Lawmakers complete Faraday deal

With “no” votes by the same four members on all of the measures, the Assembly on Saturday afternoon approved the bills to implement the Faraday electric car deal and finish the task of the 29th Special Session of the Nevada Legislature.

The Senate finished its work late Friday night.

Nearly all of the debate from 8 a.m. until the voting began focused on Senate Bill 1, the omnibus tax granting the Chinese-backed automaker a package of incentives, abatement and other considerations in trade for building its car manufacturing plant at Apex in North Las Vegas.

Most of the deal mirrors that given to Tesla a year ago for coming to the Tahoe Reno Industrial Center in Storey County east of Reno.

But Faraday is about a third the size in terms of the money involved and contains some more refined requirements to ensure the company delivers what it promised.

To get the $213 million in incentives and abatements and justify the $120 million worth of infrastructure improvements, the company must invest more than $1 billion during the next decade and hire at least half its 3,000 construction workers and 4,500 factory workers locally.

Gov. Brian Sandoval signed the bill shortly after the adjournment of the session.

The measure was strongly opposed by Assemblymen Ira Hansen, R-Sparks, and Robin Titus, R-Smith Valley, who argued the state has no business picking winners and losers.

“We are subsidizing a Chinese company to possibly put out of business an American company,” Hansen argued.

He also complained that the whole process “was so rushed.”

Hansen had argued for a slower approach, bringing the proposal to lawmakers after the first of the year.

“If Nevada had a fair tax system that would support all businesses, business would come here,” said Titus.

Even most die-hard conservatives in the lower house backed the bill. John Ellison, R-Elko, said it was a tough decision.

“But I see the benefits here. The benefits are going to outweigh the debt and I don’t care if they build a car or not. The infrastructure will be there and will benefit the whole state.”

But supporters including Pat Hickey, R-Reno, said first with Tesla and now Faraday, Nevada has “changed the brand that is Nevada.”

He said lawmakers unanimously approved Tesla: “Why shouldn’t we be state lawmakers and help southern Nevada have the same opportunity.”

In the end, Hansen, Titus, Brent Jones and Shelly Shelton of Las Vegas, all Republicans, were the only “no” votes.

The same four also opposed the two water bills. SB2 allows economic development officials to ask the state engineer to expedite water transfers in the basins surrounding Apex industrial center to provide water for Faraday and other businesses that may locate there. It passed after assurances it doesn’t change state water law or reduce the authority of the engineer to make transfer decisions.

SB3 provides that the Southern Nevada Water Authority will build the infrastructure to get the water to Apex and that the Las Vegas Valley Water district will handle operation and billing for the water. Members were assured that won’t increase water bills for anyone else in the Las Vegas Valley.

The Assembly actions follow those of the Senate Friday night when members passed the three Senate bills along with AB1, the workforce development part of the package approved earlier by the Assembly. Those measures all passed on a 17-1 vote with only Don Gustavson, R-Sparks, opposed. Three members of the Senate — Democrats Debbie Smith of Sparks, Tick Segerblom and Kelvin Atkinson of Las Vegas absent. The Assembly was one vote short since ex-speaker Marilyn Kirkpatrick’s North Las Vegas seat was vacant because she resigned after being appointed to the Clark County Commission.

Because of the huge investment in infrastructure at Apex, Assemblyman Erv Nelson, R-Las Vegas, said the deal “should not be called the Faraday bill; it should be called the Apex bill.”

Faraday, based in Gardena, California, hopes to begin work on its site as early as January.