On December 28, 2000, the U.S. Census Bureau released population totals for the states. As of April 1, 2000, Nevada had a resident population of 1,998,257 — a 66.3 percent increase over the state’s population in 1990. For the fourth decade in a row, Nevada was the fastest growing state in the nation.

The 2001 Nevada Legislature revised the districts of a number of elected officers based on the results of the 2000 census and the “one person, one vote” principle through the passage of Senate Bill 14 of the 17^th Special Session (Chapter 23, Statutes of Nevada Special Session).

Senate Bill 14 of the 17^th Special Session

Senate Bill 14 revises the election districts for Nevada’s state legislators, Representatives in Congress, the Board of Regents of the University and Community College System of Nevada (UCCSN), and the State Board of Education.

The measure retains a 21-member Senate and includes 19 Senate districts with an overall range of deviation of 9.91 percent from the ideal population of 95,155 for each single-member Senate district. The plan shifts one Senate seat from northern Nevada to Clark County to adjust for greater population growth in southern Nevada, and reallocates one seat to include a small part of Clark County along with a much larger portion of rural Nevada. The plan consists of 14 Senate districts wholly within Clark County and includes 6 districts entirely within the remaining 16 counties. The measure also establishes one Senate district that includes all of Churchill, Esmeralda, and Mineral Counties, as well as portions of Douglas, Lyon and Nye Counties, and a portion of northern Clark County. All Senate districts in Washoe County and rural Nevada are single-member districts, while two of the districts in Clark County are two-member districts. This represents a reduction in the number of multi-member districts from five to two. Finally, the measure establishes one of the Senate districts located in Clark County as an “open” seat where no incumbent currently resides.

Senate Bill 14 also retains a 42-member Assembly with an overall range of deviation of 1.97 percent from the ideal population of 47,578 per district. The plan shifts three Assembly seats from northern Nevada to Clark County to adjust for greater population growth in southern Nevada. Further, the measure places 29 Assembly districts wholly within Clark County, 6 districts entirely within Washoe County, and 7 districts, some of which contain less populated parts of Washoe County, in the remaining counties of the state. Of the 29 Assembly districts located in Clark County, 6 were established as “open” seats.

The measure further revises the districts for Nevada’s Representatives in Congress by creating a new third congressional district entirely contained within Clark County. Of the other two districts, one is wholly contained in Clark County, while the other encompasses the remaining 16 counties plus an additional 43,595 residents in Clark County. The plan contains an overall range of population deviation of zero percent (six people) from the ideal population in Nevada of 666,086 per congressional district.

Finally, Senate Bill 14 creates a redistricting plan for the UCCSN Board of Regents and the State Board of Education. The measure increases the size of the Board of Regents from 11 to 13 members and reduces the size of the State Board of Education from 11 to 10 members.

Explanation of the Effective Date of S.B. 14

The provisions in the bill that revise the districts of the members of the Nevada Legislature are effective on January 1, 2002, only for the purposes of nominating and electing members of the Legislature. Otherwise, these districts are effective on November 6, 2002. Newly elected legislators and those Senators who were elected at the 2000 General Election begin representing their new districts on November 6, 2002.

The provisions in the bill that redraw the districts for Representatives in Congress are effective on January 1, 2002, only for the purpose of nominating and electing Nevada’s representatives in the U.S. Congress. For all other purposes, these districts are effective at 9 a.m. on January 3, 2003. Newly elected members of the House of Representatives from the State of Nevada will be sworn in on January 3, 2003, and begin representing their new districts at that time.

Finally, the portions of S.B. 14 that revise the districts for the UCCSN Board of Regents and the State Board of Education are effective on January 1, 2002, only for the purposes of nominating and electing members of both boards. Otherwise, these revised districts are effective on January 7, 2003. Newly elected members of the Board of Regents and the State Board of Education begin representing their new districts on that date.

The newly redrawn districts for the members of the Nevada Legislature, Representatives in Congress, and the members of the Board of Regents and State Board of Education are in effect for 10 years. Reapportionment and redistricting will occur again during the 2011 Legislative Session following the 2010 decennial census.

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