NRS 534.037 – Groundwater management plan for basin designated as critical management area: Petition; hearing; approval or disapproval; judicial review; amendment.

1. In a basin that has been designated as a critical management area by the State Engineer pursuant to subsection 7 of NRS 534.110, a petition for the approval of a groundwater management plan for the basin may be submitted to the State Engineer. The petition must be signed by a majority of the holders […]

NRS 534.040 – Employment and compensation of well supervisor and assistants; levy, collection and distribution of special assessment; exception.

1. Upon the initiation of the administration of this chapter in any particular basin, and where the investigations of the State Engineer have shown the necessity for the supervision over the waters of that basin, the State Engineer may employ a well supervisor and other necessary assistants, who shall execute the duties as provided in […]

NRS 534.050 – Permit to appropriate water required before sinking well in designated groundwater basin; requirements in undesignated areas; waivers; penalties.

1. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 2 and NRS 534.180, every person desiring to sink or bore a well in any basin or portion therein in the State designated by the State Engineer, as provided for in this chapter, must first make application to and obtain from the State Engineer a permit to appropriate […]

NRS 534.060 – Conditions for sinking wells; casings and appliances; repair of defective wells; liens; sealing of wells; use of abandoned wells to monitor groundwater.

1. During the sinking or boring of a well the permittee shall cause to be placed in the well a proper and sufficient casing approved by the State Engineer, so arranged as to prevent the caving in of the well and to prevent the escape of water therefrom through any intervening sand or gravel stratum, […]

NRS 534.065 – Replacement well: Application to change place of diversion not required in certain circumstances; notice.

1. If a person is seeking to sink or bore a replacement well to divert groundwater already appropriated and: (a) The original site of the well and the site of the replacement well are on property owned by the same person for whom the groundwater has already been appropriated; and (b) The site of the […]

NRS 534.070 – Waste of water from artesian well unlawful.

1. No person controlling an artesian well in any basin in Nevada shall suffer the waters therefrom to flow to waste, unless, and as far as reasonably necessary in the judgment of the State Engineer, to prevent the obstruction thereof, or to flow or be taken therefrom except for beneficial purposes. 2. The owner of […]

NRS 534.080 – Appropriation of underground water for beneficial use from artesian, definable aquifer or percolating water: Acquisition of rights under chapter 533 of NRS; orders to desist; dates of priority.

1. A legal right to appropriate underground water for beneficial use from an artesian or definable aquifer subsequent to March 22, 1913, or from percolating water, the course and boundaries of which are incapable of determination, subsequent to March 25, 1939, can only be acquired by complying with the provisions of chapter 533 of NRS […]

NRS 534.090 – Forfeiture and abandonment of rights.

1. Except as otherwise provided in this section, failure for 5 successive years after April 15, 1967, on the part of the holder of any right, whether it is an adjudicated right, an unadjudicated right or a right for which a certificate has been issued pursuant to NRS 533.425, and further whether the right is […]

NRS 534.100 – Recognition of existing water rights; classification of water in definable aquifer or percolating water by State Engineer; adjudication of vested underground water rights.

1. Existing water rights to the use of underground water are hereby recognized. For the purpose of this chapter a vested right is a water right on underground water acquired from an artesian or definable aquifer prior to March 22, 1913, and an underground water right on percolating water, the course and boundaries of which […]

NRS 534.110 – Rules and regulations of State Engineer; statements and pumping tests; conditions of appropriation; designation of critical management areas; restrictions; limit to restrictions on domestic wells.

1. The State Engineer shall administer this chapter and shall prescribe all necessary regulations within the terms of this chapter for its administration. 2. The State Engineer may: (a) Require periodical statements of water elevations, water used, and acreage on which water was used from all holders of permits and claimants of vested rights. (b) […]

NRS 534.120 – State Engineer authorized to make rules, regulations and orders when groundwater is being depleted in designated area; preferred uses of water; temporary permits to appropriate water; revocation of temporary permits; restrictions placed on certain wells.

