Content about Nevada

Voters in 38 states will consider 174 statewide ballot measures on Nov. 6, 2012, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL). These proposals are wide-ranging, with a number of them having potential workplace implications.

Questions appear on the ballots in more than one state concerning:

• Medical marijuana use;
• Legalization of marijuana; and
• Same-sex marriage.

Housing economists, reading the tea leaves of recent building permits and home sales, are not yet ready to say, “It’s over.” But certain states are definitely showing a pick-up in business at both the builder and LBM supplier level. They say one of these states, surprisingly, is Florida.

Offer exclusive products, make the most of your retail brands online and accentuate the positives of your store touch points.

The syndicated home improvement talk radio show “The Money Pit” crossed the 300-affiliate mark. The show’s newest markets include El Paso Texas; Huntington W.Va.; Savannah, Ga.; and Reno, Nev.

The Money Pit, heard in many of the country's top markets including New York, Atlanta, Orlando and Providence, R.I., added more than 20 new stations in the first quarter of 2012, breaking past the 300 affiliate station threshold. 

As the National Hardware Show kicks off in Las Vegas, the Golden Hammer Awards program enters its 28th year.

Wednesday morning at the show, the Home Channel News Golden Hammer event will honor the best of the best among home improvement suppliers and recognize outstanding achievement in the retail field. A twist for 2012: A Golden Hammer panel discussion with the working title: “The recovery: Is it real? And what to do about it?”

The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a Chinese trade group have signed a major exhibition agreement that will bring a large number of additional manufacturers and products to the annual NAHB International Builders' Show in Las Vegas in January 2013.

A formal signing ceremony was held April 19 in Foshan, China, between officials from the China Building Ceramics & Sanitaryware Association and NAHB's immediate past chairman Bob Nielsen, a home builder and developer in Reno, Nev., and Mark Pursell, NAHB senior VP for exhibitions, marketing and sales.

Dick Jackson, president and CEO of Pacific Wood Preserving Companies, died after a long battle with cancer, according to the Lumber Association of California and Nevada (LACN) newsletter.

The Container Store, a specialty retailer in home organization solutions, has announced six new locations in the United States, including its first foray into Las Vegas and Long Island. It will bring the company’s store count to 59 by the end of 2012. 

Builder confidence in the market for newly built, single-family homes rose two points to 21 on the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) for December. This marks the third consecutive month in which builder confidence has improved, and brings the index to its highest point since May 2010. 

The state of Nevada has filed a lawsuit against a Florida firm responsible for more than half of the nation’s annual foreclosures, claiming that it defrauded homeowners and turned them out of their houses without due process.

The Lumber Association of California & Nevada (LACN) has alerted members to a scam involving a group that calls itself the California Labor Compliance Bureau.

The group is soliciting "processing fees" of $275 for labor-related postings. The problem is, the group has no affiliation with the California Labor Commission's office, and is not authorized to issue citations or charges on behalf of California, according to Julie A. Su, labor commissioner.

The California State Water Resources Control Board is proposing new regulations on stormwater runoff and containment that the Lumber Association of California & Nevada (LACN) has called "controversial, costly and unfair."

According to Ken Dunham, LACN executive director, the regulations affect lumberyards and any business with a physical outside yard. LACN Government Affairs Chair and LACN Second VP Augie Venezia presented his views and those of the LACN at an Aug. 17 workshop organized by the Water Resources Control Board.