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COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT ASSESSMENT
FOR
THE STATE OF NEVADA

A GUIDE TO NEVADA’S
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT ENVIRONMENT

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT
FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF SAN FRANCISCO

FOREWORD
Scott Turner
December 2004
The Community Affairs Department of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco has
developed a new series of reports for the nine states in the Twelfth District that both
detail the demographic, economic, governmental, and institutional underpinnings of each
state and provide an analysis of the various community development needs within each
state. These reports, which we are calling “Environmental Assessments,” are meant to
provide a framework for the array of community development activities that the
department undertakes across the District. The hope is that the reports will not only
provide a helpful compilation of existing community development needs and resources
for each state, but will also allow us to target our time and resources to those areas that
both show the greatest need and offer the opportunity for the most meaningful role.
We hope that you will find these Environmental Assessments useful and that the
information presented will enhance your understanding of the state of community
development in each location.
We look forward to your comments and suggestions.
Joy Hoffmann
Vice President
Community Affairs Department

Jack Richards
Senior Community Affairs Manager
Community Affairs Department

TABLE OF CONTENTS

METHODOLOGY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
CONCLUSIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT ENVIRONMENT
I.

DEMOGRAPHICS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

II.

ECONOMY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

III.

STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

IV.

NONPROFITS AND FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS . . . . . . . . . 22

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT NEEDS AND RESOURCES
V.

AFFORDABLE HOUSING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

VI.

SMALL BUSINESS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

VII.

POVERTY AND ASSET ACCUMULATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

VIII.

NATIVE AMERICANS AND IMMIGRANTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

METHODOLOGY
In an attempt to provide a framework for performing our own community development
work, the Community Affairs Department of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
has produced separate reports entitled “environmental assessments” for each of the nine
states which comprise the Federal Reserve’s Twelfth District: Alaska, Arizona,
California, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, and Utah. Each report is
divided into two sections: one covering the overall “Community Development
Environment” in the state, and the other covering the “Community Development Needs
and Resources” in the state. These environmental assessments are intended to bring
together available research and information in both of these areas.
Specifically, the chapters in the “Community Development Environment” section cover
the demographic, economic, governmental, and institutional underpinnings in each state,
providing detail such as each state’s industrial structure, economic outlook, banking
system, nonprofit groups, and government departments involved in community
development. In the second section, each report delves into four separate areas of
“Community Development Needs and Resources:” affordable housing, small business,
poverty and asset accumulation, and issues specific to native people and immigrants.
A key resource for both the data and the approach taken in this effort was the 2002 State
Asset Development Report Card, published by an influential research and advocacy
organization, CFED (formerly known as the Corporation for Enterprise Development).
CFED’s report analyzes a great deal of data on a range of factors affecting asset
accumulation and poverty for each state in the nation. The CFED report divides its
analysis into separate evaluations of “Asset Outcomes” and “Asset Policies” for each
state, producing an overall grade (A, B, C, D, or F) for each. Not only do our reports
reference virtually all of the individual rankings which feed into CFED’s two overall
grades, but they also follow a somewhat similar approach in dividing each of the
community development areas in each state (affordable housing, small business, poverty
and asset accumulation, and native people and immigrant issues) between “needs” and
“resources” in a manner similar to CFED’s “Asset Outcomes” and “Asset Policies.”
The reports then build on these CFED comparisons by drawing on the considerable
resources already produced by a variety of national and local organizations in these
subject areas for each state, pulling together their major data, analyses, and conclusions
into one single report. The reports were designed by Scott Turner, who managed the
project and specifically wrote this Nevada Environmental Assessment. The Nevada
Environmental Assessment was also supported by data and material gathering by a
former member of the Community Affairs Department’s field staff, Bruce Ito, with
additional oversight and editing by Jack Richards. Websites referenced in this report
were accessed between September and December of 2004, and we have attempted to
provide accurate links to content referenced, although content and/or location may
change over time. We should note here that while the Federal Reserve Bank of San
Francisco sponsored these environmental assessments, they reflect only the views of the
author.

We gratefully acknowledge the community development practitioners in each state who
agreed to review drafts of these reports and provide helpful feedback. In addition, we
have attempted to ensure there are no errors or omissions in this report, but encourage
you to contact us if you believe important changes are warranted. Please contact us by the
end of February 2005, and we will be pleased to make appropriate revisions and post an
edited version of the reports on our website in March 2005.

CONCLUSIONS
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT ENVIRONMENT
1. Demographics
Nevada is the seventh largest state in total area, but only the 35th largest state based
on population. 1 However, Nevada’s population is witnessing explosive growth, with a
12.2% increase between 2000 and 2003 (the strongest growth in the nation) coming on
top of a 66.3% increase between 1990 and 2000. 2 The bulk of the state’s population is
contained in Clark County (containing Las Vegas), and to a somewhat lesser extent,
Washoe County (containing Reno). 3 The state’s racial and ethnic breakdown follows
relatively closely that of the nation, with the exceptions that the Black/African
American population’s share is only half that of the nation’s, and the
Hispanic/Latino population’s share is almost 60% greater. 4
2. Economy
With a small manufacturing base, Nevada’s economy is dominated by the service sector,
which is responsible for almost one third of the state’s economy, as compared to only
23% nationally. 5 In particular, the thriving, gaming-driven tourism industry
dominates economic activity, with the leisure and hospitality services sub-sector
supplying 28.0% of the jobs in Nevada, compared to only 9.3% in the nation. 6 These
service jobs tend to pay relatively low wages and limit overall household income
levels. Moreover, while low energy costs and a very low tax burden make the state quite
competitive, a severe lack of economic diversity renders the state somewhat vulnerable to
a national economic downturn or another tourism-impacting event such as September
11th. 7 Supported by strong net in-migration, booming construction, and a quick recovery
in neighboring California, 8 Nevada’s economy easily weathered the recent recession
and is rebounding strongly, with the state now leading the nation in job creation. 9
These same factors should continue to underpin strong economic growth going forward.
3. Governmental and Financial Sectors
Nevada enjoys solid credit ratings. 10 The state’s tax structure relies heavily on sales and
other taxes that fall heavily on tourists, thereby allowing the state to export a large
1

Netstate.com, The Geography of Nevada: http://www.netstate.com/states/geography/nv_geography.htm
U.S. Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2003,
http://www.census.gov/statab/www/ranks.html.
3
U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000 Data, http://www.census.gov/main/www/cen2000.html.
4
U.S. Census Bureau, Nevada Quickfacts, http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/.
5
Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2001 Gross State Product, http://www.bea.doc.gov/bea/regional/data.htm.
6
Economy.com, Nevada State Profile, October 2004.
7
Ibid.
8
Ibid.
9
FDIC, Nevada State Profile, Fall 2004.
10
California State Treasurer’s Office, Comparison of Other States’ General Obligation Bond Ratings,
December 2004.
2

portion of its tax burden. However, this tax system is criticized for its regressive impact
on lower-income residents, and its limited nature constrains overall state finances. In the
financial sector, there are 52 separately chartered insured depository institutions with
combined deposits in the state of $40.7 billion, 11 many of which have aggressively added
branches in the state in recent years. 12 These banks are augmented by 29 credit unions. 13
Finally, the state has four certified Community Development Financial Institutions, 14
which together had $5.8 million in financing outstanding to their more than 500 mostly
low-income customers at the end of FY 2002. 15
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT NEEDS AND RESOURCES
1. Affordable Housing
Affordable housing had long been one of the key ingredients driving Nevada’s
explosive growth, but recent rapid price appreciation has eroded that advantage
and in turn has put pressure on the state’s supply of affordable rental housing.
Overall, despite recent gains, the state still ranks quite low for its homeownership rate.
On the rental side, the state ranks only average in its overall rental housing affordability,
with recent data showing that more than one fifth of the renters in the state pay more than
50% of their household income on housing. 16 Nevada is specifically lauded by CFED for
its housing trust fund and its large devotion of its private-activity bond authority to
mortgage revenue bonds, 17 but strong expected growth in the future and increasingly
limited land in Clark County only further underscore the importance of affordable
housing assistance for the state’s low- and moderate-income community.
2. Small Business
Small businesses and entrepreneurs comprise a smaller part of the Nevada economy than
in any other state. Specifically, the state ranks last in the nation in both its level of
entrepreneurship and the share of employment in small businesses (firms with fewer
than 10 employees). Nevada is also ranked relatively low in the level of private
finance provided to small businesses. Finally, the state fails on virtually every CFED
measure of small business policy. 18 While the usual array of SBA and other programs is
augmented with a few local rural and microenterprise programs, clearly this segment of
the state’s economy could benefit from additional support.

FDIC Deposit Market Share Report: Nevada, June 2004.
Katie Kuehner-Hebert, American Banker, Nevada Branch Showdown: As Taxes Kick In, Banks Threaten
Pullback, June 16, 2004.
13
Nevada Credit Union League, Credit Union Fact Sheet, http://www.cuna.org/download/nevada_fs.pdf.
14
CDFI Fund, U.S. Department of the Treasury, Certified CDFI’s – Alphabetical by State and County,
November 2004.
15
CDFI Coalition, CDFIs in Nevada: 2004 Fact Sheet, http://www.cdfi.org/states/Nevada2004.pdf.
16
U.S. Census Bureau, 2003 American Community Survey Data, http://www.census.gov/acs/www/.
17
CFED, State Asset Development Report Card (SADRC), 2002, pp. 129-133.
18
Ibid, pp. 143-149.
12

3. Poverty and Asset Accumulation
Nevada enjoys a relatively good ranking for the percentage of its residents who fall
below the poverty level. However, the state fares worse on measures of the “near-poor,”
with some 37% of its residents falling under the level of 200% of poverty. 19 At the same
time, Nevada has one of the worst personal bankruptcy rates in the nation, indicating
severe financial stress. The state is ranked near the bottom in the percentage of
households with zero or negative net worth, and CFED gives the state a failing grade
in terms of overall asset outcomes. 20 At the same time, CFED also gives Nevada a failing
grade for its asset policies, citing its lack of any legislation or support for IDA programs
as well as an array of other deficiencies in this area. 21 However, a group of bankers has
recently assembled a funding collaborative with the goal of increasing IDA programs in
the state.
4. Native Americans and Immigrants
Nevada’s overall population of Native Americans is fairly small, only the 21st highest
in the nation, though Native Americans are more significant as a share of the state’s
population. This group has a much higher poverty rate than the state, lower
education levels, and a lower rate of homeownership. 22 While an array of federal
programs is available, the usage of the primary Native American homeownership
program is quite limited, and further assistance to address the needs of the native
population is needed. In contrast, Nevada’s immigrant population is significant, with
one of the highest rankings in terms of its share of the total population. Moreover,
this population has grown quickly, and while some have found quick success in the Las
Vegas economy, overall, immigrants are poorer and face greater difficulties in
housing. 23

Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Distribution of Total Population by Federal Poverty Level, State
Data 2002-2003, U.S. 2003, http://www.statehealthfacts.kff.org.
20
CFED, SADRC, p. 59.
21
Ibid, pp. 59, 122-169.
22
U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000 Data.
23
Ibid.

