The environmental activist group Center for Biological Diversity is suing former state senator James Settelmeyer, challenging his appointment by Governor Joe Lombardo as director of the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.

The lawsuit also lists Lombardo and DCNR as defendants.

“Lombardo broke the law by making this appointment and we will be suing him to hold him accountable,” said Patrick Donnelly, director of the Las Vegas center.

The seven-page complaint alleges that Nevada’s constitution prohibits legislators from being appointed to any position in the state if the Legislature voted to increase the salary of that position during their term of office.

Settelmeyer was serving in the Legislature when lawmakers voted to raise the environmental agency director’s pay in 2021. The lawsuit is aimed at removing him from the post of director.

However, the state’s Democratic Attorney General is defending the nomination of a Republican governor. Attorney General Aaron Ford refuses to initiate any legal action to remove Settelmeyer from his new position.

Notably, the pay increase in question was the result of a 1% cost-of-living adjustment for hundreds of government employees, which Settelmeyer voted against during his tenure in the Nevada Senate.

The purpose of the wage clause in the Nevada Constitution is to prevent legislators from taking advantage of their own legislative actions.

“It can be argued that 1% COLA — below the inflation rate — did not enrich Director Settelmeyer enough to be removed from service,” the AG office said in a statement.

It would be “strange” if a state constitution ban were invoked to disqualify Settelmeyer in this case, when the overall 1% increase was on a bill he voted against, Ford’s office concluded.

Donnelly vows that the Center will continue to fight Settelmeyer’s “unconstitutional” appointment, but his opposition to Settelmeyer is mostly rooted in broad disagreements over environmental policy.

Born in Carson City, Settelmeyer, 51, is a fourth-generation Nevada rancher. He lives and works on his family ranch in Douglas County. His great-grandfather emigrated to Gardnerville from Germany in 1880.

Graduate of the California Polytechnic University and “agronomist”. Settelmeyer has over 25 years of public policy experience covering all aspects of natural resources and agriculture at the state and local levels.

Prior to his election to elected office, Settelmeyer was chairman of the Carson Valley Preserve and also chairman of the Nevada State Preserve.

He was a Nevada legislator for 16 years.

First elected to the Nevada State Assembly in 2006, Settelmeyer served two terms.

In 2010, he was elected to the Nevada State Senate from the 17th District (all of Churchill, Douglas, Lyon, and Storey Counties).

Re-elected to the Senate in 2014 (unopposed) and again in 2018 (with 72% of the vote), Settelmeyer became Senate Republican Leader in 2019. He stepped down in 2022 due to term limits.

Settelmeyer compiled a highly conservative record of legislative voting and was an advocate for rural Nevada, including support for the mining industry.

He served on the Senate Natural Resources Committee in the 2015 and 2017 legislative sessions. His lifetime rating by the Nevada Conservation League was 61%.

With regard to issues relating to natural resources and environmental protection, Settelmeier balanced them with other public policy concerns, including economic growth, affordable energy, and the rights of businesses and individuals.

Those who seek to thwart his appointment are zealous environmentalists. Donnelly, a UC Berkeley graduate in environmental science, claims to be an ardent “full-time activist.”

The Nevada Department of Conservation and Natural Resources is one of the largest and most comprehensive government agencies in Nevada. It employs over 900 employees.

The department has departments dealing with environmental protection, water resources, state parks, forestry, public lands, natural heritage, and outdoor recreation.

Due to his background, education, experience and temperament, Settelmeyer is highly qualified for the position of Director of DCNR. Lombardo made the right choice.

Email Jim Hartman at [email protected].

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