TONOPAH -- A second Pahrump justice of the peace position was approved by Nye County commissioners Tuesday.

Interested political observers might find out soon who is running for the new position. Nye County Clerk Sam Merlino said a new state law specifies judicial candidates will file papers for office during a two-week period in January instead of May. They will run in the primary election in August and the general election in November as usual.

A second justice of the peace position was required by law in Pahrump once the population of the township exceeded 34,000. The Nye County planning department estimated that plateau was reached after the third quarter of 2005, but Merlino said the county didn't receive official estimates from the governor's office of that population level until last spring.

Gov. Jim Gibbons' office certified the population of the Pahrump township at 37,466 on March 1, according to information from Pahrump justice court.

"Was there any consideration put to combining the justice in Pahrump and the justice in Beatty and utilizing the two of them together instead of hiring another justice?" Commissioner Butch Borasky asked.

But Commissioner Joni Eastley, who noted her district includes Beatty, said that possibility was discussed with County Manager Ron Williams but after considerable thought she couldn't support the concept.

Nye County Deputy District Attorney Michelle Jones said she hadn't researched whether the new person elected to office would serve a full six-year term or a shortened term. Merlino said it would be a full six-year term, staggered to coincide with the other Pahrump J.P. position.

The new position would beJustice of the Peace Department II, similar to the policy followed in Clark County, where there are nine justice of the peace departments in Las Vegas.

Existing Pahrump Justice of the Peace Tina Brisebill won re-election last November to another six-year term, which began last January and lasts until 2013. The second Pahrump justice would begin serving a term starting the first Monday in January 2009 which would last until 2015.

Last April, Nye County commissioners approved the hiring of two pro tempore Pahrump justices to fill in for Brisebill when necessary. They also approved a pay raise for justices throughout the county, Aug. 21 following a request by Judge Brisebill. The justices annual salary was increased 7 percent from $65,012 to $69,563 for this year, then increasing 3 percent in the next two years, to $71,650 on July 1, 2008, $73,799 on July 1, 2009 and $76,013 on July 1, 2010.

The Pahrump Justice Court saw 1,318 criminal cases filed in 2006, 1,415 civil cases and 2,733 non-traffic cases. By comparison, the Beatty justice court fielded 122 criminal cases, 35 civil cases and 157 non-traffic cases.

Borasky complained he didn't have any backup information to help him make his decision on the agenda item.