STATE OF NEVADA
SELECTED COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT INDICATORS

Affordable Housing
Homeownership Rate 24
Rental Affordability Rate 25
Severely Cost-Burdened Renter Households 26

Rate
65.5%
-20.4%

State Rank
44th
23rd
12th

Small Business
Small Business Employment Rate 27
Entrepreneurship Rate 28
Level of Private Loans to Small Businesses 29

8.5%
9.3%
--

50th
50th
38th

Poverty and Asset Accumulation
Poverty Rate 30
Households with Zero Net Worth 31
Personal Bankruptcy Rate 32

9.0%
22.0%
23.3

9th
48th
47th

Native Americans and Immigrants
Native American Population 33
Native American Poverty Rate 34
Foreign-Born Population 35
Foreign-Born Poverty Rate 36

1.3%
18.7%
15.8%
15.1%

11th
-6th
--

U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Statistical Abstract 2003; represents the percentage of housing units that are
occupied by owners, ranked from highest percentage (1st)
25
NLIHC; rank is calculated based on a weighted average of the state’s median gross rent, renter market
affordability ratio, and percent of severely cost-burdened renters, ranked from most affordable (1st)
26
NLIHC; Up Against a Wall, November 2004; represents the percentage of renter households in the state
spending more than 50% of their income on rent in 2003, ranked from lowest percentage (1st)
27
U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2001; represents the share of total state employment
attributable to firms with fewer than 10 employees, ranked from highest share (1st)
28
CFED, SADRC; represents the percentage of the labor force that owns employer and non-employer firms
as of 2000, ranked from highest percentage (1st)
29
Ibid; represents the dollar amount of private business loans under $1 million per worker, ranked from
highest amount (1st)
30
U.S. Census Bureau, Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2003;
represents the average percent of people living below the federal poverty level during the period from 2001
to 2003, ranked from lowest percentage (1st)
31
CFED, SADRC; represents the percentage of households with zero or negative net worth, ranked from
lowest percentage (1st)
32
American Bankruptcy Institute; represents personal bankruptcy filings in 2003 per thousand households
in the state, ranked from fewest filings (1st)
33
U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000; represents the percentage of the state’s population composed of
Native Americans and Alaska Natives (only), ranked from highest percentage (1st)
34
Ibid; represents the percentage of Native American/Alaska Native (only) individuals living below the
federal poverty level at any time in 1999
35
Ibid; represents the percentage of the state’s population composed of foreign-born individuals, ranked
from highest percentage (1st)
36
Ibid; represents the percentage of foreign-born individuals living below the federal poverty level at any
time in 1999

DEMOGRAPHICS

Geography

Located just east of California, south of portions of Oregon and Idaho, west of Utah, and
northwest of Arizona, Nevada’s landscape consists of sandy deserts as well as forest- and
snow-covered mountains. The state is almost entirely located within the Great Basin, a
desert area that reaches into six states. With a total landmass of 110,567 square miles,
Nevada is the seventh largest state in size. 37 However, a large portion of Nevada’s
land (including an estimated 89% in Clark County) is owned by the federal
government. 38

Source: Infoplease.com

Netstate.com, The Geography of Nevada: http://www.netstate.com/states/geography/nv_geography.htm.
United Way of Southern Nevada/Nevada Community Foundation, Southern Nevada Community
Assessment 2003, September 2003.
38

Population

Nevada’s small population of 2,241,154 makes it only the 35th largest state in the
country by population. 39 However, the state’s population grew at a rate of 66.3%
between 1990 and 2000, and increased another 12.2% between 2000 and 2003—the
highest growth rate in the country. 40 Nevada’s small population and large landmass
yield an overall figure of persons per square mile of only 18.2 for the state, compared to
79.6 in the nation. 41
As the table below shows, Nevada’s population is actually extremely concentrated
and urbanized, with 68.8% of the people living in Clark County in the southern part of
the state (containing the City of Las Vegas) and another 17.0% in Washoe County in
the northern part of the state (containing the City of Reno). Following well behind are
only five additional counties with populations of more than 25,000, including the
counties of Carson City (which includes the state capital of the same name), Douglas,
Elko, Lyon, and Nye Counties. The total population of these five counties represents just
10.3% of the total state population. The remaining ten small counties contain just 3.9% of
the state’s population. 42
By far, the most rapid growth between 1990 and 2000 occurred in Clark County, which
posted an 85.5% increase, and which was responsible for about 80% of the state’s
total population increase over the decade. As one observer put it, the Las Vegas
metropolitan area is “the eye of a population storm that has transformed the American
desert from forlorn frontier to chosen land over the last three decades.”43 The only other
large percentage increases over that period were in Douglas County (49.3%), Lyon
County (72.5%), and Pershing County (54.5%), although Pershing County’s increase was
from a very small base. 44
1990 and 2000 Population by County
County
Statewide
Churchill
Clark
Douglas
Elko
Esmeralda
Eureka
Humboldt
Lander
Lincoln
Lyon
Mineral
39

1990 Population
1,201,833
17,938
741,459
27,637
33,530
1,344
1,547
12,844
6,266
3,775
20,001
6,475

2000 Population
1,998,257
23,982
1,375,765
41,259
45,291
971
1,651
16,106
5,794
4,165
34,501
5,071

% Change
66.3%
33.7%
85.5%
49.3%
35.1%
-27.8%
6.7%
25.4%
-7.5%
10.3%
72.5%
-21.7%

U.S. Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2003.
Ibid.
41
U.S. Census Bureau, Nevada Quickfacts.
42
U.S. Census Bureau, Census 1990 and 2000 Data.
43
Dean E. Murphy, New York Times, Desert’s Promised Land: Long Odds for Las Vegas Newcomer, May
30, 2004.
44
Ibid.
40

Nye
17,781
Pershing
4,336
Storey
2,526
Washoe
254,667
White Pine
9,264
Carson City*
40,443
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Census 1990 and 2000 Data.
*not a county or within a county

32,485
6,693
3,399
339,486
9,181
52,457

82.7%
54.4%
34.6%
33.3%
-0.9%
29.7%

The state is expected to continue its strong rate of growth, with roughly another 800,000
people expected to be added to the Nevada population by the year 2022. Most of this
increase is again expected in Clark County. 45 According to A. Somer Hollingsworth,
president of the Nevada Development Authority, “the rule of thumb is that one-third of
the people coming here are retirees, one-third come with a job lined up, and one-third are
looking for a job.” 46 In fact, while the age distribution of Nevada residents is roughly the
same as for the nation, between 1990 and 2003 the state led the nation in the growth of
the over-65 population, with this group nearly doubling in size in the state over this
period. 47
3.

Metropolitan Statistical Areas

Nevada gained one new MSA as a result of the 2000 Census, the Carson City, NV MSA,
containing the County of Carson City. Added to the two existing MSAs, the Las VegasParadise, NV MSA, containing Clark County, and the Reno-Sparks, NV MSA, containing
the counties of Storey and Washoe, Nevada’s new MSA brings the total number of MSAs
in the state to three. 48
4.

Race and Ethnicity

As the table on the following page shows, the population of Nevada is predominately
White (and almost exactly the same share as in the nation as a whole), with a sizeable
population in the category of Black or African American (though at only about half
the rate as the nation). Asians are also well-represented at 4.5% of the total—a rate higher
than the nation—and there are also larger percentages in the categories of “some other
race” or “two or more races” than the nation. In addition, 19.7% of Nevadans reported
themselves of Hispanic or Latino origin (compared to only 12.5% in the nation). 49

Nevada State Business Development Center, State of Nevada Demographer.
Dean E. Murphy, New York Times, Desert’s Promised Land: Long Odds for Las Vegas Newcomer, May
30, 2004.
47
Los Angeles Times, Retirees Cite New Adage: ‘Go West, Old Man,’ November 21, 2004.
48
White House Office of Management and Budget, OMB Bulletin 03-04 Attachment: Metropolitan
Statistical Areas, Micropolitan Statistical Areas, Combined Statistical Areas, New England City and Town
Areas, and Combined New England City and Town Areas -2003,
http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/bulletins/b03-04_attach.pdf.
49
U.S. Census Bureau, Nevada Quickfacts.
46

Race and Ethnicity in Nevada
Number in
Nevada
Population
White (only)
1,501,886
Black/African American (only)
135,477
Asian (only)
90,266
American Indian/Native Alaskan (only)
26,420
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (only)
8,426
Some other race (only)
159,354
Two or more races
76,428
Persons of Hispanic or Latino Origin*
393,970
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000 Data
*Persons of Hispanic or Latino Origin may be of any race
Race

% of Nevada
Population

% of U.S.
Population

75.2%
6.8%
4.5%
1.3%
0.4%
8.0%
3.8%
19.7%

75.1%
12.3%
3.6%
0.9%
0.1%
5.5%
2.4%
12.5%

Educational Attainment

Nevada adults have roughly the same level of achievement in terms of a high school
education as the nation, with some 80.7% having a diploma (or equivalent) vs. 80.4%
nationally. However, probably reflecting the lower level of job skills necessary for its
tourism-dependent economy, Nevadans have a significantly lower level of college
education than the nation as a whole, with only 18.2% having a bachelor’s degree or
higher compared to 24.4% nationally. 50

Ibid.

II.

ECONOMY

ECONOMIC STRUCTURE

Major Industries

Gross state product (GSP) is one of the most-frequently used comprehensive measures of
an economy. It is defined as the value added in production by the labor and property
located in a state, and is derived as the sum of the GSP originating in all industries in the
state. The Bureau of Economic Analysis reports gross state product estimates
approximately 18 months after the end of each year. Nevada’s GSP for 2003, the most
recent year available, was $87.7 billion, ranking the state 32nd in the nation. The state’s
per capita GSP for the same year was $39,144, 7.6% higher than the U.S. average,
which ranks the state quite high at 14th in the U.S. on that measure. 51
Nevada Gross State P roduct in 2001

Agri, Forest, Fish

Mining & Oil and

and Trap

Gas

Government 1%
10%

2%
Construc tion
9%
Manufac turing
Transportation,
4%
Comm & Utilities
7%
Wholesale trade

S ervic es

32%
Retail trade
11%

Financ e and Real
Estate
19%

The most significant differences in Nevada’s overall GSP vis-à-vis the nation are its
large construction sector, which, not surprisingly given the state’s explosive growth,
contributed 9% of the state economy compared to 5% nationally, its small
manufacturing sector, which contributes only 4% in the state compared to 14%
nationally, and its large services sector, contributing almost a third of the state economy

Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), 2003 and 2001 Gross State Product,
http://www.bea.doc.gov/bea/regional/data.htm.

compared to 23% nationally. 52 The latter is driven in large part by Nevada’s large and
thriving gaming business, which brings some 36 million tourists to Las Vegas each year.
In August, taxable gaming revenue on the Las Vegas Strip rose 7% and is set to make
2004 a banner year for Las Vegas. Reno, however, remains under pressure from the rise
of Indian casinos in California. Fortunately for Reno, two propositions on the ballot in
California in November that would have expanded gaming in the state failed to pass.
However, according to Standard and Poor’s, during 2003, Native American casino
revenues represented 35% of all gaming receipts nationally, a large increase from the
26% share posted in 2000 and, for the first time, exceeding the estimated 24% share of all
Nevada casinos. 53 As an example of the declining importance of gaming in Reno,
employment in that sector currently accounts for about 12% of jobs there, a significant
decline from its peak of 25% in the 1970’s. 54
2.

