Nevada Tax Commission

George Kelesis, has practiced law in Las Vegas since his admission to the bar in 1981. He returned to his hometown after graduating with distinction from McGeorge School of Law, receiving his Master of Laws in Taxation from New York University, and a Certificate in International Tax from Georgetown University School of Law. Early in his career he was mentored by several well-known attorneys, including former Supreme Court Justice Michael Cherry. He built several successful private practices and currently partners with his long-term friend and colleague, Marc Cook, at the Cook & Kelesis, Ltd firm. With nearly 42 years of experience, Mr. Kelesis is highly regarded in the areas of civil and criminal tax litigation, corporate and commercial transactions and litigation, business formation and estate planning. He has been rated “AV Preeminent” by Martindale-Hubbell, the highest possible rating in both legal ability and Ethical Standards. 

Mr. Kelesis served on the Nevada Tax Commission from 2002-2020, and in 2023 was reappointed for a four-year term by Governor Joseph Lombardo. Mr. Kelesis has served as an Adjunct Professor at UNLV and Boyd School of Law and has been instrumental in the formation of numerous non-profit entities that provide essential support to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and Las Vegas Fire & Rescue, as well as private charities that address a multitude of needs in the Las Vegas community. 

Mr. Kelesis is admitted to practice in all courts of the state of Nevada, United Supreme Court, Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, United States District Court, and United States Tax Court. 

Sharon Byram was appointed to the Nevada Tax Commission as the mining industry member in November 2017. She has more than 30 years of experience in the mining industry and in taxation. She opened her firm, Sharon R Byram, Attorney at Law, PLLC, in 2015, and her practice focuses on serving the mining industry in Nevada with state and local tax and valuation services.

Prior to opening her own firm, Ms. Byram worked for Ryan, LLC from 2011 to 2014, providing tax and valuation consulting to mining operations throughout the United States and Canada. From 1987 to 2010, Ms. Byram worked for Newmont Mining Corporation, where she gained valuable experience in mine accounting, tax, business, and litigation. She was awarded the Chairman’s Award by the Newmont Board of Directors in recognition of her successful integration and settlement of tax issues related to a complex merger.

Ms. Byram holds a Bachelor of Business Administration Summa Cum Laude from National University, San Diego; a Master of Business Administration from the University of Nevada, Reno; and a Juris Doctor from the William S. Boyd School of Law at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.  She is licensed to practice law in Nevada, and holds a CMI (property tax) certificate from the Institute of Professionals in Taxation.

She is a member of the Nevada Bar Association, American Bar Association, Nevada Taxpayer’s Association (board member), Nevada Mining Association, Women’s Mining Coalition, Elko County Board of Equalization, Institute of Professionals in Taxation, Elko Rotary Club (board member), and the Elko Chamber of Commerce.

Craig Witt is a native Nevada farmer born and raised on a Carson Valley dairy farm. He has experienced what farming once was, what it has become, and the direction it needs to go in the future. After graduating in 1978 from the University of Nevada Reno with a Bachelor of Science Degree in General Agriculture, Craig returned home to run his family's third generation dairy farm. While managing the operation, Craig Witt converted the dairy farm into a thriving full-scale composting operation: the first of its kind permitted in the State of Nevada. Mr. Witt started the first composting site offering recycling of organic materials from the Tahoe Basin, Reno, Carson City, the Carson Valley and many nearby communities. Craig Witt is the current owner and President of Full Circle Compost, Inc. with a location in Carson Valley and a composting facility in Carson City, NV. 

Besides Mr. Witt’s involvement with numerous local community programs, Craig has been certified as a Composting Expert by the State of Nevada Environmental Protection Agency and is listed on the 2006 Lake Tahoe BMP Resource Professionals list. Mr. Witt is a life long Farm Bureau Member and has served in many diverse capacities on agricultural boards and committees. Mr. Witt gained valuable experience in management and decision making while serving on the Associated Nevada Dairyman Board of Directors, Farm Bureau Dairy Advertising Board, Carson Valley Conservation District, and is an active member of Nevada Resource Conservation and Development, National Compost Council and California Society of Ecological Restoration.

Mr. Witt has developed a broad understanding of the agricultural businesses in his capacity as a National and International “Composting and Soil Fertility” consultant. Mr. Witt is passionate about the environment, renewable farming practices, and ecologically correct waste management practices, and speaks regularly sharing his knowledge in the community, nationally and internationally.

Thom Sheets is an attorney with over 45 years of legal experience appointed to his present Nevada Tax Commission term by Governor Joe Lombardo. He and his family first moved to Nevada in 1981 from Ohio. He is engaged in a solo law practice. Thom previously served as a Nevada Tax Commission member and Chairman for over thirteen years having been appointed or reappointed by Governors Guinn, Gibbons and Sandoval.  

