Region Briefly June 28

Application period begins for new scholarship

(AP) - Nevada Millennium scholars finishing up a degree in education can begin applying for a new scholarship honoring the legacy for former Gov. Kenny Guinn.

State Treasurer Kate Marshall says the application period will begin Friday and run through midnight Sept. 1.

SB220 was unanimously approved by the Legislature and signed by Gov. Brian Sandoval. It authorizes the Kenny C. Guinn Memorial Scholarship, which will provide one Nevada college senior majoring in education with a $4,500 scholarship.

The scholarship is funded through donations received after Guinn's death in July of last year.

Guinn pushed for the creation of Nevada's Millennium Scholarship Program in 1999. Funded largely by tobacco settlement money, it has provided Nevada high school graduates up to $10,000 to go to college.

Nevada consumer health assistance director named

(AP) - Marilyn Wills has been named permanent director of the Nevada Office of Consumer Health Assistance.

Wills has served in the position on an interim basis since April of last year. Her appointment was announced Monday by Health and Human Services Director Mike Willden.

The Consumer Health Assistance office is based in Las Vegas and helps resolve medical billing disputes and workers compensation issues. It also helps people find available health care services.

The office has a staff of 12 and responded to more than 15,000 consumer assistance requests last year.

Energy management co gets bigger tie to NV Energy

LAS VEGAS (AP) - A California energy management firm says it has made a deal to expand its role with NV Energy in helping keep homes cool without overloading the grid.

EcoFactor said Monday that the expanded deal comes after a pilot test last year showed strong results using its system compared with conventional methods of conserving energy during peak times.

Officials say the program anticipates times when demand could get high, like storms or heat waves, and adjusts thermostats to get homes to proper temperatures before demand gets too high.

When demand gets high, interruptions are more likely.

Officials say they expect demand to get higher than normal about 40 times this summer in Las Vegas and Reno.

Homeless in Reno 'tent city' must move this week

RENO (AP) - Reno officials say four remaining homeless residents of the city's "tent city" will have to sleep elsewhere at the start of July.

A Reno newspaper reports the community had about 230 people at its peak.

But homeless coordinator Krista Lee says that number dropped after the city required the homeless living there to work with a case manager to find permanent housing to keep living there.

Lee says residents either left because of the program or decided they didn't want to participate.

About 120 people have participated in the program since last fall. Officials say 25 people have found permanent housing that is mostly subsidized, while 7 moved in with friends or family and 11 went to motels.

Others made arrangements outside the program.