1. Within an area that has been designated by the State Engineer, as provided for in this chapter, where, in the judgment of the State Engineer, the groundwater basin is being depleted, the State Engineer in his or her administrative capacity may make such rules, regulations and orders as are deemed essential for the welfare […]

NRS 534.125 – State Engineer to file notice related to temporary permit.

If the State Engineer issues a temporary permit pursuant to NRS 534.120 or if a well for domestic use is drilled in an area in which the State Engineer has issued such a temporary permit, the State Engineer shall file a notice with the county recorder of the county in which the permit is issued […]

NRS 534.130 – State Engineer, assistants and Artesian Well Supervisor authorized to enter premises to investigate and carry out duties.

The State Engineer, or the assistants or authorized agents of the State Engineer, and the Artesian Well Supervisor, or the assistants of the Artesian Well Supervisor, shall have the right to enter the premises of any owner or proprietor where any well mentioned in this chapter is situated at any reasonable hour of the day […]

NRS 534.140 – Well drillers: Annual licenses; fees; continuing education; regulations for well drilling; licensing by State Contractors’ Board.

1. Every well driller, before engaging in the physical drilling of a well in this State for development of water, must annually apply to the State Engineer for a license to drill. 2. The applications for those licenses and all licenses issued for the drilling of wells must be in the form prescribed by the […]

NRS 534.1405 – Well drillers: Petition for review of criminal history to obtain license; requirements; fee; report.

1. The State Engineer shall develop and implement a process by which a person with a criminal history may petition the State Engineer to review the criminal history of the person to determine if the person’s criminal history will disqualify the person from obtaining a license to drill pursuant to NRS 534.140. 2. Not later […]

NRS 534.141 – Application for renewal of license must include certain information regarding state business license; grounds for denial of renewal.

1. In addition to any other requirements set forth in this chapter, an applicant for the renewal of a license to drill pursuant to NRS 534.140 must indicate in the application submitted to the State Engineer whether the applicant has a state business license. If the applicant has a state business license, the applicant must […]

NRS 534.142 – Payment of child support: Statement by applicant for license to drill; grounds for denial of license; duty of State Engineer. [Effective until the date of the repeal of 42 U.S.C. § 666, the federal law requiring each state to establish procedures for withholding, suspending and restricting the professional, occupational and recreational licenses for child support arrearages and for noncompliance with certain processes relating to paternity or child support proceedings.]

1. An applicant for the issuance or renewal of a license to drill pursuant to NRS 534.140 shall submit to the State Engineer the statement prescribed by the Division of Welfare and Supportive Services of the Department of Health and Human Services pursuant to NRS 425.520. The statement must be completed and signed by the […]

NRS 534.144 – Suspension of license for failure to pay child support or comply with certain subpoenas or warrants; reinstatement of license. [Effective until the date of the repeal of 42 U.S.C. § 666, the federal law requiring each state to establish procedures for withholding, suspending and restricting the professional, occupational and recreational licenses for child support arrearages and for noncompliance with certain processes relating to paternity or child support proceedings.]

1. If the State Engineer receives a copy of a court order issued pursuant to NRS 425.540 that provides for the suspension of all professional, occupational and recreational licenses, certificates and permits issued to a person who is the holder of a license to drill issued pursuant to NRS 534.140, the State Engineer shall deem […]

NRS 534.146 – Application for license to include social security number of applicant. [Effective until the date of the repeal of 42 U.S.C. § 666, the federal law requiring each state to establish procedures for withholding, suspending and restricting the professional, occupational and recreational licenses for child support arrearages and for noncompliance with certain processes relating to paternity or child support proceedings.]

An application for the issuance of a license to drill pursuant to NRS 534.140 must include the social security number of the applicant. (Added to NRS by 1997, 2089)

NRS 534.150 – Well Drillers’ Advisory Board: Appointment; terms of members; vacancies; compensation; duties.

1. For the purpose of examining applicants for well drillers’ licenses, the State Engineer may appoint a Well Drillers’ Advisory Board referred to in this section as the “Board.” The Board may be on a regional or statewide basis. 2. In making the initial appointments, the State Engineer shall appoint members to staggered terms of […]