Economic Competitiveness and Diversity

Nevada is competitive in a number of ways with other states, most importantly
California, from which it is actively and somewhat successfully trying to lure businesses.
Nevada has significantly lower energy costs and a much lower tax burden, due to its
lack of a personal or corporate income tax, as well as the fact that it has no franchise or
capital gains taxes. On the other hand, the state economy lacks diversity, with Nevada
receiving an “industrial diversity score” of only 0.26 (on a scale of 0 to 1, with 1 being
most diverse) on Economy.com’s industrial diversity index. The state’s dependence on
tourism and gambling makes it especially vulnerable to shocks such as September 11th,
which resulted in a decline in tourism and an estimated 15,000 layoffs immediately
following the incident. 55
3.

Labor Force and Employment

As of 2000, Nevada had 1,003,293 residents in its labor force, with more than 99% of
those in the civilian labor force and the remainder in the armed services. Men outnumber
women in the Nevada labor force, accounting for 55.2% of all workers. As of 1999,
median earnings for male full-time, year-round workers were $35,794 and for female
full-time, year-round workers, $27,029. 56
As shown below, employment in Nevada differs from the U.S. in several significant
ways. The construction sector, which employs 9.2% of the Nevada workforce, employs
just 5.2% nationally, and manufacturing, which provides only 4.0% of employment in
Nevada, supplies 11.2% of the jobs nationally. Additionally, the education and health
services sector employs only 6.9% of the workforce in the state, about half the national
level and, at 12.4% compared to 16.6% nationally, the government sector is significantly
52

Ibid.
FDIC, Nevada State Profile, Spring 2004.
54
Daniel S. Levine, S.F. Business Times, California’s Casino Jackpot Deals Reno Out, June 25, 2004.
55
United Way of Southern Nevada, http://www.uwaysn.org/.
56
U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000 Data.
53

smaller in the state than across the country. 57 Most significantly, the leisure and
hospitality services sector supplies more than a quarter of the jobs in Nevada
(28.0%), compared to only 9.3% in the nation.
Industry Employment (% of total employment, 2003)
Sector
% of NV Employment
Construction
9.2%
Manufacturing
4.0%
Transport/Utilities
3.8%
Wholesale Trade
3.2%
Retail Trade
11.0%
Information
1.5%
Financial Activities
5.4%
Professional & Business Services
11.1%
Education & Health Services
6.9%
Leisure & Hosp. Services
28.0%
Other Services
2.8%
Government
12.4%
Source: Economy.com, Nevada State Profile, October 2004.

% of US Employment
5.2%
11.2%
3.7%
4.3%
11.5%
2.5%
6.1%
12.3%
12.8%
9.3%
4.2%
16.6%

Four out of five of Nevada’s largest employers are hotel/casinos, including the Bellagio
Hotel and Casino, Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, the MGM Grand Hotel, Inc., and
the Mirage Casino-Hotel, all of which employ more than 5,000 workers. Nellis Air Force
Base rounds out the top five employers, but 15 of the 20 largest employers in the state
are hotel/casinos. 58
Some argue that the state’s heavy reliance on service and retail jobs prevents workers
from earning sufficient income, with an estimate that roughly one-third of all Southern
Nevadans earn less than a living wage. Overall, only 17.1% of all workers in Nevada are
represented by unions. 59 However, a major union, the Culinary Local 226, deemed one
of the most successful union locals for its “spectacular job catapulting thousands of
dishwashers, hotel maids, and other unskilled workers into the middle class,” 60 provides
its members with some of the highest wages and guaranteed hours in the nation. More
than 90% of the hotel workers on the Las Vegas Strip belong to the union (its
membership has tripled from a total of 18,000 in the late 1980’s) and one in ten people in
all of Las Vegas are covered by its health plan.61

Economy.com, Nevada State Profile, October 2004.
Ibid.
59
United Way of Southern Nevada.
60
Steven Greenhouse, New York Times, Local 226, ‘the Culinary,’ Makes Las Vegas the Land of the
Living Wage, June 3, 2004.
61
Ibid.
58

ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE

Historic Economic Performance

Nevada benefited greatly from a national increase in the share of consumption devoted to
casino gambling, and hotels, which grew strongly throughout the 1990’s. From 1985 to
2000, real household income in the state grew faster than the U.S. average, in turn
bringing real household income in Nevada from just below 95% of the U.S. average to
more than 105% of the national average over the 15-year period. 62
2.

Recent Economic Performance

Nevada suffered the effects of the recession in 2001 (as well as the negative impact on
tourism from September 11th), but its rebound has been stronger than after its
previous economic downturn in 1991. Specifically, employment had risen in the state
by 1.5% 12 months after the economic trough in 2001, compared to just 0.4% growth
twelve months after the 1999 trough, with a smaller but still positive differential between
the two recessions 24 months out. Several factors were responsible for this better
performance, including the boost to construction from low mortgage rates, continued
strong net in-migration, and a shallower downturn this time in California. The relative
performance of California is important not only because of the state’s large role in
tourism for Las Vegas and Reno, but also because of Nevada’s strong attraction as a lowcost distribution center for businesses wanting to serve the California market. 63
However, while the state’s overall hotel occupancy, average room rates, gaming revenue,
and visitor levels have been improving since 2002, much of this improvement was due to
expanding convention business in Las Vegas. The Reno gambling sector, on the other
hand, has seen a more sluggish recovery. 64
Overall, Nevada continues to lead the nation in job growth, with a 4.5% increase yearover-year in the second quarter of 2004. Moreover, the Las Vegas and Reno MSA’s
ranked first and fourth in job growth among all MSA’s nationwide. Construction
helped drive this strong growth, accounting for a quarter of all jobs added in the state,
while the professional and business services and retail trade sectors also supported this
expansion. 65 In fact, in October 2004, the state’s unemployment rate fell to 3.6%, which
is the lowest rate since the current estimating methodology was implemented in 1978,
well below the roughly 5% rate of a year previous, and significantly below the 6.6% rate
reached in the months following September 11th. 66

Economy.com, Nevada State Profile, December 2003.
Ibid.
64
Ibid.
65
FDIC, Nevada State Profile, Fall 2004.
66
Nevada Job Connect, Nevada Economy in Brief, October 2004.
63

The Las Vegas metropolitan area was also specifically highlighted by the Milken Institute
as the second “best performing” city in the U.S. in 2004, in a study that ranks U.S. metro
areas based on their ability to create and sustain jobs. 67 At the same time, Nevada’s rural
areas are benefiting from a resurgence in mining resulting from an increase in the price of
gold to a 16-year high of more than $440 an ounce. Virtually every county in the
northern half of the state has at least one mine that is being developed, expanded, or
reopened. 68
The healthy business market is also evidenced by strong commercial loan growth rates,
with median year-over-year commercial and industrial loan growth for banks open at
least three years up by 20% in June 2004. This high growth rate was led primarily by
large business loans (those with original amounts over $1 million). 69
3.

Economic Outlook

The economic outlook for Nevada is quite favorable, with in-migration expected to
continue to underpin strong growth. Specifically, the state is expected to add
approximately 75,000 new residents in 2005, an increase of 3.2% over the 2004
population. 70 Downside risks stem from the state’s heavy reliance on tourism, which
could be impacted by either the fragility of the national recovery and/or the impact of the
recently high oil prices on travel. Longer term, while efforts to draw new businesses to
the state have especially supported the professional and business services sector, the
state’s lack of diversity leaves it exposed to business cycle fluctuations. 71

Ross DeVol and Lorna Wallace, Milken Institute, Best Performing Cities: Where America’s Jobs are
Created and Sustained, November 2004, p.2.
68
Nevada Job Connect.
69
Ibid.
70
Nevada State Demographer’s Office, Nevada County Population Projections, 2004 to 2024.
71
Economy.com, Nevada State Profile, October 2004.

III.

STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

STRUCTURE

State and Local Governments

As of June 2002, Nevada had 210 active local governments, ranking it only 47th among
all the states (with “first” meaning the highest number of local governments),
significantly below its population ranking of 35th in the country. The state has 16 county
governments, each governed by a board of county commissioners, plus the municipality
of Carson City, which is not encompassed by a county government. There are also 19
municipal governments, which fall under the following classes: a) first class, for those
with more than 50,000 inhabitants; b) second class, for between 5,000 and 50,000; and c)
third class, for those under 5,000 (but above the 250 minimum to incorporation). Nevada
statutes authorize the creation of a variety of special districts such as airport authorities
and water authorities, and there are 158 of these in the state. Finally, each of the 16
counties and Carson City constitute a school district government, and each of these is
administered by an elected board of trustees. The board of county commissioners, after
voter approval, may levy school taxes, and the district trustees may issue general
obligation bonds, also only with voter approval. 72
Regional governance is also assisted by entities such as the Southern Nevada Regional
Planning Coalition, which works toward regional collaboration and planning efforts for
Clark County, the cities of Boulder City, Henderson, Las Vegas, and North Las Vegas,
and the Clark County School District. 73
The Nevada Legislature is biennial. The 2003 Session ran from February 3, 2003 to June
3, 2003, though short Special Sessions were called twice later that month and again in
November, 2004. The 2005 Session begins on February 7, 2005.
2.

Educational System

Each county (plus Carson City) is also a school district in Nevada, and these districts
have a combined student population of 376,000 elementary and secondary students. 74
There are also 20 charter schools in Nevada, which combined serve 4,500 students. 75
Given the explosive growth in Southern Nevada, the Clark County School District is the
fastest-growing school district in the country. The district hired more than 2,000 teachers
in 2003, with another 1,600 more in the pipeline as of summer 2004, with some 70% of
these new recruits coming from out of state. Another great challenge is that 35% of the
county’s students move away before the school year ends, with the rate as high as 75%
72

U.S. Census Bureau, 2002 Census of Governments, Preliminary Profile of Nevada.
Southern Nevada Regional Planning Council, http://www.snrpc.org.
74
Nevada Job Connect, Nevada Economy in Brief, September 2004.
75
U.S. Charter Schools, State by State Numbers, http://www.uscharterschools.org/cs/sp/query/q/1595.
73

for some schools. 76 Finally, of people aged 16 to 19 in Nevada, 10% are high-school
drop-outs, meaning they are not enrolled in school and have not graduated from high
school. 77
The University and Community College System of Nevada (UCCSN) operates a range of
institutions of higher education, including community colleges, a state college, and most
importantly, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and the University of Nevada, Reno.
UCCSN has a current headcount of 93,000 and is the third fastest growing system in the
country. Moreover, Nevada’s number of high school graduates is growing at the fastest
rate of any state. 78
B.

