Local Metro Receives Grant For Police OHV

By MAGGIE MCMURRAY

Moapa Valley Progress

Off Highway Vehicles (OHV) are a common sight these days in Moapa Valley. Local residents enjoy the town’s official designation as an OHV-friendly community.

All OHV’s are required to be registered at this time in Nevada. But the OHV registration program is one where the money from registration fees actually comes back to benefit riders. A large portion of the funds are diverted back in the form of trail improvements, restrooms at popular riding sites, picnic facilities, and improved signage.

“It is the law that all OHV’s be registered,” said Overton resident Sue Baker, who is the vice-chairman of the Nevada OHV Commission. ‘ But then we turn around and use those funds to benefit the riding community. We recently donated money to help with the new restrooms at Logandale trails, provided new and improved picnic areas there as well, put up new signage for the trail from Mesquite to Caliente, and also added signage at Gold Butte.”

The NV OHV Commission also has recently granted the Metro Police Overton Resident Section funding for a new OHV for police use. The grant is meant to serve local OHV riders better by helping to educate them, providing VIN inspections, and helping them get their vehicles registration in accord with the law, Baker said.

Sergeant Bret Empey of the local Metro explained more about the bequest. “As an OHV-friendly community, we’re inviting all these people to come ride here, but we don’t have much of a support structure,” Empey said. “As police, we need an OHV in order to serve OHV riders. We’re the go-to guys, but it doesn’t work that way if we have no way to go-to them.”

Empey explained that the station has tried for the last ten years to acquire an OHV through government surplus or any other way possible. But the local force has been unsuccessful.

When she heard this, County Commissioner Marilyn Kirkpatrick urged the station to apply for grant money from the NV OHV Commission. Empey applied for that grant with the help of Partners In Conservation administrator Elise McAllister.

The station recently received that grant for around $47,000 . This will allow them to purchase a side-by-side vehicle, outfit it with police equipment, purchase a trailer to haul it, and provide overtime pay for officers to help patrol on heavy OHV-usage weekends and events such as holidays and the Hump-and-Bump.

Empey said that there are several ideas supporting the decision to get an OHV.
Firstly, this is the only OHV-friendly community in the county. That means there are riders out in the desert that Metro has not been able to access. The new vehicle will help officers do enforcement and provide help out on the trails.

But Empey stresses that the primary goal is to educate riders. “The OHV commission is strong on education,” Empey said. “They really want riders to understand the laws and we agree with that view. We want to educate first and enforce second.”

The game plan is that every time the officers do OHV enforcement, they will push on the side of education first, letting people know there are rules. If someone gets stopped, officers will check the vehicle’s registration. If it is not registered, they will do a VIN inspection right there and actually give the drivers the paperwork to get their registration started. Drivers will receive only a warning citation at that time, which will help officers keep track of who has been warned. But all drivers will then be given a chance to comply and properly register their vehicles.

Empey is excited for the opportunities the new vehicle will bring to the local police force. Helping non-compliant riders know about the rules and laws of OHV usage will contribute to the safety of all drivers, he said.
“We love having the high numbers of visitors to our valley and the increase in business that they bring and we want that number to increase,” Empey said. “But we want people to be safe and abide by the laws at the same time. This will help the whole community with safety and with education regarding OHVs.”