🎰 Caesars Entertainment Inc. shareholders approved a multibillion-dollar merger that would make the casino giant a privately held company, according to multiple outlets. Tilman Fertitta of Fertitta Entertainment first proposed the merger in May.
The total value of the deal is estimated at $17.6 billion, with Fertitta Entertainment agreeing to pay just under $6 billion and take on close to $12 billion in debt from Caesars.
The parties filed the merger proposal with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday, Sept. 23. Caesars and Fertitta must still complete the federal antitrust review process.
🛂 Federal immigration officers detained Ho Yin Mo, an aide to California state Assemblymember Catherine Stefani, at Harry Reid International Airport last week.
According to a Department of Homeland Security statement, Mo entered the country legally in January 2020 on a temporary visa but overstayed past May of the same year.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal reports that authorities are now holding him at the Nevada Southern Detention Center in Pahrump.
Assemblymember Stefani publicly requested his release on Facebook, saying he is a “valued, legal employee of the California State Legislature.”
📷 The growing number of public surveillance cameras in Nevada is raising eyebrows — especially from civil rights advocates and lawmakers.
There are nearly 1,000 automated license plate readers (ALPRs) scattered across the state. That’s according to the website flockcameralocations.com, which shows a live map of where the cameras are located and which directions they are pointed. The greatest density of the cameras is located in Las Vegas.
The cameras are largely operated by the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, which uses two automated license plate reader vendors — Flock Safety and Motorola — to capture license plates, vehicle characteristics, and the time and location of vehicles.
Law enforcement says automated license plate reader technology helps solve crimes, but groups like the ACLU of Nevada argue it invades privacy and should be banned.
Isabella Aldrete, a reporter with The Nevada Independent, told KNPR’s State of Nevada that law enforcement is lauding the effectiveness of the cameras. Hear the full conversation with KNPR’s Paul Boger here.
🍎 A Las Vegas social studies educator has been named the 2027 Nevada State Teacher of the Year. The Nevada Department of Education gave Valley High School teacher Brooke Wheatley the prestigious honor on September 22 at her school’s auditorium.
Wheatley will represent the Silver State in the National Teacher of the Year program. Clark County School District Superintendent Jhone Ebert, as well as Gov. Joe Lombardo, were among those in attendance.
This year marks the 70th anniversary of the Teacher of the Year program in Nevada.
☀️ Fans listening to NPR’s “Science Friday” on April 17 might have been intrigued by the discussion of “balcony” or “plug-in” solar. Nevada condo, townhome, and apartment dwellers have mostly been shut out of the opportunity to take advantage of the approximately 300 sunny and partly sunny days the state enjoys to supplement their energy needs. But daylight could be emerging.
The basics: Solar plug-in panels connect to a standard power outlet. The systems, which currently cost from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars, can have outputs ranging from 200 to 1,200 watts, or enough to power a refrigerator or small air conditioner.
These systems were approved for statewide use in Utah in early 2025, and more than a million of them are in use in Germany. As for Nevada, Benjamin Leffel, UNLV assistant professor of public policy and leadership, says, “Supposing NV Energy does not obstruct deployment. I would expect (approval) quickly, in the same way as other novel solar strategies”; i.e., Orlando’s “floatovoltaics,” or floating solar panels.
In response to Desert Companion’s inquiry, the utility wrote: “NV Energy continually evaluates emerging technologies and customer-driven energy solutions, including options like balcony plug-in solar. While these systems are still evolving in the U.S. market, we are monitoring developments to understand potential benefits, safety considerations, and impacts to the electric grid. Our focus remains on ensuring safe, reliable, and affordable energy for our customers.”
Janis Hashe looks deeper into the realities of a photovoltaic friend for our balcony plants in Desert Companion’s newest issue, available now.
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.
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Our back-to-school issue parses CCSD’s enrollment slide, the homeschool boom, and substance-use care for the unhoused. Plus 2026’s Top Doctors and Dentists list.
