House GOP advances voter ID bill, Nevada rolls out new data policy, CCSD faces staff cuts, Red Rock sunflower nears extinction, and Basque cheesecake gains fame.
The Daily Rundown – February 12th, 2026
House Republicans approved legislation Wednesday that would impose strict new proof-of-citizenship requirements ahead of the midterm elections. The bill, called the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility, or SAVE America Act, would require Americans to prove they are citizens when they register to vote, mostly through a valid U.S. passport or birth certificate. It would also require a valid photo identification before voters can cast ballots, which some states already demand. It was approved on a mostly party-line vote of 218-213.
House Republicans rushed to approve legislation on Wednesday that would impose new proof-of-citizenship requirements ahead of the midterm elections, a Trump administration priority that faces blowback in the Senate.
Republicans said the legislation is needed to prevent voter fraud, but Democrats warn it will disenfranchise millions of Americans by making it harder to vote. Federal law already requires that voters in national elections be U.S. citizens, but there is no requirement to provide documentary proof. Experts said voter fraud is extremely rare, and very few noncitizens slip through the cracks. Fewer than one in 10 Americans does not have paperwork proving citizenship. Read the full story here.
Nevada’s IT agency has rolled out a new policy aimed at standardizing the privacy of state data, months after a massive cyberattack crippled certain systems for weeks. According to the Nevada Independent, the policy announced Wednesday from the Governor’s Technology Office marks the first time the state will have clear-cut categories for data sensitivity. Officials said this will allow agencies to go beyond simply denoting something as “sensitive” or “personal” and will ensure private data is not treated the same as public information.
“Agencies can now rely on a shared baseline for how information is categorized and protected, reducing uncertainty and hesitation when exchanging data,” a release announcing the policy said.
Officials said the policy was in the works long before the cyberattack shut down state systems in late August, but it reflects Nevada’s efforts to set uniform IT policies across agencies. In 2023, the state rolled out guidance on the use of artificial intelligence.
More than 1,200 Clark County School District employees are at risk of becoming “unassigned” next school year. Officials announced this week that staff members from 284 schools will be placed on surplus status. The district is facing a $50 million budget reduction due to declining student enrollment. Included are more than 680 licensed employees, 500 support professionals and 64 administrators.
The district says many employees will be able to transfer to other schools to fill projected vacancies and replace employees who leave. School districts across the country, including Nevada, are adjusting their budgets due to declining birth rates and rising employee costs. CCSD has more than 40,000 employees and is the fifth-largest school district in the nation.
A tiny yellow sunflower that grows only at Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area is close to extinction, according to two groups seeking federal protection. The Center for Biological Diversity and Save Red Rock filed a petition Tuesday with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service asking that it be listed under the Endangered Species Act, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports. The petition claims fewer than 1,000 Red Rock sunflowers were found during a population count.
The flowers, identified in 2007, grow near three springs in the heavily visited Calico Basin. The Bureau of Land Management oversees about half the land there, and the rest is privately owned. In 2024, the Nevada Division of Forestry listed the sunflower, so it has some state protections, but the petition says those are not enough.
From Picon Punch to pintxos, Basque cuisine is steadily becoming iconic in Nevada. Consider the Basque burnt cheesecake — famous for its crustless, caramel exterior and jiggly, molten center — which has quietly taken root in Las Vegas over the last several years. Local writer Krista Diamond named the iconic Nevada dessert in Condé Nast Traveler’s 2025 “50 States, 50 Desserts” list. It first went viral at La Viña in Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain.
Sample the Nevada-centric food trend of Basque cuisine in these Las Vegas cheesecakes
Expect to see even more variations of the cheesecake throughout the valley. For those looking to give it a try — or try them all and compare — Desert Companion’s newest spring issue has a guide. Read the full story by Sarah Bun at KNPR.org.