GOVERNMENT FINANCES

According to a 2002 report from the Governor’s Task Force on Tax Policy in Nevada,
the state derives the overwhelming majority of its tax receipts from various sales
and gross receipts taxes, which contribute 86% of total own-source revenue, more than
double the national average. The other states make up the difference through a
personal income tax, which is absent in Nevada. Much of Nevada’s tax burden is
exported, with an estimated 50% or more of its general fund collections coming from
gaming, casino entertainment tax, and visitor contributions to sales tax collections. In
fiscal year 1999-2000, Nevada generated $5,700 per capita in total state revenues, placing
it 44th among the 50 states. Nevada also ranks low in total state spending per capita at
47th in the country. 79
The state’s tax policies have their critics. A study by “Governing Magazine” said the
state’s “regressive and dysfunctional” tax system put it behind every other state in
revenue generation, fairness to taxpayers and overall fiscal management. 80 Another
study described Nevada’s tax system as the “most regressive in the nation,” with the top
1% of the population paying only 1.8% of their income in taxes and the bottom 20%
paying 8.9% of their income in taxes. 81 Heavy dependence on sales tax revenue also
specifically creates vulnerabilities such as the budget cuts forced after September 11th.
In part because of the impact of September 11th on state revenues, the State Legislature
passed a revenue package that is expected to generate in excess of $800 million in new
revenue for the 2005-2007 Executive Budget, with three-quarters of this revenue deriving
from new sources such as the modified business and live entertainment taxes. 82 Despite
76

Patricia Leigh Brown, New York Times, New Teachers, New Pupils, and Schools with Revolving Doors,
May 31, 2004.
77
Nevada Job Connect.
78
University and Community College System of Nevada, Headcount Enrollment Growth, 2003,
http://system.nevada.edu/News/Publicatio/2003-Repor/Headcount-Enrollment.pdf.
79
Governor’s Task Force on Tax Policy in Nevada, Analysis of Fiscal Policy in Nevada, Section 5: A
State-to-State Comparison, November 15, 2002, pp. 4, 9 & 14.
80
United Way of Southern Nevada.
81
Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada, PLAN’s Two Plus Two Proposal, 2002,
http://www.planevada.org/edu0402.htm.
82
Office of the Governor, State of Nevada, http://gov.state.nv.us/.

these issues, the state enjoys solid credit ratings of Aa2 and AA from Moody’s and
Standard and Poor’s, respectively. 83
C.
MAJOR GOVERNMENT AGENCIES INVOLVED IN COMMUNITY
DEVELOPMENT
The Department of Business and Industry is a very large state agency charged with
encouraging and promoting the “growth, development and lawful operation of business
and industry” in Nevada. To undertake its work, the Department utilizes 12 regulatory
and licensing agencies (e.g., the Insurance Division and the Real Estate Division) and
four business and specialized service agencies (e.g., Business Finance and Planning and
the Housing Division). Included in the Department’s activities and programs are bond
issuance, regulatory actions, and the enforcement of consumer protection and labor
relation laws. Within the Department is the Housing Division, which is charged with
assisting the private sector and other government agencies in the creation and
maintenance of affordable housing in the state. 84
The Nevada Commission on Economic Development seeks to bring high-wage primary
jobs to Nevada by both attracting new companies and expanding companies already in
the state. The Commission is headed by an executive director appointed by the governor
and works through a network of Development Authorities such as the Elko County
Economic Diversification Authority and the Nevada Development Authority. 85 Of these,
the Nevada Development Authority is Southern Nevada’s largest economic
development agency. The nonprofit organization attempts to attract new companies and
assist local companies in expansion projects and is supported primarily by its
membership. 86
The Rural Community Assistance Corporation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to
improving rural communities through partnerships, technical assistance, and access to
other resources. 87

California State Treasurer’s Office.
Department of Business and Industry, State of Nevada, http://budget.state.nv.us/fr04/fr04bi.htm.
85
Ibid.
86
Nevada Development Authority, http://www.nevadadevelopment.org/objectives.cfm.
87
Rural Community Assistance Corporation,
http://www.rcac.org/corpinfo/annualreport/states/nevada.html.
84

IV.

NONPROFITS AND FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS

NONPROFITS

In a study of Nevada nonprofits based on IRS filings (generally required for nonprofits
with minimum revenue of $25,000), 327 nonprofits, or 38% of the total nonprofits
which filed, were human service providers. Of these, 80% were in Las Vegas or Reno,
and client and user fees were their most important source of income (31%), followed by
private philanthropy (26%) and government support (21%). Seventy percent of these
human service nonprofits posted positive net income, with older organizations (those that
have been in existence 10 to 20 years), more likely to be financially healthy. 88
On the philanthropy funding side, a scan in 2003 found that approximately 60 funders—
both foundations and corporate giving programs—“form the backbone” of philanthropic
funding in the state. These institutions have collective assets of more than $2.5 billion
and typically grant in the range of almost $300 million annually. Almost 90% of these
funders report placing a priority on youth and education, although 59% provide
funding for a range of community needs. 89
The state ranks quite low on various measures of charitable giving. For example, the
Chronicle of Philanthropy reported that Las Vegas was tied for fifth-least generous city
in the nation. The United Way of America ranked Nevada 45th in its State of Caring
index in 2000 (a decline from 39th in 1990). Finally, the state is ranked 40th in the
Catalogue of Philanthropy’s “Generosity Index,” and 50th in a 1999 survey by the New
Tithing group. 90
B.

FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS

CFED measures two aspects of bank access: the percentage of households with noninterest bearing checking accounts, and the percentage of households with interestbearing checking, savings, or money market accounts. For checking accounts, Nevada
ranks highly at 14th; for savings accounts, it ranks low at 38th. 91
As of June 2004, Nevada was served by 52 FDIC-insured banks and thrifts, which
together held $40.7 billion in deposits in the state. 92 More than half of the deposits were
controlled by three banks: Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and Citibank. 93

Carol J. De Vita and Eric C. Twombly, The Center for Nonprofits and Philanthropy, The Urban Institute,
A Comparison of the Nonprofit Sectors in Arkansas, Nevada, and Oklahoma, 2002,
http://www.urban.org/UploadedPDF/410581_ReynoldsFR.pdf.
89
United Way of Southern Nevada/Nevada Community Foundation, Southern Nevada Community
Assessment 2003, Southern Nevada Funders Scan, July 2003, p. 75.
90
United Way of Southern Nevada, p.76.
91
CFED, SADRC, pp. 114 -115.
92
FDIC, Deposit Market Share Report: Nevada, June 2004.
93
Ibid.

Of these 52 institutions, 36 institutions were headquartered in the state as of June 2004,
an increase of only four since 2000. The majority of banks headquartered in the state are
state banks that are not members of the Federal Reserve System. Similarly, 24 of the 36
banks are relatively new, having been in the state less than nine years. The combined
assets of these institutions totals $53.4 billion, a 45% increase over 2000. In addition, 25
of the 36 banks headquartered in the state are based in the Las Vegas, NV MSA, seven
are based in the Reno MSA, and four are based outside of Nevada’s MSAs. 94
Nevada has also recently emerged as a “hotbed” of branching, with a net gain of 32
branches between June 2000 and June 2003, a higher percentage increase than in all but
one other state. However, some banks are said to be scaling back plans for further
branching as a result of the imposition of a tax of 2% on banks’ payrolls (compared to
0.75% for other businesses) as well as a $7,000 excise tax on each branch, by far the
highest in the country. 95
One source of competition for Nevada’s banks and thifts is the 29 credit unions in the
state, which together control 6.2% of the state’s combined credit union/bank assets,
roughly the same share as for the nation. 96
C.

CDFI’s

Nevada has five organizations that have been certified by the Community Development
Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) as of November 2004: the Nevada
Microenterprise Development Corporation in Reno, the Pahranagat Valley Federal
Credit Union in Alamo, the Rural Nevada Development Corporation in Ely, Valley
Credit Association in Owyhee, and the Rural Community Assistance Corporation in
Reno. 97 The state is also served by the Idaho Nevada Community Development
Financial Institution based in neighboring Idaho. 98 Nevada CDFIs serve both urban and
rural markets in the state, and as of fiscal year 2002, had over $5.8 million in financing
outstanding to over 500 customers, two thirds of whom are low-income. 99
Certification as a CDFI also enables entities to apply for various awards from the CDFI
Fund. Recent awardees in Nevada include the following:
•

Nevada Commerce Bank received an $11,000 BEA award in 2002 to support a
CDFI, City First Bank of D.C., N.A.; and

FDIC, Nevada State Profile, Fall 2004.
Katie Kuehner-Hebert, American Banker, Nevada Branch Showdown: As Taxes Kick In, Banks Threaten
Pullback, June 16, 2004.
96
Nevada Credit Union League, Credit Union Fact Sheet, http://www.cuna.org/download/nevada_fs.pdf.
97
CDFI Fund, U.S. Department of the Treasury, Certified CDFI’s – Alphabetical by State and County,
November 2004.
98
CDFI Fund, website: cdfifund.org, search for Nevada.
99
CDFI Coalition, CDFIs in Nevada: 2004 Fact Sheet, http://www.cdfi.org/states/Nevada2004.pdf.
95

•

100

Nevada Microenterprise Development Corporation received a $175,000 SECA
award in 2001 to assist the organization in its entrepreneurial training and
microenterprise technical assistance. 100

CDFI Fund, Awardee Profiles by State - Nevada,
http://www.cdfifund.gov/awardees/pdf/states/nevada.pdf.

AFFORDABLE HOUSING

Affordable housing had long been one of the key ingredients driving Nevada’s explosive
growth, but recent rapid price appreciation has eroded that advantage and in turn put
pressure on the state’s supply of affordable rental housing. Overall, despite recent large
increases in homeownership, the state still ranks quite low at 44th in the nation for its
65.5% homeownership rate. More favorable is the state’s top ranking in terms of the
differential in homeownership rates by gender, indicating relatively good homeownership
opportunities for women. On the rental side, the state ranks about in the middle of
the nation in terms of overall affordability, though recent data shows that just over one
fifth of the renters in the state pay more than 50% of their household income on housing.
Nevada implements all of the usual HUD and other federal housing programs, and is
specifically lauded by CFED for having its own trust fund and for its large devotion of its
private-activity bond authority to mortgage revenue bonds. However, strong expected
growth in the future and increasingly limited land in Clark County will only further
underscore the importance of affordable housing assistance for the state’s low- and
moderate-income community.
A.

