1. The Commission shall adopt regulations governing the disbursement of money to:

(a) Prevent or mitigate damage to private property and privately maintained improvements, including, without limitation, fences;

(b) Prevent or mitigate damage to fences on public lands;

(c) Construct fences around sources of water on private lands or public lands where there has been damage to the area near such sources of water; and

(d) Compensate persons for grazing reductions and the loss of stored and standing crops,

caused by elk or game mammals not native to this State.

2. The regulations must contain:

(a) Requirements for the eligibility of those persons claiming damage to private property, privately maintained improvements, fences on public lands or areas near sources of water on public lands to receive money or materials from the Department, including:

(1) A requirement that such a person enter into a cooperative agreement with the Director for purposes related to this title; and

(2) A requirement that if the claim is for money or materials from the Department for the construction of a fence around a source of water on private land or public land, such a person must:

(I) Conduct a physical inspection of the private land or public land upon which the fence is proposed to be constructed to determine the most effective manner in which to protect the source of water and to determine the most effective manner in which to provide access to a source of water for livestock and wildlife that is located outside the fence and within a reasonable distance from the fence;

(II) Conduct the inspection described in sub-subparagraph (I) in consultation with the persons or entities which will be directly affected by the construction of the fence, including, without limitation, an owner of the private land on which the fence is proposed to be constructed, a governmental entity that manages the public land on which the fence is proposed to be constructed, a holder of a permit to graze livestock on the public land, if applicable, and a person who holds a water right which will be directly affected by the construction of the fence; and

(III) Enter into a cooperative agreement with the persons and entities described in sub-subparagraph (II) for purposes related to the construction of the fence in accordance with the results of the inspection conducted pursuant to this subparagraph.

(b) Procedures for the formation of local panels to assess damage caused by elk or game mammals not native to this State and to determine the value of a loss claimed if the person claiming the loss and the Department do not agree on the value of the loss.

(c) Procedures for the use on private property or public lands of materials purchased by the State to prevent damage caused by elk or game mammals not native to this State.

(d) Any other regulations necessary to carry out the provisions of this section and NRS 504.155.

3. The regulations must:

(a) Provide for the payment of money or other compensation to cover the costs of labor and materials necessary to:

(1) Prevent or mitigate damage to private property, privately maintained improvements and fences on public lands caused by elk or game mammals not native to this State; and

(2) Construct fences around sources of water on private or public lands if:

(I) Elk or game mammals not native to this State have caused damage to the area near such sources of water; and

(II) A source of water for livestock and wildlife is available outside such a fence and within a reasonable distance from such a fence or will be made available at such a location.

(b) Prohibit a person who has, within a particular calendar year, applied for or received a special incentive elk tag pursuant to NRS 502.142 from applying, within the same calendar year, for compensation pursuant to this section for the same private land.

4. Money may not be disbursed to a claimant pursuant to this section unless the claimant shows by a preponderance of the evidence that the damage for which the claimant is seeking compensation was caused solely by elk or game mammals not native to this State.

5. As used in this section, “public lands” means all lands within the exterior boundaries of the State of Nevada except lands:

(a) To which title is held by any private person or entity;

(b) To which title is held by the State of Nevada, any of its local governments or the Nevada System of Higher Education;

(c) Which are located within congressionally authorized national parks, monuments, national forests or wildlife refuges, or which are lands acquired by purchase consented to by the Legislature;

(d) Which are controlled by the United States Department of Defense, Department of Energy or Bureau of Reclamation; or

(e) Which are held in trust for Indian purposes or are Indian reservations.

(Added to NRS by 1989, 2020; A 1991, 269; 1993, 1678; 1997, 1380; 1999, 437; 2003, 512, 1554; 2013, 1629)