Nevada Water Well Drilling Licensing Law

Nevada Code · 12 sections

The following is the full text of Nevada’s water well drilling licensing law statutes as published in the Nevada Code. For the official version, see the Nevada Legislature.

NRS 485.050

NRS

485.050

Motor vehicle defined.

Motor vehicle means every self-propelled vehicle which is designed for use upon a highway, including:

Trailers and semitrailers designed for use with such vehicles, except traction engines, road rollers, farm tractors, tractor cranes, power shovels and well drillers; and
Every vehicle which is propelled by electric power obtained from overhead wires but not operated upon rails.

Ê The term does not include electric personal assistive mobility devices as defined in NRS 482.029 or an electric bicycle as defined in NRS 484B.017 .

[1.3:127:1949; 1943 NCL § 4439.01c]—(NRS A 2003, 1206 ; 2021, 1744 )

NRS 522.060

NRS

522.060

Establishment of drilling units for pools.

For the prevention of waste, to protect and enforce the correlative rights of lessees in a pool, and to avoid the augmentation and accumulation of risks arising from the drilling of an excessive number of wells, or the reduced recovery which might result from too small a number of wells, the Division shall, after a hearing, establish a drilling unit or units for each pool. The establishment of a unit for gas must be limited to the production of gas.
Each well permitted on a drilling unit must be drilled under such regulations and in accordance with such a spacing pattern as the Division prescribes for the pool in which the well is located. Exceptions to the regulations and spacing pattern may be granted where it is shown, after notice and hearing, that the unit is partly outside the pool, or for some other reason a well so located on the unit would be nonproductive, or topographical conditions are such as to make the drilling at such a location unduly burdensome. If an exception is granted, the Division shall offset any advantage which the person securing the exception may have over other producers and shall prevent or minimize drainage from developed units to the tract to which the exception is granted. The producer of the well drilled as an exception must be allowed to produce no more than a just and equitable share of the oil and gas in the pool.
When two or more separately owned tracts of land are within an established drilling unit, persons owning the drilling rights therein and the right to share in the production therefrom may agree to pool their interests and develop their lands as a drilling unit. If those persons do not agree to pool their interests, the Division may, for the prevention of waste, for the protection of correlative rights, or to avoid the drilling of unnecessary wells, enter an order pooling and integrating their interests for the development of their lands as a drilling unit. Orders effectuating such pooling must be made after notice and hearing, and must be upon terms and conditions which will afford to the owner of each tract the opportunity to recover or receive the owners just and equitable share of the oil and gas in the pool without unnecessary expense. Operations incident to the drilling of a well upon any portion of a unit covered by a pooling order shall be deemed for all purposes to be the conduct of the operation upon each separately owned tract in the unit by the several lessees thereof. The portion of the production allocated to the lessee of each tract included in a drilling unit formed by a pooling order shall, when produced, be considered as if it had been produced from the tract by a well drilled thereon.
If the pooling is effectuated, the cost of development and operation of the pooled unit chargeable by the operator to the other interested lessees is limited to the actual and reasonable expenditures required for that purpose, including a reasonable charge for supervision. As to lessees who refuse to agree upon pooling, the order must provide for reimbursement for 300 percent of the costs chargeable to each lessee out of, and only out of, production from the unit belonging to the lessee. In the event of a dispute relative to those costs, the Division shall, upon notice to all interested parties and hearing thereon, determine the proper costs. Appeals may be taken from the determination as from any other order of the Division. If one or more of the lessees drill and operate, or pay the expense of drilling and operating, the well for the benefit of others, then in addition to any other right conferred by the pooling order, the lessee or lessees so drilling or operating have a lien on the share of production from the unit accruing to the interest of each of the other lessees for the payment of his or her proportionate share of the expenses. All the oil and gas subject to the lien, or so much thereof as is necessary, must be marketed and sold by the creditor, and the proceeds applied in payment of the expenses secured by the lien, with the balance, if any, payable to the debtor.
The Division shall, in all instances where a unit has been formed out of lands or areas of more than one ownership, require the operator, upon request of a lessee, but subject to the right of the operator to market production and collect the proceeds with respect to a lessee in default, as provided in subsection 4, to deliver to the lessee or the lessees assigns his or her proportionate share of the production from the well common to the drilling unit. The lessee receiving his or her share shall provide at the lessees own expense proper receptacles for the receipt and storage thereof.
If the persons owning the drilling or other rights in separate tracts embraced within a drilling unit fail to agree upon the pooling of the tracts and the drilling of a well on the unit, and if the Division is without authority to require pooling as provided by this section, then subject to all other applicable provisions of this chapter, the lessee of each tract embraced within the drilling unit may drill on the lessees tract, but the allowable production from the tract is such a proportion of the allowable production for the full drilling unit as the area of the separately owned tract bears to the full drilling unit.

