Nevada
‘No Tax on Tips’ excites —and divides — Nevada voters
LAS VEGAS — It’s a taxing question that might just tip the Silver State’s voting results in Donald Trump’s favor come Election Day.
Since the former president’s June 9 declaration of “No Tax on Tips” during a well-attended outdoor rally in Sin City, the idea has caught on with workers in several tip-reliant occupations, from brothels to beauty parlors.
Food and drink servers, unionized or not, also approve.
But it’s a long trip from the serving floor to the enactment of legislation. Despite an impressive lineup of backers — some of whom have no kind words for the ex-prez — the notion still faces formidable odds.
Among supporters are the Silver State’s two US Senators, Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen, who’ve signed on as the sole Democrat co-sponsors of the “No Tax on Tips Act” introduced in June by Texas GOP Sen. Ted Cruz.
In the House, Nevada Reps. Steven Horsford and Susie Lee are the only Democrats to co-sponsor Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) measure that mirrors the Cruz bill.
Progress appears slow: The Cruz bill, S. 4 621, was assigned in June to the Senate Finance committee. H.R. 8941, the Donalds bill, was sent to the House Ways and Means panel. But neither measure has been scheduled for hearings.
Ted Pappageorge, secretary-treasurer of the Culinary Workers Union Local 226, would love to see the taxman barred from the tip jar.
Pappageorge told The Post that between 18,000 and 20,000 of his local’s 60,000 members are tipped employees.
“There’s no other concentration of tip earners that are actually represented by a union like this anywhere else” in the nation, he said.
Pappageorge said his members “never had a peep” from President Joe Biden or Trump during their terms in office, but the union executive applauded the ex-prez for having “got the conversation started.”
Of greater value to tipped workers, Pappageorge said, would be to eliminate the federal “sub-minimum wage” of $2.13, where tips make up the difference between that and the $7.25 regular minimum, and just pay the regular minimum instead. Also helpful would be more sanity on the part of the IRS when the tax agency develops the “tip allocation rate,” its estimate of what tipped employees get in gratuities on which “they charge you taxes accordingly.”
Instead of setting a fixed allocation rate, the tax collectors should view tips “differently than wages,” he said. “We’re not say not taxes, but we’re saying it’s different.”
Pappageorge said the dollar amount of tips collected by his union members is not constant: “It’s up and down.”
Karen Off is the owner-operator of bustling Fringe hair salon in Mesquite, some 90 miles northeast of Las Vegas. She and the independent contractor stylists there get tips on top of fees for specific services, and Off said the idea of “no tax on tips” is appealing. “They tax us enough,” she said.
She said a tip is “an extra bonus that you earn. Because I know if I get a good waitress, she gets more than if I get somebody who never checks on me. … I earn my tips by doing a good job.”
Yolanda Scott, a 32-year Culinary Local 226 member in Las Vegas, said because of IRS tip allocations, “I just get whatever I get, because of the IRS takes control of that, and then my tips are kept. I get my tips at the end of my shift, my work shift.”
She said no taxes on tips would be “a great thing,” particularly since “everything is so expensive. I mean, we have to survive. We want to live.”
Liz Hudson, another union member who’s worked at the New York, New York casino for 25 years delivering drinks to gamblers on the casino floor, said she “would definitely benefit” from tax-free tips.
The benefit would give her “probably triple what I’m making now.”
Hudson said it would even help when patrons forget to tip when served.
“When we get stiffed, we’re getting taxed on that drink that we just brought out, and we get nothing for it,” she said. “So at least if we got rid of getting taxed, it wouldn’t be as much of a pain to not get tipped.”
Away from the Las Vegas Strip, over at the Red Rocks Casino Resort & Spa, server Bridget Brooks supports tax-free tips.
“It would be great,” she said. “They tax us so much we barely get a paycheck. I understand that the money goes to the economy, but how about taking it in other ways so they’re not taxing us more than we make?”
