Casinos, water board lose bid to kill Nevada Power suit

Tuesday, June 6, 2000 | 11:22 a.m.

SUN CAPITAL BUREAU

CARSON CITY -- District Judge Mike Griffin on Monday rejected a motion to dismiss Nevada Power Co.'s lawsuit that seeks to increase rates by $110.7 million for customers in Clark County.

Griffin rejected petitions from gaming casinos and the Southern Nevada Water Authority to dismiss the complaint.

The water authority, Mirage Resorts Inc., Park Place Entertainment Corp. and Mandalay Resort Group said the suit by the utility should be voided because they were not named parties to the action.

The casinos and water agency had fought the electric rate hike in hearings before state regulators and said the lawsuit wasn't valid because they weren't named as defendants, which would have given them a chance to continue fighting the rate hike in court.

The judge said the law was "clear and unambiguous" that Nevada Power did not have to name the casinos and the water authority as parties but only to serve them a copy of the suit.

The judge noted that Mandalay Resort Group and the water authority have been granted permission to intervene in the case, which will give them a say in any hearing.

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