AFFORDABLE HOUSING NEEDS

Overall Housing Market

Nevada has a total of 936,000 housing units, of which 10.9% were vacant as of 2003.
The majority, 60%, were in single-unit structures, although one third were in multi-unit
structures and 8% were in mobile homes. Nearly half (44%) of the state’s total housing
stock has been built since 1990. 101
Of Nevada’s occupied housing units, 62% were owner occupied and 38% were occupied
by renters. The median monthly housing cost for mortgaged owners was $1,279, for
nonmortgaged owners, $332, and for renters, $771. Finally, 37% of owners with
mortgages, 13% of owners without mortgages, and 47% of renters spent more than
30% of their household income on housing. 102 Clark County, home to 649,000
housing units, or almost 70% of state’s total housing stock, had fewer mobile homes
(only 5% of the county’s total stock) and a slightly higher proportion of renters than the
state (40% vs. 38%). 103
The median value for owner-occupied housing units in Nevada in 2003 was
$170,333, only 15.6% higher than the national median. However, though historically
quite inexpensive, house prices in the state have increased 23% over the past four
quarters compared to a 9% increase nationally. 104 Office of Federal Housing
Enterprise Oversight (OFHEA) data indicates that the Las Vegas and Reno MSAs posted
101

U.S. Census Bureau, 2003 American Community Survey Data.
Ibid.
103
Ibid.
104
Economy.com, Nevada State Profile, October 2004.
102

25% and 20% year-over-year growth rates in the second quarter of 2004, respectively, in
their existing single-family home median sales prices, compared to only 9% nationally.
These price increases are occurring despite the fact that residential construction is
booming, with Nevada issuing 19 new residential building permits per thousand residents
in 2003, a faster rate than anywhere else in the nation, and three times the U.S.
average. 105 Clark County officials describe the emergence of a real affordable housing
crisis, saying that virtually all the available land—especially big tracks—has now been
sold. As another observer put it, for more than three decades, Las Vegas and its suburbs
have been a housing bargain, but now houses here cost roughly the same as in Chicago,
Denver, or Baltimore. 106
On the rental side, the rapid population gains, only moderate construction activity,
and some conversion of rental apartments to condominiums have led to a sizeable
tightening of the Las Vegas market, and a decrease in the vacancy rates to as low as
5% for Class A properties and from 5% to 7% for older buildings. 107
2.

National Low Income Housing Coalition’s Analyses of Rental Housing
Affordability

The National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) has for several years produced a
report entitled Out of Reach that analyzes the country’s wage-rent disparity. Specifically,
the NLIHC calculates the amount of money a household must earn in order to afford a
rental unit of a range of sizes at the area’s Fair Market Rent (FMR), based on the
generally-accepted limit of paying no more than 30% of income for housing costs. The
required income is then compared to the Area Median Income (AMI), the minimum
wage, and the incomes of extremely low income households (less than 30% of AMI). 108
In Nevada, the “housing wage” is $16.92, which is the amount a full time (40 hours per
week) worker must earn in order to afford a two-bedroom unit at the area’s FMR. This is
more than triple the state’s minimum wage of $5.15 per hour. Put differently, based on
the FMR, a minimum wage worker must work 131 hours per week in order to afford a
two-bedroom unit in Nevada. 109 Comparing the FMR to wages in Nevada, in 2003 an
estimated 46% of renters were unable to afford the two bedroom FMR. Moreover,
this situation is even worse in Las Vegas, where 49% of the renter households were
unable to afford the two bedroom FMR in 2003 110
In addition, in 2004, the NLIHC released a report entitled Up Against a Wall: Housing
Affordability for Renters, analyzing rental-housing related data from the 2003 American
Community Survey. Using an index that takes into account the state’s median gross rent,
105

FDIC, Nevada State Profile, Fall 2004.
Dean E. Murphy, As for the Myth of Unlimited Cheap Housing, the Mortgage Has Come Due, New
York Times, May 29, 2004.
107
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research, U.S.
Housing Market Conditions, 2nd Quarter 2004, August 2004.
108
National Low Income Housing Coalition, Out of Reach 2004, 2004, http://nlihc.org/oor2004/.
109
NLIHC, Out of Reach 2004.
110
NLICH, Out of Reach 2003.
106

a ratio of rental costs to incomes, and the percentage of renter households in the state
spending more than 50% of income on rent, the NLIHC ranked Nevada roughly in the
middle of the nation, at 23rd best, in terms of the affordability of its rental housing.
Looking at the individual measures, Nevada’s median gross rent in 2003 was $771,
ranking the state as the eighth-most expensive state, but its renter affordability ratio rank
was lower, at 19th-least affordable. And, slightly more than one fifth of renters in the
state spend more than 50% of their income on rent, ranking the state 12th best in the
country on that measure. 111
3.

Homeownership Statistics

Nevada ranks poorly, at 44th in the nation, on its rate of homeownership, which was
65.5% in 2002. 112 However, the state’s current rate is a large increase of almost five
percentage points since 2000, when it was only 60.9%. 113 In breaking down the
homeownership data to look for major differences by category of people, Nevada’s
CFED rankings put the state solidly in the middle in terms of comparative
homeownership rates by either income or race, with rankings of 29th and 23rd
respectively. However, Nevada ranks first in the nation in exhibiting the least
differential in the nation between the homeownership rates of male-headed vs. femaleheaded households. 114
4.

Various Local Government Estimates of Affordable Housing Need

Clark County

In 1998, the Clark County Affordable Housing Committee employed the Center for
Business and Economic Research, (CBER) at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas to
prepare a set of projections of housing needs based on estimates of future growth in Las
Vegas. The report was authored by Keith Schwer, and while based on 1990 Census data,
contains ‘worst case’ affordable housing needs forecasts, which have proven to date to be
conservative according to County officials. The primary conclusions of the study were
that some 80,000 southern Nevada households with incomes less than 80% of area
median faced a housing-cost burden in 1996 (defined as housing costs in excess of 30%
of gross income). With expected future growth, this “affordable housing gap” could
grow to some 128,000 households by 2010. Moreover, the report listed a host of both
positive and negative factors influencing affordable housing in Clark County, with “progrowth attitude,” “large parcels of land available in core urban areas,” and a
“strong housing market” topping the list on the positive side, and “NIMBY,” “cost of
land in high growth areas of the Las Vegas Valley,” and “expiration of Section 8
contracts” on the negative side. 115
111

NLIHC, Up Against A Wall: Housing Affordability for Renters, Ranking Tables, 2003 ACS Renter
Affordability Measures, November 2004, http://nlihc.org/pubs/uaw04/newrankingtables.pdf.
112
U.S. Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2003.
113
U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000 Data.
114
CFED, SADRC, pp. 93-97.
115
R. Keith Schwer, PhD, Director, Center for Business and Economic Research (CBER), University of
Nevada, Las Vegas, Affordable Housing Needs in Clark County, 1996-2010, June 1, 1998, pp. vi, xii, 75.

As part of its application process for various housing and community development
programs, HUD requires localities to submit five-year plans, with the most recent plans
covering the years 2000-2004. In the Clark County Consortium’s Consolidated Plan for
this period (covering the entire County except the City of Henderson), the primary
conclusions were that:
•
•
•
•

elderly renter households are the most cost burdened, with 53% paying more than
30% of their incomes in rent;
over 18,000 renter households in the area were living in overcrowded conditions;
there were 26,000 persons with special needs and a supply of only 7,603 units
designed to meet them; and
over 4,000 families were on waiting lists for public or Section 8 housing. 116

More recent estimates by Clark County officials show that 17% of all renters in the
county have a cost burden of 50% or more, meaning that almost 35,000 renter
households in the County are “severely cost burdened.” Moreover, about two-thirds
(21,600 households) of all extremely low-income renter households are severely costburdened. 117
For the City of Henderson, although the city’s median household income was 19% higher
than the Las Vegas MSA median, it has several low-income concentrations, with over
1,000 households on the public housing waiting list. 118
b.

Washoe County

In the Consolidated Plan for the Cities of Reno and Sparks and Washoe County, it was
estimated that over 43,000 households in Washoe County had one or more housing
problems, with a need for total housing assistance for: 9,122 extremely low-income
households; 10,261 low-income households; 12,996 moderate-income households; and
3,974 middle-income households. 119
c.

Non-Entitlement Areas

Finally, the Consolidated Plan detailing the community development and housing needs
of non-entitled (for CDBG) jurisdictions in Nevada, which includes fifteen counties and
eleven rural incorporated cities, was prepared by the Nevada Commission on Economic
Development, Rural Community Development (RCD), working closely with the Nevada
Rural Housing Authority, the Western Nevada HOME Consortium, and several other

116

Clark County Community Resources Management Division, Housing and Community Development
Consolidated Plan 2000-2004, 2000.
117
Statistics supplied by Kristin Cooper, Senior Planner, Clark County Community Resources, November
9, 2004.
118
City of Henderson, City of Henderson Consolidated Plan, 2000-2004, 2000.
119
City of Reno, City of Sparks, and Washoe County, Consolidated Plan 2000-2005, March 24, 2000.

agencies. In this report, the RCD projected a demand by low- and moderate-income
households for about 9,000 new housing units. 120
B.

AFFORDABLE HOUSING RESOURCES

CFED’s Affordable Homeownership Program Rankings

Nevada fares well in CFED’s analysis of its programs to assist affordable housing. For
example, Nevada ranks fifth in the nation in its allocation of private-activity bonds
to mortgage revenue bonds. Nevada also gets credit for having a state housing trust
fund as well as for having a property tax circuit breaker for elderly owners and renters.
However, Nevada utilizes only one of six possible first-time homebuyer assistance
programs. 121
2.

Federally-Funded Affordable Housing Programs

Public Housing and Section 8

There are five separate housing authorities that manage public housing and Section 8
programs for their jurisdictions. The Housing Authority of the County of Clark
manages 960 public housing units, as well as 391 units in other programs and 573 mobile
home park spaces, and also manages the Section 8 Choice Voucher Program. 122 The Las
Vegas Housing Authority manages 2,077 public housing units as well as 4,161 Section
8 vouchers. The Housing Authority of the City of Reno manages 764 units of public
housing and provides direct rental assistance to over 2,500 families. 123 The Housing
Authority of the City of North Las Vegas manages two apartment complexes in that
city as well as the Section 8 program. 124 Finally, the Nevada Rural Housing Authority
serves all areas of Nevada except Clark County and Washoe County, has seven facilities
with a total of 246 units, and also provides about 1,200 units through its Section 8
certificate and voucher program. 125
b.

HUD Programs

Like all states, the State of Nevada and the specific entitlement communities apply for
and receive a variety of federal funds for housing. In addition to CDBG funds, the
specific housing funds provided through HUD include the HOME program, the
ESG program, and the HOPWA program. For fiscal year 2002, the following formula
allocations for these programs were made to various jurisdictions in the state:
•
120

Clark County: $4.1 million in HOME funds and $165,000 in ESG;

Nevada Commission on Economic Development, Rural Community Development, Consolidated Plan
2000-2005, 2000.
121
CFED, SADRC, pp. 129-133.
122
Housing Authority of the County of Clark, http://www.haccnv.org.
123
Housing Authority of the City of Reno, http://www.renoha.org.
124
Housing Authority of the City of North Las Vegas, http://www.nlvha.com.
125
State of Nevada Consolidated Plan.

•
•
•

Las Vegas: $144,000 in ESG and $891,000 in HOPWA;
CNSRT-Lyon County: $519,000 in HOME funds; and
Reno: $1.4 million in HOME funds.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development (USDA-RD) also offers a
number of affordable housing programs in Nevada focused on rural areas, including
loans, grants, and loan guarantees. 126
c.

