NV Dems: No Citizenship Required To Serve on Citizens Advisory Councils

Democratic legislators continue to fight on behalf of non-citizens in the state legislature. After introducing a bill that would allow non-citizens to enroll in Medicaid, Sen. Fabian Doñate has sponsored another bill that eliminates the requirement for a member of a citizens’ advisory council of a town or a
town advisory board be a qualified elector.

Senate Bill 262, sponsored by Senators Edgar Flores, Melanie Scheible, Dallas Harris, Pat Spearman, Dina Neal, Roberta Lange, James Ohrenschall, and Rochelle Nguyen, would strip the citizen requirement from serving on a Citizen Advisory Council or Town Advisory Board.

A Citizens’ Advisory Council (CAC) or Town Advisory Board (TAB) is a board of elected or appointed representatives of unincorporated communities in counties having a population of less than 100,000. There are exceptions, as Washoe County has six CACs. Clark County has five TABs that are elected and eight that are appointed by the County Commission. There are also six CACs that are appointed by the Clark County Commission.

According to current Nevada statute, “the board of county commissioners may, under certain circumstances, by ordinance create a citizens’ advisory council to act in an advisory and liaison capacity with respect to governing the affairs of an unincorporated town. Any such citizens’ advisory council must consist of not fewer than three nor more than five members, each of whom must be a resident and qualified elector in the town.”

The Democratic legislators who have sponsored and cosponsored this bill would amend the current statute by removing “qualified elector in the town.” 

The bill will be heard in front of the Senate Government Affairs Committee at 3:30 pm this afternoon.