[6:202:1953]—(NRS A 1977, 1152 ; 1983, 2080 ; 1985, 1675 ; 1993, 1690 )

NRS 534.0175

NRS

534.0175

Well drilling and drilling a well defined.

Well drilling or drilling a well are synonymous, and mean drilling or boring new wells, placing casing in wells, cleaning and repairing existing wells, cementing wells and doing all other things normally associated with the construction or rehabilitation of wells.

(Added to NRS by 1987, 1770 )

NRS 534.040

NRS

534.040

Employment and compensation of well supervisor and assistants; levy, collection and distribution of special assessment; exception.

Upon the initiation of the administration of this chapter in any particular basin, and where the investigations of the State Engineer have shown the necessity for the supervision over the waters of that basin, the State Engineer may employ a well supervisor and other necessary assistants, who shall execute the duties as provided in this chapter under the direction of the State Engineer. The salaries of the well supervisor and the assistants of the well supervisor must be fixed by the State Engineer. The well supervisor and assistants are exempt from the provisions of chapter 284 of NRS.
If the money available from the license fees provided for in NRS 534.140 is not sufficient to pay those salaries, together with necessary expenses, including the compensation and other expenses of the Well Drillers Advisory Board, the board of county commissioners shall, except as otherwise provided in this subsection, levy a special assessment annually, or at such time as the assessment is needed, upon all taxable property situated within the confines of the area designated by the State Engineer to come under the provisions of this chapter in an amount as is necessary to pay such salaries and expenses. If the board of county commissioners determines that the amount of a special assessment levied upon a property owner pursuant to this section when combined with the amount of all other taxes and assessments levied upon the property owner is less than the cost of collecting the special assessment levied pursuant to this subsection, the board of county commissioners may exempt the property owner from the assessment and appropriate money from the general fund of the county to pay the cost of the assessment.
Except as otherwise provided in subsection 2, in designated areas within which the use of groundwater is predominantly for agricultural purposes, any special assessment levied pursuant to this section must be charged against each water user who has a permit to appropriate water or a perfected water right, and the charge against each water user must be based upon the proportion which his or her water right bears to the aggregate water rights in the designated area. The minimum charge is $1.
The salaries and expenses may be paid by the State Engineer from the Water Distribution Revolving Account pending the levy and collection of an assessment levied pursuant to this section.
Except as otherwise provided in subsection 2, if a special assessment is levied pursuant to this section, the proper officers of the county shall levy and collect the special assessment as other special assessments are levied and collected, and the assessment is a lien upon the property.
Any special assessment collected pursuant to this section must be deposited with the State Treasurer for credit to the Water District Account to be accounted for in basin well accounts.
Upon determination and certification by the State Engineer of the amount to be budgeted for the current or ensuing fiscal year for the purpose of paying the per diem and travel allowances of the groundwater board and employing consultants or other help needed to fulfill its responsibilities, the State Controller shall transfer that amount to a separate operating account for that fiscal year for the groundwater basin. Claims against the account must be approved by the groundwater board and paid as other claims against the State are paid. The State Engineer may use money in a particular basin well account to support an activity outside the basin in which the money is collected if the activity bears a direct relationship to the responsibilities or activities of the State Engineer regarding the particular groundwater basin.