Low Income Housing Tax Credit Program

Like all states, Nevada benefits from federal Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC)
and utilized $4.8 million in 9% credits for thirteen projects in 2004. 127 However, like
most other states, the funding requests exceeded the available credits (in Nevada’s case,
by some $600,000). 128 In the application process, the 71% set-aside for Clark County
was the most competitive jurisdiction. 129 In 2005, Nevada’s LIHTC authority is
projected to be $4.7 million, including the return of one 2004 credit. 130
3.

State-Funded Affordable Housing Programs

The Nevada Department of Business and Industry’s Nevada Housing Division (NHD)
was created by the Nevada Legislature in 1975 and given the responsibility for affordable
housing for the low- and moderate-income community. Its primary function is to
provide low-market interest rate mortgage capital through the sale of tax-exempt
bonds. The NHD had awarded $153 million in bond financing to six housing projects in
2004 as of late in the year. An estimated $240 million is expected in 2005 privateactivity tax-exempt bond authority for the state, of which only some $90 to $100 million
is likely to be reserved for housing, according to a state official, as increasing land costs
are precluding marginal deals. Specifically, land sold by the federal Bureau of Land
Management has almost quadrupled in price, from $64,000 per acre almost three years
ago to $254,000 per acre recently. 131
The NHD also administers the HOME program for jurisdictions outside of Clark County,
the City of Reno, and the various counties covered by the Western Nevada Development
District, and develops the annual Tax Credit Allocation Plan for the LIHTC program. 132
Finally, as mentioned above in the CFED section, Nevada has also created a Trust Fund
called the Account for Low-Income Housing. The Trust Fund monies are allocated by
126

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) – Rural Development, Rural Development Nevada, newsletter,
April 2003.
127
Affordable Housing Finance, Tax Credits and Tax-Exempt Bonds: State-by-State Preview, December
2004.
128
Nevada Department of Business and Industry Housing Division, NHD Reporter, Spring 2004.
129
Tax Credits & Tax-Exempt Bonds: State by State Preview, Affordable Housing Finance, December
2004.
130
Ibid.
131
Ibid.
132
Nevada Housing Division, http://www.nvhousing.state.nv.us.

formula to participating jurisdictions to expand and improve the supply of affordable
rental housing through both new construction and rehabilitation. Funds may also be used
for down payment assistance and homeowner rehabilitation as well as emergency
assistance for families in danger of becoming homeless. The Trust Fund is supported by
a real property transfer tax of ten cents for each $500 of value, and all funds must benefit
those below 60% of the area median income. 133
4.

Other Resources

In the area of housing and down payment assistance, which includes services such as
homebuyer education and pre-purchase counseling, HUD lists the following
organizations as resources:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

Economic Opportunity Board of Clark County;
Habitat for Humanity Las Vegas;
North Las Vegas Neighborhood Housing Services (Home Programs);
Women’s Development Center;
Living Word AMEZ;
Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Southern Nevada; and
Community Development Program Center of Nevada.

The Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco (FHLB) also contributes to affordable
housing in Nevada through several programs, including its Access to Housing and
Economic Assistance for Development Program (AHEAD), Community Investment
Program (CIP), and Affordable Housing Program (AHP). 134
The AHEAD Program provides grants to support economic development and housing
projects during the conception and early development stages. The new recoverable grant
program will fund projects that provide housing, services, or other benefits to low- to
moderate-income households, that result in the creation or retention of jobs in the
community, or that facilitate public or private infrastructure projects. Lists of recent
grant recipients are at http://www.fhlbsf.com/ci/grant/ahead/gp_recipients.asp. 135
The CIP provides FHLB members with lower-cost funding for a variety of uses,
including first-time homebuyer programs, small business loans, community and
economic development loans, and affordable housing. CIP is designed to support FHLB
members' efforts to undertake community-oriented mortgage lending and economic
development in the communities they serve. 136
The AHP provides competitive grants and subsidized loans to create affordable rental and
homeownership opportunities. The Bank holds AHP funding competitions twice a year,
133

Ibid.
The Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco (FHLBSF), Community Investment,
http://www.fhlbsf.com/ci/default.asp.
135
Ibid.
136
Ibid.
134

with deadlines in April and October. Grants are often used to fill a gap in available
financing. AHP funds may also be used to provide downpayment or closing cost
assistance or to cover the cost of homebuyer pre- or post-purchase counseling. Lists of
recent grant recipients are at http://www.fhlbsf.com/ci/grant/ahp/grantrecipients.asp.137

137

Ibid.

VI.

SMALL BUSINESS

Small businesses and entrepreneurs comprise a smaller part of the Nevada economy
than in any other state, with the state ranking last in the nation in both its level of
entrepreneurship and the share of employment in small businesses (firms with less than
ten employees). Nevada is also ranked quite low, at 38th in the nation, in the level of
private finance provided to small businesses. The state also fails on virtually every
CFED measure of small business policy. On the other hand, Nevada ranks highly in a
ranking of states based on how “entrepreneur-friendly” their policy environments are.
Nevertheless, while the usual array of SBA and other programs is augmented with a few
local rural and microenterprise programs, this segment of the state’s economy could
benefit from additional support.
A.

SMALL BUSINESS NEEDS

General Background

In Nevada, 72.4% of the 40,744 employer firms in the state had fewer than ten
employees, and these small businesses provided just 8.5% jobs in the state,
significantly less than the nation, where the contribution is 10.7%, and ranking the state
last in the nation in terms of this measure of small business. 138
Overall in 2003, the state had the highest rate of increase in employer firm formations in
the country (20.6%) as well as the highest rate of firm terminations (18.9%). 139 Between
2001 and 2002, the state also had the highest rate of increase in the nation of nonemployer firms, with a 7.4% increase compared to only 3.9% nationally. 140 Finally,
business bankruptcies also declined 30.5% in 2003, the lowest rate of increase in the
country, after posting increases the previous two years. 141
2.

CFED’s Entrepreneurship Data from their Asset Development Report Card

Nevada ranks last in the nation in its entrepreneurship rate, with only 9.3% of its
labor force owning firms (compared to about 20% in top-rated Montana). Not
surprisingly, the level of lending to small businesses is also low in Nevada, with a
ranking of 38th in the country. Breaking the data down by race and gender reveals
some interesting differences. Minority entrepreneurship is above average in Nevada,
with a ranking for the state of 19th in the nation in terms of the relative share of
minority business ownership; however, Nevada’s ranking for the average ownership
value for minority-owned businesses is only 38th, indicating a small size for such firms.
By gender, Nevada also ranks low at 40th in terms of its women’s business ownership
138

U.S. Census Bureau, Statistics of U.S. Businesses (SUSB), 2000.
SBA, Small Business Economic Indicators for 2003, August 2004,
http://www.sba.gov/advo/stats/sbei03.pdf, pp. 15 & 17.
140
U.S. Census Bureau, press release, Number of Small Businesses Continues to Grow: Nevada and
Georgia Lead the Way, November 30, 2004, http://www.census.gov/PressRelease/www/releases/archives/economic_surveys/003102.
141
SBA, Small Business Economic Indicators for 2003.
139

rate; however, in this case, the value of women-owned firms is high, with Nevada
ranking third in the country in the average sales and receipts for female-owned firms. 142
CFED’s Data from their Development Report Card for the States

CFED’s other report that ranks the 50 states, the Development Report Card for the States
2004, examines each state’s Performance, Business Vitality, and Development Capacity.
While not explicitly focused on small business, this report does provide insight into the
health and vitality of the overall business sector in the state. Nevada received mixed
grades on these measures. Specifically, Nevada’s grade in the area of Performance,
which focuses on such things as employment and equity in income (where Nevada did
well), and quality of life (where Nevada did not do well), improved to a “B” this year.
However, in Business Vitality, the state received a grade of “D,” primarily reflecting the
lack of economic diversity, and Nevada’s Development Capacity grade was an “F,”
primarily reflecting failing scores in “natural capital” (e.g., the costs of energy and urban
housing) and “innovation assets” (e.g., higher education levels). 143
Progressive Policy Institute’s 2002 State New Economy Index

Another report, the 2002 State New Economy Index released by the Progressive Policy
Institute, attempts to use a relatively new set of economic indicators to measure the
transformation of a state from a traditional manufacturing economy to a newly emerging
economy based on ideas, innovation and technology. The index is composed of 17
economic indicators summarized under five primary categories: Knowledge Jobs,
Globalization, Economic Dynamism and Competition, the Transformation to a Digital
Economy, and Technological Innovation Capacity. In the Progressive Policy Institute’s
index, Nevada ranks only 32nd, reflecting low scores in the share of professional and
tech jobs in the state economy, low levels of educational attainment, and low
internet penetration of manufacturing. 144
Small Business Survival Index

Each year, the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council publishes its Small Business
Survival Index, which ranks each state on its policy environment for entrepreneurship.
In the most recent report, released in October 2004, Nevada ranked at the top among
the states, judged to have the second-most entrepreneur-friendly policy
environment. On individual categories provided in the appendices to the report,
Nevada’s rankings were as follows: 145
•
•
142

Top personal income tax rate: tied for best
Top capital gains tax rate: tied for best

CFED, SADRC, pp. 107-112.
CFED, 2004 Development Report Card for the States, http://drc.cfed.org/grades/nevada.html.
144
Robert Atkinson, Progressive Policy Institute, The 2002 State New Economy Index, June 2002,
http://www.neweconomyindex.org/states/2002/.
145
Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council, Small Business Survival Index 2004,
http://www.sbsc.org/Media/pdf/SBSI_2004.pdf.
143

•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

Top corporate income tax rate: tied for best
Property tax as a share of personal income: 15th best
Sales, gross receipts, and excise tax: 3rd worst
Adjusted unemployment tax rate: 14th worst
Per capita health care spending: 4th best
Electric utility costs: 11th worst
Workers compensation premiums: 9th worst
Crime rate: 16th worst
Number of state and local government employees: best in the country
State gas tax: 18th worst
Idaho-Nevada CDFI Study

According to a study undertaken by the Idaho-Nevada CDFI, adequate financing for the
small business sector will continue to be the biggest economic policy challenge in the
coming decade. Specifically, they estimate a demand for small business lending in the
state of 12,000 loans totaling $500-600 million. 146
B.
1.

SMALL BUSINESS RESOURCES
CFED’s Small Business Development Policy Rankings

Nevada fails on virtually every CFED measure of small business policy, including: a)
a low score of 39th in the nation in SBIC funding; b) no capital access program; c) no
microenterprise policy; d) no state CDFI program; e) no self-employment option for
unemployment insurance; and f) no employee ownership legislation. 147
2.

The Commission on Economic Development

The Commission on Economic Development seeks to bring high-wage primary jobs to
Nevada by both attracting new companies and by expanding companies already in the
state. For example, in recent trade shows the Commission has targeted medical
manufacturing, electronics, and plastics. The Commission also supports the Small
Business Innovative Research Program (SBIR) which brings together business,
academia, and government to support research & development and education.148
3.

