they don't apply, mark not applicable,’’ White said during the discussion.
Commissioners and the Technical Advisory Committee recommended two operational fixes: a detailed checklist that flags missing or out‑of‑date landowner letters and a sample/form landowner letter to guide applicants, and a stronger TAC screening step before an application reaches the commission. Program staff agreed to revise the checklist and to return with clearer guidance for applicants.
The commission also debated recent grant awards for video and promotional projects. TAC members argued that awarding promotional content via grants can leave the commission without ownership of produced assets; procurement through the state contracting process would let the commission retain rights. Deputy Attorney General Nicole Ting advised the commission that grants aimed solely at promotion likely fall outside the program’s statutory grant authority, while safety and training videos can qualify if the primary purpose is safety education rather than advertising. ‘‘If you’re giving a grant just to do promotional activities for the program, I don’t think that's in line with the statutory language,’’ Ting said.
Commissioners asked staff to develop processes to: (1) require more robust landowner/agency confirmation for projects on public lands, (2) provide a sample landowner‑letter template that covers statutory elements, and (3) identify which promotional projects should instead be procured as state contracts or required to assign copyright to the state if the applicant is awarded funds.
