WINDSOR PARK ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE ACT

[Rev. 4/15/2026 5:00:23 PM--2025]

Chapter 531, Statutes of Nevada 2023

AN ACT relating to housing; establishing a program for the relocation of persons residing in single-family residences in the Windsor Park neighborhood of the City of North Las Vegas; making an appropriation; requiring quarterly reports to the Interim Finance Committee; and providing other matters properly relating thereto.

[Approved: June 16, 2023]

(Leadlines for sections have been supplied by the Legislative Counsel of the State of Nevada)

The People of the State of Nevada, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:

Section 1. Short Title. This act may be cited as the Windsor Park Environmental Justice Act.

(Ch. 531, Stats. 2023 p. 3539)

Sec. 2. Legislative findings and declaration. The Legislature hereby finds and declares:

1. Windsor Park is a single-family residential development in North Las Vegas built between 1964 and 1966 for Black families, to allow them to own their own homes and build wealth that could be passed to future generations.

2. Windsor Park was built over geological faults, and the withdrawal of groundwater from the aquifer beneath Windsor Park, in combination with the faults, caused the ground beneath Windsor Park to sink.

3. This sinking, or subsidence, damaged homes, roads, water and gas lines, and many homes in Windsor Park became uninhabitable and had to be demolished.

4. Beginning in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, the Federal Government, the State of Nevada and the City of North Las Vegas provided approximately $14 million to help residents of Windsor Park, which was used by the City to:

(a) Move and rehabilitate four homes;

(b) Build and relocate residents to 45 new homes; and

5. Under the above programs, 90 Windsor Park residents were unable to find another suitable home or move to a suitable, rehabilitated home.

6. The Windsor Park residents who could not move remain residents of Windsor Park in homes that have experienced significant damage because of ground subsidence, and these residents need a new solution to obtain new homes.

7. Because of the ground subsidence and damage unique to the Windsor Park neighborhood, it is necessary to enact a law of local and special application to provide the residents of Windsor Park a solution to this unique problem, which is found nowhere else in this State.

8. Given that a law of local and special application is necessary to accomplish the purposes of this act and given that such a law is necessary to benefit the residents of that local and special area known as Windsor Park, a general law cannot be made applicable to the purposes, objects, powers, rights, privileges, immunities, liabilities, duties and disabilities set forth in this act.

(Ch. 531, Stats. 2023 p. 3539)

Sec. 3. Definitions. As used in sections 1 to 9.7, inclusive, of this act, unless the context otherwise requires, the words and terms defined in sections 4 to 8, inclusive, of this act have the meanings ascribed to them in those sections.

(Ch. 531, Stats. 2023 p. 3540)

Sec. 4. “City” defined. “City” means the City of North Las Vegas.

(Ch. 531, Stats. 2023 p. 3540)

Sec. 6. “Housing Division” defined. “Housing Division” means the Housing Division of the Department of Business and Industry.

(Ch. 531, Stats. 2023 p. 3540)

Sec. 7. “Single-family residence” defined. “Single-family residence” means a parcel or other unit of real property or unit of personal property which is:

1. Intended or designed to be occupied by one family with facilities for living, sleeping, cooking and eating; and

2. Occupied by the owner of the parcel or other unit of real property or, if the parcel or other unit of real property is owned by a trust, occupied by the trustee or a member of his or her immediate family.

(Ch. 531, Stats. 2023 p. 3540)

Sec. 8. “Windsor Park neighborhood” defined. “Windsor Park neighborhood” means the area of the City lying north of West Cartier Avenue, west of Clayton Street, east of Chamberlain Lane, and south of West Evans Avenue. The area includes single-family residences and vacant lots on the south side of West Cartier Avenue and otherwise within the area defined in this section. The area also includes single-family residences and vacant lots west of Chamberlain Lane and on West Cartier Avenue, Sommer Court, Hayworth Avenue or Stanton Drive.

(Ch. 531, Stats. 2023 p. 3540; A—Ch.7, Stats. 2025, 36th Special Session p. 57)

Sec. 9. Establishment and administration of program by Housing Division to exchange single-family residences and vacant lots in Windsor Park neighborhood for nearby single-family residences or vacant lots; selection of entity to enter into contracts for study, financing and development of vacant land near Windsor Park neighborhood; duties of entity selected, City and Housing Division; requirements for exchange of single-family residences and vacant lots; tax exemptions; requirements for development of public park in Windsor Park neighborhood.

