The Daily Rundown: September 17, 2026
🔥 A fire that burned Tuesday evening has closed a hot spring destination in Death Valley National Park. The National Park Service said in a release yesterday that due to the fire damage, the Saline Valley Warm Springs Campground is closed.
The fire destroyed the shed of a volunteer camp host that contained potential hazardous materials. Most non-native palm trees in the Lower Springs area burned. Piping to the soaking tubs melted from the heat.
The tubs themselves appeared undamaged. The Palm Springs section suffered no fire damage. Park officials say the public should stay away until hazards are cleared. Investigators have not determined the cause of the fire.
🎰 A bill reversing the reduction on gambling loss deductions from the One Big Beautiful Bill passed through the House Ways and Means Committee yesterday. The so-called FULL HOUSE Act would once again allow gamblers to deduct 100% of their losses, as opposed to the currently reduced 90%.
Bill sponsor and Nevada Congressman Steven Horsford argues that the 90% deduction rate creates a “‘phantom tax’ that can force people to pay taxes even when their losses equal their winnings.” The legislation passed through committee on a 38-5 vote. It now awaits consideration by the full House.
🏫 Nevada’s largest teachers’ union, the Clark County Education Association, wants state lawmakers to restructure the tax incentives for data centers as part of an effort to generate more money for K-12 public schools.
Last week, the group unveiled what they called an eight-point plan to reshape the public’s perspective of the facilities. At the heart of the proposal, the union is calling for the end of the 2.6% local school support sales tax (LSST) abatement for data centers. According to the union, the move could generate as much as $500 million a year for schools statewide.
CCEA Executive Director John Vellardita told KNPR News the opportunity is too good to deny.
"Can you really just say no?" he asked. "Can you really just say 'moratorium,' and you're still stuck with what you got in an industry that's not going away, that's going to expand? Or do you say, 'Is there some opportunity to engage them at a moment where nobody else is around?' Redefining the relationship — that's what we're trying to do here."
Vellardita says his office is already working with state lawmakers to add the proposal to the 2027 legislative agenda. However, buy-in would likely rely on a bipartisan effort because all tax and spending bills must pass with two-thirds support from lawmakers.
That could be a tough sell, given recent student achievement data shows most students in the state continue to struggle in math and English language arts. That's despite dramatic reforms and funding increases over the last decade. Hear the full story by KNPR's Paul Boger here.
💧 Construction of the state’s first wastewater-to-drinking-water plant is underway in Reno. The city of Reno and Truckee Meadows Water Authority’s Advanced Purified Water Facility will treat wastewater to meet drinking water standards.
The Nevada Division of Environmental Protection says it’s started fielding exploratory questions from communities outside the Las Vegas area. However, NDEP says that while interest in the project has grown, no other Nevada utility has applied for a similar project.
🏀 The Las Vegas Aces are back tonight and heading to Seattle to take on the Storm. The WNBA has been on a break since Aug. 31 for the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup. The Aces sit at the No. 3 seed with four games remaining in the regular season.
They have already clinched a playoff spot. Center A’ja Wilson is expected to play the rest of the season after withdrawing from Team USA before the World Cup tournament. She says she did not feel 100% physically and needed to take care of her body.
Part of these stories are taken from KNPR's daily newscast segment. To hear more daily updates like these, tune in to 88.9 KNPR FM.
