Clark County wants utility fee transparency, crack down on illegal mobile billboards

Pushing for more transparency on utility fees charged by landlords and easing their overworked coroner’s office are expected to be legislative priorities for Clark County next year.

Local governments are allotted bill draft requests before each regular session of the Nevada State Legislature. Bills must be filed with the Legislative Council Bureau by Sept. 1 to be considered for the 2027 Legislative Session, which begins Feb. 1.

Clark County Commissioners last week heard details of the four proposals they plan to submit for the upcoming session.

One item is to address utilities charges that are included in rental lease agreements, which often result in tenants being charged excessive fees, said Joanna Jacob, the county’s government director.

The issue has come up for commissioners in previous county commission meetings, she said.

“The intent is transparency,” she said, adding that “a large number of residents who rent have been subjected to excessive fees” tacked on as utility costs. 

A second proposal is to allow a treating physician or medical provider to sign a death certificate “if someone passed away from the condition they were being treated for,” Jacob said. 

The idea was modeled after other states as a way “to help address the workforce issue in our coroner’s office,” she said. 

The bill wouldn’t apply in emergency and urgent care settings, Jacob said. 

“It is intended to maintain the coroner’s authority to conduct a post mortem exam when needed such as in occurrences of violence and suspicious deaths,” she added. 

The county also wants to crack down on illegal mobile billboards operating on the Las Vegas Strip. It needs authorizing legislative language to enable Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department to tow billboards not in compliance with a county ordinance. 

Jacob also proposed legislation that would amend functions of the public administrator, the office which manages estates for individuals who die without a will or absent family to take control of property. The intent, she said, will be to enable “better collaboration” with other departments such as the District Attorney’s office.  

“The proposal would enable the county to pass an ordinance to require the sharing of data and regular data to the board upon request,” Jacob said, adding that it would allow the board “to take action on that information.

If passed, the idea is that the legislation would not apply to the current public administrator only future officials elected to the position.