[5:178:1939; A 1943, 139 ; 1947, 52 ; 1953, 188 ]—(NRS A 1957, 716 ; 1963, 796 ; 1967, 1253 ; 1969, 342 ; 1979, 668 ; 1985, 694 ; 1991, 1784 ; 1993, 2352 ; 1995, 222 ; 2019, 838 )

NRS 534.080

NRS

534.080

Appropriation of underground water for beneficial use from artesian, definable aquifer or percolating water: Acquisition of rights under

chapter 533

of NRS; orders to desist; dates of priority.

A legal right to appropriate underground water for beneficial use from an artesian or definable aquifer subsequent to March 22, 1913, or from percolating water, the course and boundaries of which are incapable of determination, subsequent to March 25, 1939, can only be acquired by complying with the provisions of chapter 533 of NRS pertaining to the appropriation of water.
The State Engineer may, upon written notice sent by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested, advise the owner of a well who is using water therefrom without a permit to appropriate the water to cease using the water until the owner has complied with the laws pertaining to the appropriation of water. If the owner fails to initiate proceedings to secure such a permit within 30 days after the date of the notice, the owner is guilty of a misdemeanor.
Except as otherwise provided in subsection 4 and NRS 534.180 , the date of priority of all appropriations of water from an underground source mentioned in this section is the date when application is made in proper form and filed in the Office of the State Engineer pursuant to the provisions of chapter 533 of NRS.
The date of priority for the use of underground water from a well for domestic purposes where the draught does not exceed 2 acre-feet per year is the date of completion of the well as:

(a) Recorded by the well driller on the log the well driller files with the State Engineer pursuant to NRS 534.170 ; or

(b) Demonstrated through any other documentation or evidence specified by the State Engineer.

[9:178:1939; A 1947, 52 ; 1943 NCL § 7993.18]—(NRS A 1957, 718 ; 1967, 195 ; 2007, 843 )

NRS 534.140

NRS

534.140

Well drillers: Annual licenses; fees; continuing education; regulations for well drilling; licensing by State Contractors Board.

Every well driller, before engaging in the physical drilling of a well in this State for development of water, must annually apply to the State Engineer for a license to drill.
The applications for those licenses and all licenses issued for the drilling of wells must be in the form prescribed by the State Engineer.
All well-drilling licenses expire on June 30 following their issuance and are not transferable.
A fee of $100 must accompany each application for a license and a fee of $50 must be paid each year for renewal of the license.
Those license fees must be accounted for in the State Engineers Water License Account and used to pay costs pertaining to licensing, the adoption and enforcement of regulations for well drilling and the compensation of the members of the Well Drillers Advisory Board and their expenses.
The State Engineer, after consulting with the Well Drillers Advisory Board, shall adopt regulations relating to continuing education for well drillers.
The State Engineer shall prepare and keep on file in the Office of the State Engineer regulations for well drilling.
Before engaging in the physical drilling of a well in this State for the development of water, every well driller who is the owner of a well-drilling rig, or who has a well-drilling rig under lease or rental, or who has a contract to purchase a well-drilling rig, must obtain a license as a well driller from the State Contractors Board.

[Part 7a:178:1939; added 1947, 52 ; A 1955, 328 ]—(NRS A 1957, 719 ; 1963, 797 ; 1979, 115 ; 1983, 407 ; 1991, 63 , 1785 ;

2005, 456 )

NRS 534.1405

NRS

534.1405

Well drillers: Petition for review of criminal history to obtain license; requirements; fee; report.

