1. Except as otherwise provided in subsections 2 and 3, a person shall not perform work on the electric infrastructure of an electric utility, including, without limitation, the construction, installation, maintenance, repair or removal of such infrastructure, unless the person is a qualified electrical worker.

2. An apprentice electrical lineman may perform work on the electric infrastructure of an electric utility, including, without limitation, the construction, installation, maintenance, repair or removal of such infrastructure, under the direct supervision of a qualified electrical worker.

3. The Commission may authorize a person who is not an employee of an electric utility to perform tree trimming related to line clearance in an easement or right-of-way dedicated or restricted for use by an electric utility. If a person who is not an employee of an electric utility performs tree trimming related to line clearance in such an easement or right-of-way, the tree trimming must be performed under the direction of an arborist certified by the International Society of Arboriculture.

4. As used in this section:

(a) “Apprentice electrical lineman” means a person employed and individually registered in a bona fide electrical lineman apprenticeship program with:

(1) The Office of Apprenticeship of the Employment and Training Administration of the United States Department of Labor or its successor agency; or

(2) The State Apprenticeship Council pursuant to chapter 610 of NRS.

(b) “Electric utility” has the meaning ascribed to it in NRS 704.7571.

(c) “Qualified electrical worker” means:

(1) A person who has completed an electrical lineman apprenticeship program lasting at least 4 years that was approved by the Office of Apprenticeship of the Employment and Training Administration of the United States Department of Labor or its successor agency or the State Apprenticeship Council pursuant to chapter 610 of NRS; or

(2) A person who has completed 10,000 hours or more as a journeyman lineman and has performed at least 1,500 hours of documented live-line work on electrical conductors at a voltage of at least 4,160 kilovolts.

(Added to NRS by 2019, 556)