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KUNR Roundup: The top 10 local news stories of 2025

KUNR Public Radio | By KUNR Staff
Published December 31, 2025 at 6:30 PM PST
Four images from select 2025 KUNR stories, including the Truckee River, farmers, a 50501 demonstration in front of the state Capitol, and a closeup of a hamburger with fries.
KUNR Public Radio

As 2025 comes to a close, we’re reflecting on bright spots from the year. Revisit the top 10 locally produced stories with the greatest impact for our Northern Nevada and Eastern Sierra communities below.

President Trump is sitting while signing a bill into law.
AFP via Getty Images
Nevada State Government
🔟 Laken Riley Act received approval from Nev. state representatives; opponents say it’s ‘bipartisan support for family separation’
Manuel Holguin JR
President Donald Trump signed his first bill, the Laken Riley Act, into law which received unanimous support from Nevada’s senate and house democrats.

Continue reading story #10 ➡️

A black bear wearing a tracking collar is seen standing on a pile of grey-orange rocks by the base of a pine tree.
Photo by Derek Reich, Nevada Department of Wildlife.
/
Nevada Today
Local Stories
9️⃣ California bill would allow hunters with trained dogs to chase bears in some areas
Maria Palma
A bill in the California legislature would allow hunters to use trained dogs to pursue bears in certain parts of the state. Supporters say it’s a necessary tool for managing bear populations. But opponents, including those in Lake Tahoe, call it cruel and unnecessary.

Continue reading story #9 ➡️

The Truckee River is lined with rocks and trees of different sizes and shapes midday without clouds in the blue sky. There’s a pedestrian bridge going over the river.
Lucia Starbuck
/
KUNR Public Radio
Local Stories
8️⃣ EPA fines construction company for dumping wastewater into Truckee River on tribal land
Maria Palma
A major construction company has been discharging millions of gallons of wastewater into the Truckee River, which runs through tribal land. Now, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking action.

Continue reading story #8 ➡️

La entrada al Ayuntamiento de Reno son unas puertas de cristal con un cartel encima que dice “Ayuntamiento de Reno”.
Lucia Starbuck
/
KUNR Public Radio
Local Stories
7️⃣ Reno adopts region’s toughest policies against unhoused residents
Bert Johnson
Camping, lying down, sitting and sleeping in public places have been illegal in some parts of town for years. But city council members approved a new ordinance to make those bans citywide.

Continue reading story #7 ➡️

Hope and Bounce.
Courtesy of Kathi Zollinger.
Local Stories
6️⃣ In Tahoe, a mother bear and her cub test the limits of coexistence
Maria Palma
In South Lake Tahoe’s quiet neighborhoods, the uneasy balance between humans and bears is being tested by one mother bear and her cub, known affectionately as Hope and Bounce.

Continue reading story #6 ➡️

Nichelle Hull addresses the library board on April 15, 2024.
Bert Johnson
/
KUNR Public Radio
Local Stories
5️⃣ ‘Gianna money’: Venmo records appear to link trustee, anti-LGBTQ+ organizer
Bert Johnson
Last year, local Republicans led a campaign to defund Washoe County libraries. An investigation reveals an apparent financial relationship between an organizer and a member of the library board.

Continue reading story #5 ➡️

A few hundred people rallied outside the Nevada State capitol in Carson City for the nationwide ‘50501 Movement’, opposing President Trump and his administration’s policies.
Manuel Holguin JR / KUNR
Nevada State Government
4️⃣ Hundreds gather in a Carson City as part of nationwide ‘50501 Movement’ protest (Photos)
Manuel Holguin JR
Several hundred people rallied outside the Nevada State capitol building in Carson City for the “50501 Movement,” a nationwide movement against President Donald Trump and his administration's policies.

Continue reading story #4 ➡️

Farmer Cuco Alanis (from left), his father Adrian Alanis Rios, and son Adrian Alanis in Fallon, Nevada, on Aug. 7, 2025.
Lucia Starbuck
/
KUNR Public Radio
Local Stories
3️⃣ One family farm in Fallon stays rooted in hope while facing federal funding cuts
Lucia Starbuck
A majority of farms in the U.S. are considered small, and Nevada is no different. Many provide food right back to the local community, but it’s becoming increasingly more difficult for them to survive, which is the case for one family-operated farm in Fallon.

Continue reading story #3 ➡️

Sage Leaf is expanding into Midtown Reno this fall.
Maria Palma
/
KUNR Public Radio
Local Stories
2️⃣ Tahoe’s Sage Leaf restaurant to open in Reno’s old Laughing Planet location
Maria Palma
A restaurant in Incline Village is joining a growing trend of Tahoe businesses making it down the mountain. Sage Leaf is expanding into Midtown Reno.

Continue reading story #2 ➡️

A neighborhood in Incline Village
Maria Palma
/
KUNR Public Radio
Local Stories
1️⃣ They work in Tahoe. They just can’t afford to live there
Maria Palma
The Tahoe region has long struggled with a familiar challenge: housing. For the thousands of people who keep Tahoe running, finding a place to live that’s safe, affordable, and near their work is often out of reach.

Continue reading the top KUNR local story of 2025 ➡️

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