The State Engineer shall develop and implement a process by which a person with a criminal history may petition the State Engineer to review the criminal history of the person to determine if the persons criminal history will disqualify the person from obtaining a license to drill pursuant to NRS 534.140 .
Not later than 90 days after a petition is submitted to the State Engineer pursuant to subsection 1, the State Engineer shall inform the person of the determination of the State Engineer of whether the persons criminal history will disqualify the person from obtaining a license. The State Engineer is not bound by his or her determination of disqualification or qualification and may rescind such a determination at any time.
The State Engineer may provide instructions to a person who receives a determination of disqualification to remedy the determination of disqualification. A person may resubmit a petition pursuant to subsection 1 not earlier than 6 months after receiving instructions pursuant to this subsection if the person remedies the determination of disqualification.
A person with a criminal history may petition the State Engineer at any time, including, without limitation, before obtaining any education or paying any fee required to obtain a license from the State Engineer.
A person may submit a new petition to the State Engineer not earlier than 2 years after the final determination of the initial petition submitted to the State Engineer.
The State Engineer may impose a fee of up to $50 upon the person to fund the administrative costs in complying with the provisions of this section. The State Engineer may waive such fees or allow such fees to be covered by funds from a scholarship or grant.
The State Engineer may post on its Internet website:

(a) The requirements to obtain a license from the State Engineer; and

(b) A list of crimes, if any, that would disqualify a person from obtaining a license from the State Engineer.

The State Engineer may request the criminal history record of a person who petitions the State Engineer for a determination pursuant to subsection 1. To the extent consistent with federal law, if the State Engineer makes such a request of a person, the State Engineer shall require the person to submit his or her criminal history record which includes a report from:

(a) The Central Repository for Nevada Records of Criminal History; and

(b) The Federal Bureau of Investigation.

A person who petitions the State Engineer for a determination pursuant to subsection 1 shall not submit false or misleading information to the State Engineer.
The State Engineer shall, on or before the 20th day of January, April, July and October, submit to the Director of the Legislative Counsel Bureau in an electronic format prescribed by the Director, a report that includes:

(a) The number of petitions submitted to the State Engineer pursuant to subsection 1;

(b) The number of determinations of disqualification made by the State Engineer pursuant to subsection 1;

(d) Any other information that is requested by the Director or which the State Engineer determines would be helpful.

The Director shall transmit a compilation of the information received pursuant to subsection 10 to the Legislative Commission quarterly, unless otherwise directed by the Commission.

(Added to NRS by 2019, 2942 )

NRS 534.150

NRS

534.150

Well Drillers Advisory Board: Appointment; terms of members; vacancies; compensation; duties.

For the purpose of examining applicants for well drillers licenses, the State Engineer may appoint a Well Drillers Advisory Board referred to in this section as the Board. The Board may be on a regional or statewide basis.
In making the initial appointments, the State Engineer shall appoint members to staggered terms of 1, 2 and 3 years. After the initial terms, members shall serve for 3-year terms.
The State Engineer may fill vacancies on the Board.
Each member of the Board is entitled to receive $60 for each day and $30 for each half day spent doing the work of the Board. Any time spent by members of the Board in work or travel necessary to the discharge of their duties which is less than a full day but more than a half day must be treated for compensation as a full day. Any time less than a half day must be treated as a half day.
The purpose of the Board is to determine the qualifications of an applicant as a well driller and to submit its findings to the State Engineer.
Regulations of the Board on examining applicants for well drillers licenses must be developed by the State Engineer in cooperation with the Board upon its creation.
If a hearing is held by the State Engineer to determine whether a licensed well driller is complying with the law or the regulations pertaining to well drilling, the State Engineer may avail himself or herself of the services of the Board in an advisory capacity.

[Part 7a:178:1939; added 1947, 52 ; A 1955, 328 ]—(NRS A 1963, 798 ; 1977, 1236 ; 1979, 793 ; 1981, 1986 ; 1985, 434 )

NRS 534.160

NRS

534.160

License required to drill well; revocation of or refusal to reissue license; order to plug well; penalty for allowing unlicensed person to drill.

