Nye County adopts ordinance to allow citation, removal of people on private vacant land

Sheriff Joe McGill told the Nye County Board of Commissioners on Sept. 17 that numerous private property owners are finding long‑term camps and encampments on their land and sometimes paying thousands of dollars to clean up debris. He presented a draft county ordinance modeled in part on state anti‑squatting language intended to give deputies authority to trespass people from vacant private land when the occupant cannot show a notarized lease from the owner. The sheriff said the change would allow officers to give people reasonable time to remove belongings and, on a return visit, to cite or arrest repeat violators.

The ordinance drew hours of public comment at the hearing. Supporters — including area landowners and some town managers — said the measure gives property owners needed protection and a faster remedy than slow code‑enforcement processes. Several speakers described chronic camps near developments, reported large trash accumulations and urged enforcement to prevent damage to water resources and public safety risks around parks.

Opponents and several service providers warned the commission that removing people from land without a clear alternative could push unhoused residents into parks or other areas and flood the courts and jails if there are not parallel housing, treatment or shelter options. Speakers including advocates for compassionate outreach stressed the county must pair enforcement with shelter capacity and services; the public record also included repeated requests for clarity on how the county and courts would handle BLM lands, which are outside county authority.

Director Brett Wagner, who oversees code compliance, told the board the draft is limited to private land and does not apply to BLM property. He said staff had worked with the district attorney to rework statutory language so the new ordinance would be defensible and enforceable at the county level. The DA's office also said it had reviewed the draft and helped refine its wording.

After debate and a short technical amendment to the ordinance numbering, the board adopted Bill 2024‑08. Commissioners announced the ordinance will take effect Oct. 14, 2024. The board and staff said they will monitor enforcement outcomes, reiterating that warnings and graduated remedies are part of their intended approach.

“This gives us some enforcement authority,” the sheriff said during the hearing, describing the change as a tool for property owners and law enforcement to address chronic encampments more quickly than current processes allow. Several speakers and commissioners said they would continue pushing for greater shelter and wrap‑around services alongside enforcement.

Next steps: county staff will publish the adopted ordinance text and issue guidance on enforcement procedures. Commissioners also discussed requesting an external opinion from Nevada ethics authorities on conflict questions raised elsewhere in the meeting; the ordinance itself was treated as a separate matter.

Effective date: Oct. 14, 2024.