Thom did his undergraduate studies at Saint Louis University, The Ohio State University and at Ashland University graduating with a B.A. in 1973. He obtained a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Toledo and was admitted to practice law in Ohio in 1976, in Nevada in 1982 and in Texas in 1986. Thom is also admitted to practice and has appeared before the United States Supreme Court, the Fifth, Ninth and District of Columbia United States Circuit Courts of Appeal and United States District Courts in Ohio, Texas and Nevada. He has been recognized for his expertise in energy law, public utilities, regulatory and administrative law, state taxation and legal and litigation management.

Beside his prior public service on the Nevada Tax Commission he served as General Counsel of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in Washington D.C., as a member and Chairman of the Nevada Ethics Commission, as the Chair of the court appointed special masters panel tasked with developing a redistricting plan in 2011 for Nevada after the legislative and executive branches could not agree on a plan, and as a long time Pro Tem judge for the Clark County Justice Courts. He is presently a member of the State Bar’s Southern Nevada Disciplinary panel and has served on a number of Nevada State and Clark County Bar committees. He is a former President of the Clark County Bar Association. He served in the United States Army Reserve from 1970-1976.

He was the Senior Vice President and General Counsel of Southwest Gas Corporation spending 22 years with the Company. Thom was later a partner in the McDonald Carano law firm and was an American Arbitration Association arbitrator and mediator for 27 years. He was the Chairman of the Nevada Taxpayers Association from 2019 to 2022.  

Caryn Adelhoch was appointed to the Nevada Tax Commission in 2023 and brings with her 20+ years of experience as a Certified Public Accountant.  Ms. Adelhoch currently serves as the Director of Finance & Administration for the law firm of Kaempfer Crowell with offices in Las Vegas, Reno and Carson City. She has been with the firm since 2014 and oversees all aspects of administration and finance.   

Ms. Adelhoch began her accounting career with the CPA firm of Bradshaw, Smith & Co. serving audit and tax clients in the industries of construction, manufacturing, broadcasting, real estate development, gaming, and employee benefit plans.  She later moved to the firm of Scott Leslie & Associates where she discovered her passion for finance as she served several small businesses as a contract controller.

After working in public accounting, Ms. Adelhoch served as Controller for a restaurant management company with over 50 franchised fast-casual restaurant locations. She managed accounts payable, payroll, regulatory & tax compliance, cash flow, and all reporting functions for five years before joining the team at Kaempfer Crowell.

Ms. Adelhoch received her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration – Accounting degree from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in 1998 and her CPA license from the Nevada State Board of Accountancy in January 2001.  She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Association of Legal Administrators.

H. Stan Johnson is a native Nevadan and the managing partner of Cohen-Johnson, LLC a law firm that was founded in 1986.  He has more than 30 years of experience in commercial transactions, commercial litigation, real estate acquisition, development and finance and tax advantaged investments. Mr. Johnson has represented start-up companies, as well as large established companies operating nationally and internationally.  

Mr. Johnson served as General Counsel, Secretary and Board of Director for a publicly traded company for six years during which time he gained experience in securities, business transactions, and tax issues.  Mr. Johnson has also experience as general counsel and president of several tech startups.  Mr. Johnson holds several patents dealing with encryption, quantum encryption, digital watermarking, and secure data transmission.

Mr. Johnson holds degrees from Brigham Young University in Business Administration and a Juris Doctorate from the J. Reuben Clark School of Law, Brigham Young University, and is a Certified Financial Planner.

 Mr. Johnson is admitted to practice in all state and federal courts of the State of Nevada; the Ninth Circuit Courts of Appeals; and the United States Supreme Court.

Ryan Bellows is a native of northern Nevada and is Vice President of Government & External Relations at NV Energy where he works collaboratively with government and community leaders throughout the state to provide solutions which best serve customers and the communities served by NV Energy.  Mr. Bellows is an active member of the community, working with various non-profits and volunteering as a coach for youth sports in the area.  For the last 15 years, he has volunteered as a Judge for the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe handling the Tribe’s civil and juvenile matters.  

Mr. Bellows received his undergraduate degree in Political Science from Brigham Young University where he interned at the Utah Legislature drafting bills and speeches.  He completed his Juris Doctorate degree from the J. Reuben Clark Law School at Brigham Young University where he served on the law review and graduated magna cum laude in the top 10% of his class. 

Following law school, Mr. Bellows worked for the law firm of McDonald Carano Wilson LLP, where he focused on employment and labor law.  He has successfully tried cases in both state and federal court and successfully defended an energy company at trial in federal court when faced with a $250 million claim.  He has received the highest “AV Preeminent” Peer Review Rating from Martindale-Hubbell and was named a “Rising Star” by the publication Super Lawyers.  Mr. Bellows was honored by the Reno Gazette-Journal as a member of the 2010 class of “Twenty Under 40.”