U.S. Small Business Administration

The SBA district office in Las Vegas aids, counsels, and assists small businesses in the
five “territories” of the state. Like elsewhere in the country, the SBA helps small
businesses obtain loans to start, operate, and expand operations, working through
participating lenders in the state, utilizing programs such as the basic 7(a) loan guaranty,

146

Information supplied by Chuck Prince, Idaho-Nevada CDFI, December 2004.
CFED, SADRC, pp. 143-149.
148
Nevada Commission on Economic Development, http://www.expand2nevada.com.
147

the 504 loan program, and the 7(m) loan program. The SBA also offers a Business
Information Center adjacent to the office. 149
4.

The Nevada Small Business Development Center (NSBDC) Network

The Nevada Small Business Development Center operates a network of facilities
providing services, expertise, and training in starting, growing, and developing a
business. They have 12 locations throughout the state, and work in partnership with
several federal and state agencies and local universities. 150
5.

SCORE

The Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE), with offices in both Las Vegas
and Reno, provides free counseling service for new small businesses and individuals
interested in starting new businesses. 151
6.

Other Resources

The Community Business Resource Center (CBRC), based in Carson City, serves as a
comprehensive source of information on business-related services for existing and
potential businesses in rural Nevada. The CBRC also collaborates with several nonprofit organizations that make small loans to small businesses and projects, and this
collaborative has funded over 70 loans in a wide array of businesses in rural Nevada
(including its own administration of the CDBG Nevada Revolving Loan Fund). 152
Another source of small business assistance is the Nevada Microenterprise Initiative
(NMI, but referred to as the Nevada Microenterprise Development Corporation in the
CDFI section of Chapter IV), which operates out of three locations: Las Vegas, Reno,
and Carson City. NMI makes small loans itself, or works with banks and other
community lenders to participate in multiparty financing up to $105,000. 153
While not aimed at small business specifically, some other business resources in Nevada
include the Dandini Research Park, which is a multidisciplinary research facility that
promotes university-industry partnerships, the Las Vegas Technology Center, dedicated
to high-tech, and back-office industries and services, and the Nevada Innovation
Center, designed to assist entrepreneurs with business planning and marketing. 154

149

SBA, Business Information Center, Nevada District Office.
Nevada Small Business Development Center, http://www.nsbdc.org/about/.
151
SCORE, http://www.score.org/findscore/localinks.html.
152
Community Business Resource Center, http://www.cbrc.org/resourcesearch.asp.
153
Nevada Microenterprise Initiative, http://www.4microbiz.org/about/faqs.asp.
154
Ibid.
150

VII.

POVERTY AND ASSET ACCUMULATION

With a poverty rate of only 9.0%, Nevada is tied for ninth best (lowest) in the nation
in the percentage of its residents who fall below the poverty level. However, the state
fares worse on measures of the “near-poor,” with some 37% of its residents falling
under the level of 200% of poverty. At the same time, Nevada has the fourth-worst
personal bankruptcy rate in the nation, indicating severe financial stress for many
residents. The state is ranked close to worst in the percentage of households with zero
net worth, and CFED gives the state a grade of “F” for overall asset outcomes. At the
same time, CFED also gives Nevada a failing grade for its asset policies, citing its lack
of any legislation or support for IDA programs as well as an array of other deficiencies in
this area. The state’s fledgling IDA programs will provide important assistance to the
few Nevadans they reach.
A.

POVERTY AND ASSET ACCUMULATION NEEDS

Poverty Statistics

Using a three-year average for 2001-2003, Nevada’s poverty rate is 9.0%, well below
the national figure of 12.1%, and the state is tied for having the ninth lowest
percentage of residents at or below the poverty level in the U.S. 155 However, some
410,000 Nevada residents, or 18.3% (using a three year average for 2001-2003) of
Nevada residents lack health insurance, compared to 15.1% nationally, and ranking the
state sixth worst in the nation on this measure. 156
Breaking down the 2000 Census data on poverty by age, 19% of Nevada children 18 and
under were in poverty (compared to 23% nationally), 12% of adults 19-64 were in
poverty (compared to 15% nationally), and 12% of the elderly (65 and older) were in
poverty (compared to 14% nationally). 157
If low-income individuals are defined as those living below 200% of the Federal Poverty
Level (FPL), estimates by the Urban Institute and Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and
the Uninsured suggest that a total of 37% of Nevada’s population would have
qualified as low income during 2002-2003. 158

155

U.S. Census Bureau, Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2003, pp.
23, 25, 68-69.
156
Ibid.
157
The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, State Health Facts Online.
158
Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Distribution of Total Population by Federal Poverty Level, State
Data 2002-2003, U.S. 2003, http://www.statehealthfacts.kff.org.

Personal Bankruptcy

At 23.3 personal bankruptcy filings per thousand households for the year ending in
March, 2003, Nevada has the fourth highest bankruptcy rate in the nation. 159 At the
same time, the state’s quarterly foreclosure start rate declined to an average of 0.44%,
only slightly above the national average of 0.42%. 160
3.

CFED Asset Outcome Ranking

CFED’s Net Worth and Asset Poverty Statistics

In CFED’s State Asset Development Report Card, Nevada received a grade of “F” for
overall asset policy outcomes, reflecting not only the low levels of business capital
discussed previously, but very low scores in areas of asset poverty as well. Specifically
on the latter, the CFED ranking for overall net worth for Nevadans is not bad, with the
state ranking relatively average at 23rd best, but Nevada fares worse on a measure of
“asset poverty,” the percentage of the population without sufficient net worth to subsist
at the poverty level for three months without other support, ranking 16th worst on this
measure. Moreover, with 22% of Nevada residents having zero (or negative) net
worth, the state is ranked at the bottom, at 48th (third worst) in the nation, on this
measure. 161
b.

CFED’s Human Capital and Insurance-Related Statistics

Nevada’s rankings are also quite low in the areas of human capital, which CFED also
considers in its overall asset outcomes grade. The state ranks extremely low, at 45th, in
terms of the percentage of children in poverty who are served by a Head Start program.
Its rankings for reading and math proficiency for fourth graders are low at 35th and 32nd.
Additionally, its ranking in terms of the percentage of the population with an associate’s
degree is also low, at 37th, as is its ranking in the percentage of households heads with at
least four years of college of 36th. However, Nevada does exhibit more equality when
comparing the differences in college attainment by race, income and gender, with
rankings of 20th, 20th,and 14th,respectively. 162
CFED also examines several rankings on health insurance coverage to augment its
overall asset outcomes rankings in order to factor in the protection provided by such
policies to loss or depletion of household assets from large medical costs. Again,
Nevada ranks poorly in these measures. The state is 34th in the nation in terms of the
percentage of the non-elderly population covered by employer-based health plans, 44th in
the percentage of low-income parents living without health insurance, and 49th in the

159

American Bankruptcy Institute, Households Per Filing, Rank During the 12 Month Period Ended March
31, 2004, http://www.abiworld.org/statcharts/HouseRank.htm.
160
FDIC, Nevada State Profile, Summer 2004.
161
CFED, SADRC, pp. 85-91.
162
Ibid, pp. 99-105.

percentage of low-income children living without health insurance (with first being the
best). 163
4.

The Asset Development Institute’s Asset Index

In September 2002, the Asset Development Institute at Brandeis University published a
report entitled The Asset Index: Measuring The Progress Of States In Promoting
Economic Security And Opportunity. The report presents state-by-state data on
individual outcomes for job-based and related income assets, human capital, and financial
assets. These outcomes are the primary indicators of the economic security people have
and the opportunity they enjoy. For each of these three categories, the report presents a
cluster of indicators that point to important related asset-based outcomes and provides the
numerical outcome for residents on each indicator as well as a national rank on each
indicator (for all indicators, 1st is “best” and 50th is “worst”).
For Nevada, the research indicates that the state ranks among the top 10 best states for
none of the 39 measured indicators, but ranks among the worst 10 states on 19 of the
indicators—almost half of the total. The state’s worst rankings are in the areas of
housing insecurity, post-secondary education, and various measures of financial asset
inequality. The study’s authors conclude that Nevada residents “have had very much less
success in accumulating financial assets, much less in building human capital, and mixed
success in acquiring job-based and related income assets.” 164
B.

POVERTY AND ASSET ACCUMULATION RESOURCES

State Income Support Programs

Nevada’s income support system is its Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
(TANF) program, created as a result of the elimination of the federal AFDC program in
1996, and administered by the Nevada Department of Human Resources’ Welfare
Division. The state’s TANF caseload began increasing with the onset of the national
recession in 2001, and ultimately peaked at about 35,000 recipients in May 2002—almost
double the originally-budgeted caseload. State officials have managed to drive the
caseload down, but as of early 2004, this caseload was still some 29% higher than its preSeptember 11th levels. 165
Critics of Nevada’s TANF program say that the state has not increased its TANF
maximum monthly cash stipend for needy adults and their children since 1992, and that
in 2001, the state ranked 42nd in the nation in combined federal and state TANF spending
on cash assistance for low-income families with children. 166
163

Ibid, pp. 117-119.
The Asset Development Institute, The Asset Index: Measuring The Progress Of States In Promoting
Economic Security And Opportunity, September 2002,
http://www.centeronhunger.org/pdf/ASSETINDEX.pdf.
165
Nevada State Welfare Division, Caseload Projections, State Fiscal Years 2004 and 2005.
166
United Way of Southern Nevada.
164

CFED’s Asset Policy Rankings

CFED gives Nevada an overall grade for asset policies of “F”. A few positive policies
are highlighted by CFED, such as the affordable homeownership policies mentioned
earlier. However, in most other policy areas—including human capital, wage protection,
and IDA policies (discussed below)—the state ranks poorly compared to the rest of the
nation. 167
a.

IDA Policy

Nevada is criticized for not having a state IDA program or appropriating any state funds
to support IDA’s, as well as for not incorporating IDA’s into the state TANF plan. 168
b.

Other CFED Financial Asset Building Policy Rankings

Lacking a state income tax, Nevada has no income tax policies to criticize, but the state is
cited for lacking a minimum wage higher than the federal level, similar to several other
western states. Also weighing down Nevada’s overall grade are several features of its
TANF policies, including its asset limits and exclusion of the value of vehicles. 169
c.

CFED’s Human Capital Development Policy Rankings

Nevada fails to provide any supplementary funds for Head Start and lacks a state-funded
pre-kindergarten program or a college savings plan. The state has a ranking of 31st in its
need-based financial aid for undergraduates, and is ranked very low at 42nd in its K-12
education expenditures and even lower at 43rd for its funding for customized job
training. The only bright spot in human capital policies is in its school spending
equalization—a measurement of the amount needed to achieve equity for pupils below
the median compared to the amount actually spent—where it enjoys a top ranking of
second in the nation. 170
d.