1. The Housing Division shall establish and administer a program pursuant to which the owner of:

(a) A single-family residence in the Windsor Park neighborhood who owns that residence on August 1, 2025, may exchange that single-family residence for another single-family residence constructed in accordance with this section.

(b) A vacant lot in the Windsor Park neighborhood who owned a single-family residence in the Windsor Park neighborhood that was formerly located on that vacant lot, or the descendant of such an owner, and who owns that vacant lot on August 1, 2025, may exchange that vacant lot for another vacant lot in an area as near as reasonably practicable to the Windsor Park neighborhood in accordance with this section. The owner or descendant of such an owner must be offered the opportunity to exchange a vacant lot in the Windsor Park neighborhood for a vacant lot that is located in the Cibola Park area of the City and that is available to be exchanged in accordance with any agreements between the City, Clark County and the Housing Division, before being offered any other vacant lot.

2. For the purposes of the program established pursuant to this section, a person may establish that he or she is the owner of a single-family residence or a vacant lot in the Windsor Park neighborhood on August 1, 2025, by:

(a) Executing an affidavit, under penalty of perjury, that he or she acquired title to the single-family residence or vacant lot from a deceased relative by operation of law; and

(b) Presenting to the Housing Division, or the governmental agency, nonprofit corporation or other entity selected by the Housing Division pursuant to subsection 3, any of the following evidence of ownership:

(1) An original deed, deed of trust, bill of sale or land installment contract;

(2) A current property tax bill and proof of payment of property taxes for the immediately preceding 15 years;

(3) A certified copy of a will naming the applicant as heir to the property along with a death certificate;

(4) Any evidence that the applicant is the heir to the property, including, without limitation, proof that the applicant has lived in the single-family residence since childhood, a family tree or a history of property tax payments;

(5) Any evidence that the applicant has had physical occupation of the single-family residence or has acted as owner of the single-family residence for the immediately preceding 15 years, including, without limitation, a history of property tax payments or a history of the payment of utility bills; or

(6) Any other documentation to establish ownership or inheritance of the single-family residence, including, without limitation, notarized documentation or letters from family members.

3. The Housing Division shall apply for any available grants of money from the Federal Government to carry out the provisions of sections 1 to 9.7, inclusive, of this act and shall select a governmental agency, nonprofit corporation or other entity engaged in the development of affordable housing to develop single-family residences on vacant land in areas as near as reasonably practicable to the Windsor Park neighborhood. The governmental agency, nonprofit corporation or other entity selected by the Housing Division pursuant to this subsection shall, in accordance with a financing agreement entered into pursuant to subsection 6, contract with qualified professionals for a study of vacant land adjacent to the Windsor Park neighborhood that could be acquired to ensure that such land will not subside, acquire vacant land adjacent to the Windsor Park neighborhood if the study finds that such land will not subside and enter into contracts to develop and construct single-family residences on that land. In awarding such contracts, a preference with a relative weight of 5 percent must be assigned to an applicant that is a business in which at least 50 percent of the interest is owned by a resident or former resident of the Windsor Park neighborhood. Any restriction on the price which the Housing Division may pay to acquire a parcel of real property does not apply to an acquisition pursuant to this section.

4. The number of single-family residences constructed pursuant to this section must be determined based on a list of residents of the Windsor Park neighborhood who are eligible to exchange that residence for a single-family residence constructed pursuant to this section, as verified by the Housing Division. The single-family residences constructed pursuant to this section must enable an owner of a single-family residence in the Windsor Park neighborhood on August 1, 2025, to obtain a single-family residence with at least the same amount of square footage as the residence in the Windsor Park neighborhood. The number of vacant lots acquired pursuant to this section must be sufficient in number and size to enable each owner described in paragraph (b) of subsection 1 of a vacant lot in the Windsor Park neighborhood who owned a vacant lot in the Windsor Park neighborhood on August 1, 2025, to exchange the vacant lot in the Windsor Park neighborhood for a vacant lot with at least the same number of acres as the vacant lot in the Windsor Park neighborhood.

5. The City shall grant the employees and representatives of the governmental entity, nonprofit corporation or other entity selected by the Housing Division, and the Housing Division, access to any right-of-way owned or controlled by the City and access to any lots owned by the City within the Windsor Park neighborhood when such access is necessary to carry out the provisions of this section, and the City shall not unreasonably withhold such access.

