Nevada lawmakers consider bill to protect workers from poor air quality

Editor's note: Este artículo está traducido al espanol.

A proposal before the Nevada Legislature aims to establish protections for outdoor workers during periods of hazardous air quality caused by increasing wildfire activity throughout the region.

Senate Bill 260 would require employers to implement safety measures for outdoor workers when air quality deteriorates due to wildfire smoke, which contains dangerous fine particulate matter known as PM2.5.

“This bill is about protecting the safety and well-being of workers,” said Jackie Spicer, coalition coordinator with the Nevada Environmental Justice Coalition. “Worsening wildfire conditions in Nevada and our surrounding states have made fires more frequent, more severe and last longer.”

The proposed legislation uses the Environmental Protection Agency’s Air Quality Index (AQI) as its measurement standard. When the AQI exceeds 150 — the threshold at which air becomes unhealthy for sensitive groups — employers would be required to take steps to reduce worker exposure to hazardous air, including schedule adjustments, providing filtered air spaces or distributing N95 masks and respirators.

If the AQI rises above 200, signifying air that is unhealthy for everyone, employees could stop working if employers cannot ensure a safe environment. The bill specifies that such weather-related stoppages would not be considered paid time off.

State Sen. Edgar Flores, D-Las Vegas, who proposed the legislation, said the bill would establish parameters for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to create industry-specific standards. The bill was introduced in the Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor.

“Unless you’ve collectively bargained for it or you have a very strong union behind it, it’s not entirely clear at what point we should have a work stoppage or at what point we should trigger basic protections,” Flores said.

The law, if passed, would likely see limited implementation here.

While Las Vegas ranks as the ninth most ozone-polluted city in the U.S., the number of days where the overall AQI exceeds 150 remains relatively low, according to IQ Air, an organization that monitors air quality.

In 2021, Las Vegas maintained generally good air quality with most days categorized as either “Good” (154 days) or “Moderate” (212 days). The region experienced only three days in the “Unhealthy” category and none in the “Very Unhealthy” or “Hazardous” categories.

Las Vegas has seen a 113% increase in air quality index from 2020 to 2025, according to Real Time Air Quality. Despite this concerning trend, Las Vegas still ranks 811th among cities with the highest AQI levels globally.

However, wildfires are becoming more prevalent and typically take weeks to extinguish. Consider 2023, when there were 18 days with air-quality warnings.

One such day, June 28, was directly affected by smoke from the York Fire in California.

The fire originated in Mojave National Preserve, consumed 93,078 acres, and required 22 days to fully contain, according to InciWeb. The fire crossed state lines and approached within 50 miles of Las Vegas, burning 9,127 acres of Clark County grassland.

“It’s unfair to say there is a problem and at the same exact time say we haven’t done anything about it,” Flores said.

The construction industry has expressed concerns about the bill’s feasibility and cost implications.

“Construction sites are open-air sites, which make compliance with this bill particularly challenging,” said Dan Morgan, an executive officer at the Nevada Home Builders Association. “Our concerns include fluctuating air quality, lack of indoor workspace, and increased compliance cost.”

Greg Peek, president of Nevada Home Builders Association, said in a statement that builders would need to invest in air quality monitoring equipment or rely on third parties for compliance. He added that while larger builders might absorb the additional costs, smaller operations could struggle.

Mac Bybee, CEO of the Nevada chapter of the Associated Builders and Contractors, said smoke and poor air quality could shut down job sites for days or weeks. And during the closures, workers would miss out on wages.

The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce and Nevada Resort Association are also against the proposal.

“It is not possible for the construction industry to simply move people indoors or go to a remote location because air quality is poor,” Bybee said.

The bill creates clear, quantifiable criteria that defines a weather day for contractors and business owners to plan, Spicer said.

The proposal calls on employers to establish a communication system to notify workers when they are exposed to poor air quality. It also prohibits employers from retaliating against employees who report being exposed to poor air.

The bill doesn’t apply to first-responders or companies with 10 or few employees.