A person shall not drill a well for water in this State without having first obtained a well-drilling license.
Well drillers must comply with the regulations adopted by the State Engineer governing the drilling of water wells.
If the State Engineer determines, upon investigation and after hearing held upon at least 15 days notice sent by registered or certified mail to the licensed well driller, that the well driller has failed to comply with the law or the required regulations, the State Engineer may revoke the license. The State Engineer may refuse to reissue a license to a well driller if the well driller has violated the law or the regulations.
The order revoking or refusing to reissue a license is final unless an action for review by the district court is filed pursuant to NRS 533.450 .
The State Engineer shall order any person who drills a well without a license to plug that well. If the well is not plugged within 30 days after the order, the State Engineer shall plug the well at the expense of the person who owned or drilled the well.
If any licensed driller who owns, rents, leases or has a contract to purchase a well-drilling rig allows an unlicensed person to drill or perform any work in connection with well drilling, except under the supervision of the licensed driller, the license must be revoked or not reissued.

[Part 7a:178:1939; added 1947, 52 ; A 1955, 328 ]—(NRS A 1957, 719 ; 1969, 95 ; 1981, 360 )

NRS 534.170

NRS

534.170

Well driller to keep log and records; contents; information to be furnished to State Engineer; report of test.

The well driller shall keep:

(a) A log of the depth, thickness and character of the different strata penetrated and the location of water-bearing strata; and

(b) An accurate record of the work, including:

(1) A statement of the date of beginning work;

(2) The date of completion;

(3) The length, size and weight of the casing and how it is placed;

(4) The size of the drilled hole;

(5) Where sealed off and the type of seal;

(6) The name of the well driller and the type of drilling machine used;

(7) The number of cubic feet per second or gallons per minute of flow from such well when completed; and

(8) The pressure in pounds per square inch if it is a flowing well, and, if nonflowing, the static water level, and the water temperature.

The well driller shall furnish a copy of the log and the record of work for every well drilled to the State Engineer within 30 days after the well is completed.
If the well is to be tested by pumping by the holder of the permit, the report of the test must include the drawdown with respect to the amount of water pumped and any additional information requested by the State Engineer. This information must be reported and verified on forms prescribed by the State Engineer. The report must be returned:

(a) Immediately following the completion of the test; or

(b) Within 30 days following the completion of the well,

Ê whichever occurs later.

The log, record of the work and report of the test are a permanent record in the Office of the State Engineer.

[Part 7a:178:1939; added 1947, 52 ; A 1955, 328 ]—(NRS A 1981, 1842 )

NRS 624.3011

NRS

624.3011

Disregard of plans, specifications, laws or regulations.

The following acts, among others, constitute cause for disciplinary action under NRS 624.300 :

(a) Willful and prejudicial departure from or disregard of plans or specifications in any material respect without the consent of the owner or the owners authorized representative and the person entitled to have the particular construction project or operation completed in accordance with the plans and specifications.

(b) Willful or deliberate disregard and violation of:

(1) The building laws of the State or of any political subdivision thereof.

(2) The safety laws or labor laws of the State.

(3) Any provision of the Nevada health and safety laws or the regulations adopted thereunder relating to the digging, boring or drilling of water wells.

(4) The laws of this State regarding industrial insurance.

If a contractor performs construction without obtaining any necessary building permit, there is a rebuttable presumption that the contractor willfully and deliberately violated the building laws of this State or of its political subdivisions.

(Added to NRS by 1969, 941 ; A 1983, 541 ; 1987, 1101 ; 1995, 2545 ; 1999, 2964 )

NRS 706.462

NRS

706.462

Issuance and renewal; application requirements; fees.