6. The governmental entity, nonprofit corporation or other entity selected by the Housing Division pursuant to subsection 3, the City and the Housing Division shall enter into an agreement to finance the development and construction of single-family residences pursuant to this section. The agreement must require:

(a) The use of money appropriated or authorized by the Legislature to the Housing Division for the purposes set forth in this section.

(b) Any other money from any public or private source, including, without limitation, any gift, grant, appropriation or contribution, available to be used for the purposes set forth in this section.

7. For the purpose of constructing, financing and conveying property pursuant to this section, the entity selected by the Housing Division pursuant to subsection 3 may own and hold title to, in the name of the entity, any property acquired to carry out the provisions of this section. The entity selected by the Housing Division pursuant to subsection 3 shall not use the property acquired pursuant to this section for any purpose other than the purposes set forth in this section.

8. Upon the issuance of a certificate of occupancy for each single-family residence constructed pursuant to this section, the owner of a single-family residence in the Windsor Park neighborhood who owns that residence on August 1, 2025, may exchange that single-family residence for a single-family residence which was constructed pursuant to this section and which has at least the same amount of square footage as the residence being exchanged. If the single-family residence being exchanged is:

(a) Encumbered by a mortgage or deed of trust, the single-family residence may not be exchanged unless the existing mortgage or deed of trust is paid in full or transferred to the new single-family residence. To the extent necessary to facilitate an exchange of a single-family residence pursuant to this section, the Housing Division shall provide assistance to arrange any financing necessary to pay off the existing mortgage or deed of trust, including, without limitation, any down payment assistance available under any program administered by the Housing Division. The amount of the existing mortgage or deed of trust paid off through any assistance provided by the Housing Division pursuant to this paragraph must not exceed the payoff amount as of May 25, 2025, and any amount necessary to cure interest, fees or arrearages incurred after May 25, 2025.

(b) Encumbered by any other lien that would prevent the exchange of the single-family residence, the Housing Division may provide assistance in arranging financing to pay off any such lien or may provide such financial assistance as is necessary to facilitate the exchange of a single-family residence pursuant to this section.

(c) Leased to a tenant occupying the single-family residence under a lease agreement, the lease agreement remains in effect with the same terms and conditions.

9. The Housing Division may require any transaction for the exchange of a single-family residence or vacant lot pursuant to subsection 8 to be closed through an escrow process, with an American Land Title Association owner’s policy of title insurance showing only permitted encumbrances and the lien required to be recorded pursuant to subsection 10. Any recording fees, any fees to prepare or file documents and any other fees or charges necessary to complete a transaction for the exchange of a single-family residence or vacant lot for a single-family residence which was constructed pursuant to this section must be paid by the Housing Division from money appropriated to the Housing Division for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of the Windsor Park Environmental Justice Act.

10. The Housing Division shall file for record in the office of the county recorder a lien on each single-family residence and vacant lot acquired by an owner of a single-family residence or vacant lot in the Windsor Park neighborhood in an exchange conducted pursuant to this section to secure repayment to the Housing Division of an amount equal to:

(a) The value of the single-family residence or vacant lot at the time it was acquired;

(b) Any fees or charges paid by the Housing Division pursuant to subsection 9 with respect to the single-family residence or vacant lot;

(c) Any relocation expenses paid pursuant to section 9.3 of the Windsor Park Environmental Justice Act, as amended by section 4 of this act; and

(d) Any amount of a mortgage or deed of trust, or any other lien, paid off pursuant to subsection 8,

Ê if the single-family residence or vacant lot is sold or transferred, except for a transfer that is exempt pursuant to NRS 375.090 from the taxes imposed pursuant to chapter 375 of NRS, at any time within 5 years after the date of the recording of the lien.

11. The amount of any repayment due pursuant to subsection 10 must not exceed the net proceeds of the sale or transfer, after payment of all superior liens and reasonable closing costs. The lien filed pursuant to subsection 10 must state the amount secured by the lien. A lien under this subsection is prior to all other liens and encumbrances on the unit except liens for taxes and other governmental assessments, charges or liens against the single-family residence and any first mortgage or deed of trust on the single-family residence acquired pursuant to this section. The lien filed pursuant to subsection 10 expires 5 years after the filing of the certificate except for any portion of the lien securing any debt paid off or transferred to facilitate an exchange of a single-family residence pursuant to this section. Any amount paid to the Housing Division pursuant to this subsection must be deposited with the State Treasurer for credit to the State General Fund.

