Sandoval, others to embark on European trade mission

CARSON CITY — Gov. Brian Sandoval said Tuesday he is excited about the potential economic benefits that could come to Nevada as a result of his upcoming trade mission to Europe.

Sandoval, members of his economic development team, higher education officials and First Lady Kathleen Sandoval will be among those on the trip to Ireland, England, Poland, Germany and Italy that begins July 18 and ends Aug. 2.

Sandoval’s three children will be going on the trip as well. Sandoval is paying for those expenses himself.

Sandoval said Nevada will be first state to have a trade mission with Poland, which is expected soon to open trade offices in Reno and Las Vegas.

“So as Polish companies come to the U.S., they will first locate in Nevada,” he said.

Sandoval has been on several trade missions as governor, including to Mexico, Canada, Israel and China.

In Italy, Sandoval said he will meet with officials from GTECH Holdings, the lottery giant that recently purchased International Game Technology. Sandoval said he wants any U.S. jobs planned by the company to be based in Nevada if possible.

The purchase of IGT was one reason Sandoval said he supported a bill to create skill-based gaming that passed the 2015 session of the Legislature.

“Because as they develop the technology associated with that, I want that to happen in Nevada because I am pretty sure that we are the first state in the country to pass a law to allow for the creation and the ultimate approval by the Gaming Control Board and Gaming Commission of skilled-based gaming,” he said.

State gaming regulators and gambling equipment company representatives discussed a proposed draft of new rules governing development and use of slot machines that include a skill-based element at a workshop last month. Additional workshops are expected this summer before the regulations are finalized.

Sandoval is also seeking a meeting with officials from Daimler to talk about autonomous vehicle testing in Nevada. The company, based in Germany, recently tested the first autonomous truck to be licensed for travel on a U.S. highway at Hoover Dam. The Nevada Legislature in 2011 approved autonomous vehicle testing, the first state to do so. Google received the first license in 2012 in Nevada to perform such testing.

Sandoval said a special task force on autonomous vehicles will be set up through the Nevada Department of Transportation this fall to keep up on developments in the technology.

Contact Capital Bureau reporter Sean Whaley at swhaley@reviewjournal.com or 775-687-3900. Find @seanw801 on Twitter.