Not everyone is delighted with the proposal, however.
“I’m not sure why we would not tax their earnings versus other people’s earnings,” said David Neumark, distinguished professor of economics at the University of California—Irvine, who has studied the earning of tipped workers. “Everyone should be treated the same.”
He said “wages might fall” if tips aren’t taxed: “If I cut the tax on your income by 30%, your after tax income might not go up by 30% because more people may choose to work and that will lower pay.”
One business owner enthusiastically supports exempting tip income from taxes—and Trump, whose rally comments sparked the current legislation.
Bella Cummins, the 74-year-old operator of Bella’s Hacienda Ranch, a legal brothel in Wells, Nevada, near Reno, said the move would help operators lower operating costs.
“The brothel’s sex workers also benefit,” she said in a statement. “Legal sex workers are independent contractors who pay out of pocket for their medical fees, sheriff cards, and other business essentials such as adult toys and lingerie. When workers receive untaxed tips, it allows them to set more competitive prices for their services, attract more clients, enhance their reputation, and expand their customer base.”
The Arbor View boys volleyball team has embodied the mindset that it would take the efforts of all 16 players to win the school its first boys volleyball title.
It proved to be the case on Wednesday night against rival Centennial in the Class 5A state championship match, and the Aggies’ efforts all season showed up in the biggest game of the season.
No. 3-seeded Arbor View claimed its first boys volleyball title with a 25-20, 25-27, 25-19, 25-19 victory over top-seeded Centennial at Sunrise Mountain.
“It feels amazing. The boys have worked hard, I don’t even know if I could put it into words,” Arbor View coach Nicole Adarme said. “Our big goal was to stay calm and collected the entire time. I just wanted to reflect that for them.”
Arbor View (28-13-1) let its emotions out after the final point on an Owen Wenger kill. The Aggies huddled and jumped for joy, helped carry injured teammate Gunnar Robinson off the bench, and eventually moved the celebration into the stands with a sea of red from the Arbor View student section.
“It feels absolutely great,” junior middle blocker/outside hitter Risden Miller said. “We trust each other so much. We’re best friends in and out of volleyball, and that really helps us on the court with just competing as a team.”
Even though the two team’s previous meeting on April 14 was a three-set win in league play by Centennial (32-6), Adarme said she knew the fourth meeting of the season for the two northwest rivals wasn’t going to be a sweep on either side.
Arbor View won a back-and-forth first set on a kill from Miller. Then it looked like the Aggies were going to win a close second set, but Centennial got a point for Arbor View being out of rotation, and the Bulldogs won four of the last five points to even the match score to one set apiece.
“That’s the traditional thing (when we play) Centennial (to play long matches), so for us, we just treated it like another set,” Adarme said. “We knew they were going to fight, so how do we respond to that? Our constant conversation was responding to the negative and moving forward in a positive direction.”
Arbor View scored six straight points in the third set to take a 20-15 lead, and the Aggies never let up to get to the fourth set with a chance to win the title. The Aggies took advantage of several Centennial errors to take the lead in the third set on their way to the title.
“We took three deep breaths and reset and recollected ourselves as a team,” Miller said of closing out the final two sets. “That’s just completely huge for rebounding from a lost set.
“For me, personally, just looking at all my best friends on the court, that truly calms me down and I know it calms them down as well.”
Miller recorded 18 kills and Wenger was key at the net with eight kills and eight blocks. The Aggies also got contributions from Graham Blanchard, Kenyon Wickliffe and Robinson before he went down with a lower left leg injury in the fourth set.
Lincoln Larson led Centennial with 19 kills. It’s the first boys volleyball state title for Arbor View and first appearance in the title game after the program reached the state semifinals four previous times.
“We can’t (win) with six, we have to do it with all 16,” Adarme said. “We’ve been training all of them to be ready for big moments and it was an amazing moment for Cooper (Ball, coming in for an injured Robinson) to be able to come in for us.