12. Until July 1, 2057, a single-family residence acquired pursuant to subsection 7 is entitled to an exemption from property taxes that is equal to the difference between the taxes levied on the single-family residence that was acquired pursuant to subsection 7, as determined pursuant to NRS 361.225 and 361.227, on the date on which that single-family residence was acquired, and the taxes levied on the single-family residence in the Windsor Park neighborhood that was exchanged, as determined pursuant to NRS 361.225 and 361.227, for the fiscal year in which the single-family residence in the Windsor Park neighborhood was exchanged. The provisions of NRS 361.4722, 361.4723 and 361.4724 apply to the calculation of the taxes on the single-family residence levied on the single-family residence acquired pursuant to subsection 7.

13. The taxes imposed pursuant to chapter 375 of NRS do not apply to any transfer of property pursuant to the provisions of the Windsor Park Environmental Justice Act by the governmental agency, nonprofit corporation or other entity that has entered into an agreement pursuant to subsection 6, or an affiliate of such an entity, or a transfer of property pursuant to the provisions of this Act to or from a resident of the Windsor Park neighborhood, or the owner of a vacant lot in the Windsor Park neighborhood, who is exchanging a single-family residence or vacant lot pursuant to the Windsor Park Environmental Justice Act.

14. The power, sewer and other connection fees imposed by the City on a single-family residence in the Windsor Park neighborhood must be transferred to a single-family residence acquired pursuant to this section as the power, sewer and the connections fees to be imposed on that single-family residence.

15. It is the intent of the Legislature that because of the conditions existing in the Windsor Park neighborhood, as described in section 2 of the Windsor Park Environmental Justice Act, and because it is the intent of the Legislature that the single-family residences and vacant lots in the Windsor Park neighborhood that are exchanged pursuant to this section be demolished and replaced by a park pursuant to subsection 16, an owner of a single-family residence or vacant lot in the Windsor Park neighborhood who is voluntarily exchanging the single-family residence or vacant lot for a new single-family residence or vacant lot under the provisions of this section is making such an exchange because of the destruction, in whole or in part, of the single-family residence or vacant lot as a result of the conditions described in section 2 of the Windsor Park Environmental Justice Act or under threat of the requisition or condemnation of the property for the purposes of 26 U.S.C. § 1033.

16. Any property in the Windsor Park neighborhood that is exchanged pursuant to this section must be used only for the purposes of a public park to memorialize the past and present residents of the Windsor Park neighborhood, which must be available for use, without charge, to schools and churches that serve the Windsor Park neighborhood. For the purposes of creating the public park, the entity selected by the Housing Division pursuant to subsection 3 to develop single-family residences must be engaged under an agreement with the Housing Division, which may act as custodian of the land on which the park is to be constructed and may consult with entities that applied for or received any grants of money to construct City View Park in the Windsor Park neighborhood. The agreement must be separate from any agreement entered into pursuant to subsection 6 for any additional work necessary to develop and construct the public park, including, without limitation, the demolition of any residences transferred pursuant to this section and, if necessary to construct a park pursuant to this subsection, the acquisition of any parcel of land owned by a private party on which a residence is located that has not been transferred pursuant to this section. Any agreement for the demolition of the residences pursuant to this subsection is exempt from the provisions of state law governing the award of a contract by governmental entities, and any payments pursuant to such an agreement, including, without limitation, any payments to acquire any parcel of land owned by a private party on which a residence is located that has not been transferred pursuant to this section, must be paid entirely from money appropriated by the Legislature for that purpose. The agreement may authorize the retention or reuse of existing public or private infrastructure and materials used in connection with such infrastructure, including, without limitation, streets, sidewalks, lighting, water meters, curbs and foundations, if such retention or reuse is safe and cost-effective. After the demolition of the residences pursuant to this subsection, the City shall maintain the property as a public park for the purposes described in this subsection.

