Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Safety Lvmpd Funding topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Senate Majority Leader Nicole Cannizzaro urges extension of property tax levy to fund LVMPD officers in SB 451 hearing
Summary
Sen. Nicole Cannizzaro presented SB 451 to extend an existing 20¢ per $100 assessed‑value property tax levy that funds roughly 800–825 Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department positions. Sheriff Kevin McMahill and city and county officials testified in support; no committee vote occurred.
Sen. Nicole Cannizzaro on Wednesday presented Senate Bill 451 to continue a voter‑approved property tax rate that funds additional Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) officers.
Cannizzaro told the Senate Committee on Revenue and Economic Development that SB 451 would direct Clark County and the City of Las Vegas to impose an ordinance extending a 20¢ per $100 of assessed value levy, continuing a funding stream originally approved by voters in 1996. "With this bill, we don't need to raise any rates or any new revenue from property owners. We just need to keep this existing funding stream in place so that we can keep these 800 officers on the streets," Cannizzaro said.
Cannizzaro reviewed the levy history: voters approved an 8¢ levy in 1988 and added 20¢ in 1996 with an expiration date of June 30, 2027. She said the 20¢ levy produces roughly $158,400,000 annually and supports about 825 sworn positions — roughly one‑quarter of LVMPD's workforce and about half of the agency's patrol force.
Sheriff Kevin McMahill, who leads the LVMPD, told the committee the department has about 3,400 sworn officers (roughly 6,300 total personnel) and credited sustained funding for recent reductions in violent crime. McMahill said a cut in the levy would force the department to shift detectives into patrol or eliminate specialized units that have driven improvements in homicide and shooting solve rates. "If we don't get this passed, 800 police officers that it funds are not gonna be able to be out on the streets," McMahill said.
Officials who testified in support included Clark County Commissioner Jim Gibson, Las Vegas Mayor Shelley Berkley, the Las Vegas Police Protective Association, the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce, the Nevada Resort Association and other business and public‑safety stakeholders. The Las Vegas mayor emphasized the levy preserves policing for neighborhoods, the tourism district and a growing medical and arts district.
Cannizzaro walked the committee through bill provisions, including that the rate would not be subject to certain statutory rate‑limit calculations (she cited NRS 354.59811) and that the apportionment of the rate would remain unchanged within the taxing district. Witnesses said the extension would not increase any property owner's tax rate; if the levy is not extended, funds would be collected but allocated differently, they said.
Public testimony included business groups and unions supporting the bill. One caller raised a fiscal and planning objection, arguing Nevada's low‑tax reputation and urban‑design choices should be considered; the speaker was advised to submit written comments.
No roll‑call vote was taken on SB 451 at the hearing.
