Governor proposes giving tech firms power to govern

KARSON KITY, NOV. >> Nevada’s governor on Friday unveiled a proposal that would allow technology companies to establish jurisdictions with powers similar to those of county governments, arguing the state needed to be bold to diversify its economy and pushing back against those who have likened the idea to company towns.

“This proposal is an exciting, unprecedented concept that has a potential to position Nevada as a global center of advanced technology and innovation, while helping to create immediate positive economic impact and shape the economy of the future,” Gov. Steve Sisolak said of his Innovation Zones idea. “As we’ve learned in the past, an emergency requires us to throw out the triedand-true, discard the ‘How We’ve Always Done It’ manual and move on.”

The proposal would allow companies developing cutting-edge technologies with at least 50,000 acres (200 sq. kilometers) of land that promise to invest $1.25 billion to oversee zoning, taxation, law enforcement and other government functions on their land and override local regulations put in place by the county in which they are located. The governor’s office of economic development would initially appoint three members to govern the zone, including two required to be from the company.

While the legislation does not specifically mention the company, the proposal is geared toward Blockchains LLC, a cryptocurrency company that owns 67,000 acres of land (270 sq. kilometers) in rural Storey County. Blockchains LLC hopes to build a smart city 12 miles (19 kilometers) east of Reno that would include underground data storage bunkers, 15,000 homes and a research and development park where entrepreneurs could invent applications of blockchain technology.

Blockchain is a digital ledger known mostly for recording cryptocurrency transactions. It also has been adopted by local governments for everything from documenting marriage licenses to facilitating elections.

The Innovation Zone proposal has sparked concerns about ceding excessive amounts of power to technology companies. But Blockchains CEO Jeffrey Berns insists that the company’s technology has the potential to empower people to control their digital footprint.

“What we’re trying to build is a place where you have power instead of companies,” he told The Associated Press earlier in February.