(Ch. 531, Stats. 2023 p. 3540; A—Ch.7, Stats. 2025, 36th Special Session p. 57)

Sec. 9.3. Establishment of program by Housing Division to pay certain relocation expenses of persons who move from Windsor Park neighborhood and costs of rehabilitation of certain homes; transfer of certain money to Housing Division; disbursement of money by Housing Division; limitation on amount and type of relocation expenses to be paid; reduction of payments if insufficient funds available.

1. The Housing Division shall establish a program to pay:

(a) The relocation expenses of the owners of single-family residences in the Windsor Park neighborhood who acquire a single-family residence pursuant to section 9 of the Windsor Park Environmental Justice Act and who move from the Windsor Park neighborhood to the acquired single-family residence, and to any tenant of an owner of a single-family residence who is required to move because the owner acquires a single-family residence pursuant to section 9 of the Windsor Park Environmental Justice Act.

(b) The cost of the rehabilitation of the homes constructed in the Cibola Park neighborhood to replace homes in the Windsor Park neighborhood, in an amount not to exceed $10,000 per single-family residence.

2. The City shall transfer to the Housing Division:

(a) Any remaining proceeds of general obligation bonds issued by the City and purchased by the Federal National Mortgage Association for the purpose of relocating residents of the Windsor Park neighborhood, and any remaining interest on those proceeds.

(b) Any money remaining from Community Development Block Grants awarded to the City for the purpose of relocating residents in the Windsor Park neighborhood.

(c) Any money remaining from Community Development Block Grants awarded to the City for the purpose of constructing residences for the residents of the Windsor Park neighborhood.

Ê Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, money received pursuant to this subsection must be accounted for separately and may be used only to carry out the provisions of this section. Any use of money received from a Community Development Block Grant may be used for any purpose authorized by the provisions of the Windsor Park Environmental Justice Act, but must be used only for such purposes for which Community Development Block Grants may be used under federal law governing Community Development Block Grants.

3. From amounts available to the Housing Division to carry out the provisions of the Windsor Park Environmental Justice Act, the Housing Division shall pay the actual relocation expenses in an amount not to exceed $50,000 of a person who owns a single-family residence in the Windsor Park neighborhood on August 1, 2025, who acquires a single-family residence pursuant to section 9 of the Windsor Park Environmental Justice Act and who moves from the Windsor Park neighborhood to that acquired single-family residence. Such relocation expenses may be paid to a person who was the tenant of an owner of a single-family residence in the Windsor Park neighborhood on August 1, 2025, and who is required to move residences as a result of the program established pursuant to section 9 of this act. Subject to such safeguards as the Housing Division deems appropriate to ensure that the objective of the payment is accomplished, relocation expenses may be paid in advance directly to the owner or tenant incurring the expenses or to the vendor, based on documentation, including, without limitation, quotes, establishing the actual amount of the expenses. To the extent that money available to the Housing Division to carry out the provisions of the Windsor Park Environmental Justice Act is insufficient to make the entire amount of the payments required by this subsection, the Housing Division shall reduce such payments on a pro rata basis.

4. Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, for the purposes of this section, relocation expenses may include, without limitation, packing, movers, insurance, storage up to 90 days, utility deposits and transfers, reconnection fees, household appliances not included in the development, furniture replacement, fixtures, solar panel reinstallation, temporary lodging up to 30 days and transportation for tenant households only. Any expenses for which federal law governing the use of money from a Community Development Block Grant prohibits payment as relocation expenses must not be considered relocation expenses for the purposes of this section.

(Ch. 531, Stats. 2023 p. 3542; A—Ch.7, Stats. 2025, 36th Special Session p. 62)

Sec. 9.5. Quarterly report by Housing Division on status of program. The Housing Division shall report, at least quarterly, to the Interim Finance Committee information concerning the status of the program undertaken pursuant to sections 1 to 9.7, inclusive, of the Windsor Park Environmental Justice Act.

(Added—Ch.7, Stats. 2025, 36th Special Session p. 57)

Sec. 9.7. Unlawful to sell or list for sale real property in Windsor Park neighborhood. It is unlawful to sell or list for sale any real property intended for occupancy as a residence within the Windsor Park neighborhood.

(Ch. 531, Stats. 2023 p. 3542)

Sec. 11.7. Quarterly report by Housing Division on progress of program. The Housing Division of the Department of Business and Industry shall, on a quarterly basis, submit a report to the Interim Finance Committee concerning the progress of the Housing Division in carrying out the provisions of this act.

(Ch. 531, Stats. 2023 p. 3543)