A person shall not drive a charter bus for the purposes of charter bus transportation, a motor vehicle for a fully regulated carrier of passengers or a taxicab motor carrier as an employee, independent contractor or lessee unless the person has been issued a drivers permit by the Authority pursuant to this section.
The Authority shall issue a drivers permit to each applicant who satisfies the requirements of this section. Before issuing a drivers permit, the Authority shall:

(a) Require the applicant to submit a complete set of his or her fingerprints, which the Authority shall forward to the Central Repository for Nevada Records of Criminal History for submission to the Federal Bureau of Investigation to ascertain whether the applicant has a criminal record and the nature of any such record, and may further investigate the applicants background; and

(b) Require proof that the applicant is employed or under a contract or lease agreement or has an offer of employment, a contract or a lease agreement that is contingent on the applicant obtaining a drivers permit pursuant to this section and:

(1) Has a valid license issued pursuant to

NRS 483.340 which authorizes the applicant to drive in this State any motor vehicle that is within the scope of the employment, contract or lease; or

(2) If the driver is a resident of a state other than Nevada, has a valid license issued by the state in which he or she resides which authorizes the applicant to drive any motor vehicle that is within the scope of the employment, contract or lease.

The Authority may refuse to issue a drivers permit if:

(a) The applicant has been convicted of:

(1) A felony, other than a sexual offense, in this State or any other jurisdiction within the 5 years immediately preceding the date of the application;

(2) A felony involving any sexual offense in this State or any other jurisdiction at any time before the date of the application; or

(3) A violation of NRS 484C.110 or 484C.430 or a law of any other jurisdiction that prohibits the same or similar conduct within the 3 years immediately preceding the date of the application.

(b) After further investigation into the applicants background, if any, the Authority determines that the issuance of the drivers permit would be detrimental to public health, welfare or safety.

A drivers permit issued pursuant to this section is valid for not longer than 3 years, but lapses if the driver ceases to be employed by the carrier identified in the application for the original or renewal permit or if the contract or lease expires and the driver enters into a contract or lease with a different carrier. A driver must notify the Authority within 10 days after the lapse of a permit and obtain a new permit pursuant to this section before driving for a different carrier.
An applicant shall pay to the Authority:

(a) A fee for the processing of fingerprints which is to be established by the Authority and which may not exceed the fee charged by the Central Repository for Nevada Records of Criminal History and the Federal Bureau of Investigation for processing the fingerprints.

(b) For an original drivers permit, a fee not to exceed $50.

As used in this section, charter bus transportation means transportation by bus of a group of persons who, pursuant to a common purpose and under a single contract, at a fixed charge for the motor vehicle, have acquired the exclusive use of the motor vehicle to travel together under an itinerary either specified in advance or modified after having left the place of origin. The term does not include:

(a) The transportation of passengers and their baggage in the same vehicle for a per capita charge between airports or between an airport and points and places in this State;

(b) The transportation at a per capita or an hourly rate of passengers to various points of interest for the purpose of sightseeing or visiting those points of interest where a narrated tour is presented to the passengers;

(c) The transportation of persons who have acquired the use of a vehicle for a special event between definite points of origin and destination, at a per capita rate; or

(d) In a county whose population is less than 100,000, the transportation of a group of persons to and from a single job site or work site, including, without limitation, a construction site, mine or facility or project for the production of renewable energy. As used in this paragraph:

(1) Construction site means any location at which construction work is being commenced or in progress.

(2) Mine means an excavation in the earth from which ores, coal or other mineral substances are extracted, or a subterranean natural deposit of minerals located and identified as such by the staking of a claim or other method recognized by law. The term includes, without limitation, a well drilled to extract minerals.

(3) Renewable energy means a source of energy that occurs naturally or is regenerated naturally, including, without limitation:

(I) Biomass;

(II) Fuel cells;

(III) Geothermal energy;

(IV) Solar energy;

(V) Waterpower; and

(VI) Wind.

Ê The term does not include coal, natural gas, oil, propane or any other fossil fuel, or nuclear energy.

(Added to NRS by 2013, 2177 ; A 2015, 781 )

The law belongs to the people. Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 590 U.S. (2020)