“We just had to know we couldn’t be outside of ourselves. Where we fell short in the past was trying to be more instead of focusing on what our role is and what our job is.”
Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.
LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — An 81-year-old man died after his motorcycle crashed on an eastbound 215 flyover ramp Saturday evening, Nevada State Police say.
The Nevada Highway Patrol responded to the crash at approximately 5:16 p.m. on the eastbound 215 to I-11 northbound flyover on-ramp in Clark County.
According to NHP, a black 2018 Triumph Bonneville T120 motorcycle was traveling eastbound on the flyover ramp in the number one travel lane.
The rider failed to negotiate a curve and traveled right, entering the shoulder and striking a concrete traffic barrier. The motorcycle overturned and the rider was ejected.
William Keith Kolb was transported from the scene to a local area hospital in critical condition and later died that evening from injuries sustained in the crash, police say.
An investigation into the crash is ongoing.
The Nevada State Police Highway Patrol Southern Command has investigated 26 fatal crashes resulting in 29 fatalities so far this year.
Copyright 2026 KVVU. All rights reserved.
As part of the ongoing America250 commemoration, the Nevada State Museum, Carson City will celebrate the grand opening of its newest exhibition, “RIVETING AMERICA: Bringing Together Fabrication, Fashion, and People,” on Thursday, May 14, from 6:30 to 8 p.m., with doors opening at 6 p.m., featuring a special guest presentation by Tracey Panek, historian and director of archives for Levi Strauss & Co.
Located in the “Our Nevada Stories” gallery, the new exhibition explores how everyday objects and the people who used them helped shape Nevada and the American West, highlighting the innovation, resilience, and labor that built industries ranging from mining and ranching to farming and manufacturing. Through artifacts and historic objects, the exhibition examines the untold stories behind the tools, technologies, and working hands that contributed to Nevada’s development and America’s industrial growth.
Panek, who oversees the archives at Levi Strauss & Co. headquarters in San Francisco, is widely recognized for her work preserving and interpreting the nearly 175-year history of one of America’s most iconic heritage brands. During the opening event, she will discuss the importance of corporate archives, the cultural evolution of denim, and the enduring influence of Levi Strauss & Co. on American identity and fashion.
As historian for Levi Strauss & Co., Panek manages the company’s archives as a key corporate asset, supporting designers, executives, and brand teams while also acquiring rare vintage Levi’s garments and historical artifacts. She is also a contributor to the company’s “Unzipped” blog and narrator of the “From the Levi’s Archives” video series across YouTube and TikTok.
“RIVETING AMERICA reflects the stories of the workers, makers and innovators who helped build Nevada and shape the American experience,” said Jen Roger (roh-JAY), Director of Nevada State Museum, Carson City. “As we commemorate America250, this exhibition offers an opportunity to reflect on the ingenuity, resilience, and craftsmanship that helped define both our state and our nation. Having Tracey Panek join us for the exhibit opening brings an exciting and culturally relevant perspective to those conversations, particularly through the lens of a brand like Levi Strauss & Co., which remains deeply connected to American history while continuing to evolve with modern culture.”
The exhibition highlights how objects left behind by past generations provide tangible evidence of Nevada’s history, from Indigenous basket weaving and agriculture to mining, ranching, and industrial labor. Each artifact featured throughout the exhibit reflects themes of creativity, resilience, and hard work that continue to define both Nevada and the broader American story.
The grand opening event is open to the public and is complimentary to attend with museum admission. Additional information about the exhibition is available on the Nevada State Museum, Carson City website.
About Nevada State Museum, Carson City
Located in downtown Carson City inside the historic former U.S. Mint building, the Nevada State Museum brings the story of the Silver State to life through immersive exhibits, historic artifacts, and hands-on experiences. It is located at 600 N. Carson Street in Carson City and is open Tuesday through Sunday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. For more information, visit www.carsonnvmuseum.org.
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