CFED’s Wage Protection Policy Rankings

Nevada’s rankings on wage protection policies are strangely mixed. The state ranks first
in the percentage of employees covered by workers’ compensation, but then ranks
last in the level of workers’ compensation benefits. Its ranking on unemployment
insurance benefits is right in the middle at 27th, and the state receives some credit for
having a couple of reforms in its unemployment insurance and family leave policies. 171

167

CFED, SADRC, p. 59.
Ibid, p. 122.
169
Ibid, pp. 124-127.
170
Ibid, pp. 135-141.
171
Ibid, pp. 154-160.
168

CFED’s Health Insurance Policy Rankings

Nevada’s health insurance policy rankings are generally below average. The state is
criticized for providing only12 months of transitional medical assistance, but ranks18th
best in the eligibility level for publicly-provided health insurance. However, the lack of
an expansion of Medicaid for low-income adults without children, and the lack of
additional funds for small business health care coverage negatively impact the state’s
grade. 172
f.

CFED’s Property Protection Policy

Finally, CFED finds two property protection policies absent in Nevada: a) anti-predatory
lending legislation; and b) a state disclosure requirement for property insurers to guard
against redlining. 173
3.

IDA Programs

CFED’s website lists only one active IDA program, operated by the Community
Services Agency and Development Corporation (CSADC), based in Reno. The
organization is reported to have two active IDA programs, serving 133 active
accountholders, with six accounts closed to date with a successful asset purchase. 174
However, other IDA providers in the state include Consumer Credit Counseling Services
(described below) and the Nevada Fair Housing Center.
In 2004, a group of CRA officers from Nevada banks formed the Nevada IDA
Collaborative in order to solicit and pool funds and then distribute them through an RFP
process to existing and potential IDA providers in the state. The collaborative partnered
with the Nevada Community Foundation to administer the funds. To date, the
Collaborative has raised more than $60,000 from 18 institutions and recently awarded
most of those funds to the following organizations: Richard Allen Community Outreach,
Inc., Community Services Agency and Development Corporation, Consumer Credit
Counseling Services, and Yerington Paiute Tribal Housing Authority. 175
4.

Consumer Credit Counseling of Southern and Northern Nevada

To help address Nevada’s serious consumer credit and bankruptcy standing, Consumer
Credit Counseling, with offices in both Las Vegas and Reno, offers free financial
consumer credit counseling and education in the areas of cash management counseling
and debt management planning. CCC is also a HUD-certified counseling agency and
provides information to renters, owners, and first-time homebuyers. 176

172

Ibid, pp. 162-165.
Ibid, pp. 167-169.
174
CFED IDA Network, http://www.idanetwork.cfed.org.
175
Information provided via email from the Nevada Community Foundation, December 2004.
176
Consumer Credit Counseling Services, http://www.cccsnevada.org.
173

VIII. NATIVE AMERICANS AND IMMIGRANTS
Nevada’s overall population of Native Americans is fairly small, only the 21st highest
in the nation, though as a share of the state’s population, the state has a higher ranking of
11th. This group has a much higher poverty rate than the state’s overall poverty rate
(15.1% vs. 9.0%), lower education levels, and a lower rate of homeownership. While
an array of federal programs is available, the usage of the primary homeownership
program is quite limited, and further assistance to address the needs of the Native
population would be welcome.
In contrast, Nevada’s immigrant population is significant, with the 15.8% share that
this foreign-born population comprises giving the state a ranking of sixth highest in the
nation. Moreover, this population has grown rapidly, and while some have found quick
success in the Las Vegas economy, overall immigrants are poorer and face greater
difficulties in housing.
A.

NATIVE AMERICAN NEEDS

Statistics on Native Americans

Nevada ranks only 21st in the nation in total Native American/Alaska Native
population, with a total of 26,420 as of 2000. 177 However, Native Americans make up
1.3% of the state’s population, ranking the state as 11th in the nation in terms of the
percentage contribution. 178
Compared to the overall Nevada population, Nevada’s Native Americans have a higher
poverty rate of 15.1% (compared to 9.0% for all Nevadans), have lower education
levels (only 75.2% with a high school education or higher, and only 8.6% with a
bachelor’s degree or higher compared to 80.7% and 18.2%, respectively, for the state as a
whole), and have a lower rate of homeownership (55.1% compared to 60.9% for the
state in 2000). 179
B.

NATIVE AMERICAN RESOURCES

The federal government provides many more services specifically targeted towards the
Native American community than does the state. The Bureau of Indian Affairs maintains
a comprehensive list, and most major domestically-oriented federal agencies offer
specialized programs.

177

U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000 Data.
Ibid.
179
Ibid.
178

Department of Health and Human Services

Under 1996’s welfare reform law, federally recognized Indian tribes, or consortia of such
tribes, were granted authority to operate their own Temporary Assistance for Needy
Families (TANF) programs. The final tribal TANF regulations hold tribes accountable
for moving families to self-sufficiency while encouraging and supporting flexibility and
innovation.
The Indian Health Service serves Nevada tribes from its office in Phoenix. All members
of federally recognized Indian tribes and their descendants are eligible for services
provided by the Indian Health Service (IHS). IHS operates a comprehensive health
service delivery system for 1.6 million of the nation's estimated 2.6 million American
Indians and Alaska Natives. Its annual appropriation is approximately $3.5 billion. The
IHS strives for maximum tribal involvement in meeting the needs of its service
population.
2.

Department of Housing and Urban Development

Several Nevada tribes are active participants in HUD’s Section 184 Indian Housing Loan
Guarantee program, which provides loan guarantees for home ownership, property
rehabilitation, and new construction opportunities for eligible tribes, and Native
Americans seeking to own a home on their native lands. HUD lists three Nevada tribes
as eligible participants as of October 2004, and three participating lenders as of
November 2004. As of year end 2004, Nevada had only three Section 184 loans. 180 In
addition to the Native eDGE program, HUD also hosts an interagency news site, Code
Talk, designed specifically to deliver electronic information from government agencies
and other organizations to Native American communities. 181
3.

Department of Labor

The Department of Labor offers culturally-sensitive job training and employment
programs through its Office of Indian and Native American Programs. 182
4.

U.S. Small Business Administration

The task of the Office of Native Affairs is to improve awareness of SBA programs and
the access of AIAN entrepreneurs to the business services offered by the SBA. 183

180

HUD Office of Native American Programs, Section 184 Loans Across the Nation,
http://www.codetalk.fed.us/OLG_184_stats.htm.
181
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Native American Programs, Codetalk,
http://www.codetalk.fed.us/.
182
U.S. Department of Labor, Division of Indian and Native American Programs,
http://www.doleta.gov/DINAP/.
183
SBA, Office of Native American Affairs, http://www.sba.gov/naa/.

U.S. Department of Agriculture

The USDA American Indian Council (AIC) is an employee organization, formed to give
a voice to the American Indian and Alaska Native community and culture within the US
Department of Agriculture. The AIC seeks to support the USDA Secretary's diversity
initiatives and works to promote cultural awareness among USDA employees. The
USDA also provides a Guide to Programs for American Indians and Alaska Natives 184
which catalogues seven major types of assistance available to these communities:
environment, agriculture, rural development, nutrition, food safety, economic research,
and marketing. 185
6.

USDA-Rural Development

All of the USDA-Rural Development’s resources can be used on reservations and for
Native American homeowners, homebuyers, and entrepreneurs. 186
7.

Inter-Tribal Council of Nevada

The Inter-Tribal Council of Nevada, incorporated in 1966, serves its member
reservations and colonies in Nevada as a political body and plays a major role in
promoting health, education, social, and economic programs, including the management
of certain government programs such as Head Start and Native American Workforce
programs. 187
C.

IMMIGRANT NEEDS

Immigrant Totals

According to the 2000 Census, 15.8% of Nevada’s population is foreign born, or
roughly 104,828 of its residents. This ranks the state sixth in the nation in the share
of foreign born, and is well above the national percentage of 11.1%. 188
This foreign born population doubled between 1990 and 2000, compared to a 57.4%
increase in the nation during the same time period, and its share in the population
increased to the 15.8% level from only 8.7% in 1990. A total of 36.9% of the foreign
born population are naturalized citizens, and 44.0% entered the country between 1990
and 2000 (both similar percentage to the nation). 189

184

USDA.
USDA, USDA American Indian Council, http://www.usda.gov/da/employ/AICHomePage.htm.
186
USDA Rural Development, www.rurdev.usda.gov.
187
Inter Tribal Council of Nevada, http://itcn.org.
188
U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000 Data.
189
Ibid.
185

Origin and Language Skills of Immigrants

Of Nevada’s total immigrant population, 61.4% were from Latin America, 22.9% were
from Asia, and 10.2% were from Europe. The top three countries of origin were Mexico
(48.6%), the Philippines (9.9%), and El Salvador (3.8%). In language skills, 85% of
Nevada immigrants speak a language other than English at home, and of these,
23.8% speak English “not well,” and 11.3% “not at all” (similar to the comparable
national figures, which are 22.9% and 12.2%). 190 This language barrier is evident in
local areas within Nevada; for example, Hispanics specifically account for 30% of Clark
County’s total students, but 87% of their “English as a Second Language” students. 191
3.

Poverty Levels and Other Social Indicators for Immigrants

According to the 2000 Census, 15.1% of Nevada immigrants are in poverty, a lower
level than immigrants in the nation as a whole (17.9%), though much higher than the
overall state rate of 9.0%. This was further divided between foreign-born citizens in
Nevada, who only had 8.4% in poverty, and foreign-born non-citizens in the state, who
had 18.9% in poverty. 192 Some observers point to immigrant success stories in Nevada,
saying that “in Las Vegas, not only do these workers often obtain the emblems of middleclass life—a house and a car or two, good health insurance and a pension—but they have
the opportunity to climb ever higher.” 193 However, not only are the poverty rates for
immigrants higher, but Hispanic households report a higher percentage of housing
problems than other owners, and Hispanic renters consistently have a higher percentage
of housing problems compared to either Black or White renters. 194
D.

IMMIGRANT RESOURCES

Chambers of Commerce

There are two Chambers of Commerce advancing the interests of Hispanic and Latino
businesses in the state. The Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Northern Nevada, is
based in Reno, and works on Hispanic workforce and business issues. 195 The Latin
Chamber of Commerce in Las Vegas produces material and sponsors workshops and
educational programs for Hispanic business owners in Southern Nevada. 196

190

Ibid.
Emily Richmond, Las Vegas Sun, More Funds Needed To Reach Immigrant Kids, Experts Say, January
31, 2003.
192
Ibid.
193
Steven Greenhouse, New York Times, Crossing the Border Into the Middle Class, June 3, 2004.
194
Statistics supplied by Kristin Cooper, Senior Planner, Clark County Community Resources, November
9, 2004.
195
Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Northern Nevada, http://www.hccnn.org.
196
Latin Chamber of Commerce, http://www.lasvegaslatincc.com.
191

Other Organizations Serving the Hispanic and Latino Populations

Other organizations in Nevada serving the Hispanic and Latino populations include the
Nevada Association of Latin Americans in Las Vegas, which encourages the economic
and educational development of Latin Americans, and is affiliated with the National
Council of La Raza. In Reno, Nevada Hispanic Services works to improve access for
Hispanics in Northern Nevada to available community services. 197

197

Nevada Hispanic Services, http://www.hispaniconlince.com.