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Washoe agrees DOJ settlement, Clark reports expanded accessibility efforts ahead of 2026

Joint Interim Standing Committee on Legislative Operations and Elections · February 20, 2026

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Summary

Washoe County entered a voluntary settlement with the Department of Justice to address polling-place ADA deficiencies and is piloting mobile curbside voting; Clark County reported site assessments, bilingual staffing and expanded ASL resources as part of broader accessibility work.

County registrars told the Nevada interim committee on Feb. 21 that they are undertaking major accessibility work to comply with federal requirements and improve voting access for voters with disabilities.

Washoe County Registrar Andrew McDonald said a DOJ review in December 2024 found compliance problems at sampled vote centers and led to a voluntary settlement requiring an ADA-compliant program across early voting and 55 election‑day locations. Washoe said it has hired an ADA expert, must complete a DOJ 170‑point checklist for each site, renegotiate venue contracts and is designing an innovative mobile voting cart that can bring a ballot printer and voting machine to a voter’s car for curbside voting when sites have physical barriers.

Clark County Registrar Lorena Portillo described a multi‑year, consultant‑led site assessment program that prioritized mitigation plans and alternative nearby compliant locations when remediation was not feasible. Portillo said Clark County provides two audio/tactile voting machines per site, bilingual staffing (English, Spanish, Filipino), large-print materials by default, and on‑site ASL interpreters at key long‑term voting sites.

Committee members sought clarification on ASL scheduling and funding sources. Registrars said funding is a blend of county resources and state grant reimbursements; Washoe noted a $400,000 capital improvement appropriation tied to ADA preparations but added recurring remediation costs could exceed available funding. Members praised outreach efforts while urging clarity on funding and long‑term maintenance of improvements.

The county presentations are operationally significant: the DOJ settlement imposes concrete compliance steps Washoe must implement before the 2026 election cycle, and both counties emphasized that some remediation requires facility owners’ cooperation and capital investment beyond election offices’ budgets.