With the comment period ending Thursday, August 30, the newly formed Sierra Pro-Access Group is asking outdoor enthusiasts to write against a U.S. Forest Service alternative plan that proposes creating new wilderness areas that would shut down some of the locals' most beloved recreation areas on public land around the Lake Tahoe Basin.

The economic effects on the Lake Tahoe Basin could be devastating, the group says, shutting out what clearly has been public access for not only snowmobiles, but mountain bikes, dirt bikes, and 4-wheel ATVs.

Carson City District Attorney Neil Rombardo reports that his Victim-Witness Services Division has seen a 57 percent increase in services provided to victims of crime in the first half of the year. Between January 1 and June 30, 2012, nearly 300 victims were served by the grant-funded Victim-Witness Coordinator. This represents a 57 percent increase over the same reporting period in 2011. Of the numbers 219 were victims of domestic violence, 73 were victims of stalking, and 7 were victims of sexual assault.

CARSON CITY – As GOP Gov. Brian Sandoval prepares to deliver remarks in Tampa at the Republican National Convention tomorrow, the three GOP members of Nevada’s Congressional delegation are staying close to home.

U.S. Sen. Dean Heller, who is facing a tough election battle against Rep. Shelley Berkley, will still be following the convention from afar, however.

A legislative committee has endorsed a plan to preserve the habitats for the declining sage grouse population, but millions of acres of public lands continue to be open to grazing, mining development and energy projects.