Domestic Partnerships For Nevada

One day after the Nevada Senate overrode Gov. Jim Gibbons' veto of their domestic partners bill, the state Assembly did the same. The deadline to pass the legislation was today, Monday June 1st, and both chambers of the state legislature worked through the weekend to achieve this major win for LGBT Nevadans.

In what supporters are calling a historic moment, the Assembly on Sunday night overrode the veto of Gov. Jim Gibbons on a bill giving legal rights to domestic partners. Tod Story, a member of the board of the Gay and Lesbian Community Center of Southern Nevada, said "Nevadans can stand proud." Story said Nevada has become the 17th state to recognize the relationships of gay and lesbian couples under state law. The law takes effect Oct. 1. The vote Sunday night was 28-14, the bare minimum needed to overturn the decision of the governor. It follows the 14-7 vote in the Senate Saturday and puts the bill into law.

Activists partially credit the support of the Las Vegas gaming industry, whose leaders published public letters backing their LGBT employees and who warned against losing valuable gay tourism at a critical time for the state.

Friendly Voices - Harrah's Jan Jones

"Most of us in Nevada absolutely support gay and lesbian rights. This is a big fight. We're not ready to give up. We want to override the veto. We’re not walking away from you; don’t walk away from us." - Senior vice president of Harrah's Entertainment Jan Jones, telling the Advocate that her company continues to stand behind the LGBT people of Nevada.

Jones urges gay tourists to continue to patronize the major hoteliers of Las Vegas that support Nevada's domestic partners bill, which was vetoed yesteday by Gov. Jim Gibbons. Both Harrah's and the MGM-Mirage chain offer benefits to partners of gay employees.

Harrah's Comes Out For Nevada's Gays

The Harrah's chain of Las Vegas casinos and hotels has written a letter to Nevada's legislature warning about a potential loss in gay tourism if Gov. Gibbons vetoes that state's pending domestic partners bill.

In a letter to lawmakers, Harrah's Senior Vice President Jan Jones said that Nevada must compete with other destinations for the growing gay and lesbian business and that there could be a "negative economic impact" if the bill does not become law. "Our state cannot afford to lose any more revenue to other destinations because of a reputation as a place which is not socially or politically the right place to do business or to vacation," Jones stated in the letter, dated Tuesday. Gays and lesbians have the highest disposable income of any segment of the population, according to Jones. "Our company does aggressive marketing to this community," Jones said Wednesday. "How can we say to them 'we want your business, but we don't care about your rights.'"

The Nevada ACLU hailed Harrah's move: "This is not just a civil rights issue; it is an economic issue. The defeat of SB283 would send a terrible message to a segment of the community that we work hard to attract to our travel and tourism destinations."