Nevada
Voters in California and Nevada consider ban on forced labor aimed at protecting prisoners
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California and Nevada voters will decide in November whether to ban forced prison labor by removing language from their state constitutions rooted in the legacy of chattel slavery.
The measures aim to protect incarcerated people from being forced to work under the threat of punishment in the states, where it is not uncommon for prisoners to be paid less than $1 an hour to fight fires, clean prison cells, make license plates or do yard work at cemeteries.
Nevada incarcerates about 10,000 people. All prisoners in the state are required to work or be in vocational training for 40 hours each week, unless they have a medical exemption. Some of them make as little as 35 cents hourly.
Voters will weigh the proposals during one of the most historic elections in modern history, said Jamilia Land, an advocate with the Abolish Slavery National Network who has spent years trying to get the California measure passed.
“California, as well as Nevada, has an opportunity to end legalized, constitutional slavery within our states, in its entirety, while at the same time we have the first Black woman running for president,” she said of Vice President Kamala Harris’ historic bid as the first Black and Asian American woman to earn a major party’s nomination for the nation’s highest office.
Several other states such as Colorado, Alabama and Tennessee have in recent years done away with exceptions for slavery and involuntary servitude, though the changes were not immediate. In Colorado — the first state to get rid of an exception for slavery from its constitution in 2018 — incarcerated people alleged in a lawsuit filed in 2022 against the corrections department that they had still been forced to work.
“What it did do — it created a constitutional right for a whole class of people that didn’t previously exist,” said Kamau Allen, a co-founder of the Abolish Slavery National Network who advocated for the Colorado measure.
Nevada’s proposal aims to abolish from the constitution both slavery and involuntary servitude as punishment for crime. California’s constitution was changed in the 1970s to remove an exemption for slavery, but the involuntary servitude exception remains on the books.
Wildland firefighting is among the most sought-after prison work programs in Nevada. Those eligible for the program are paid around $24 per day.
“There are a lot of people who are incarcerated that want to do meaningful work. Now are they treated fairly? No,” said Chris Peterson, legal director at the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada, which supports the measure. “They’re getting paid pennies on the hour, where other people get paid dollars, to do incredibly dangerous work.”
Peterson pointed to a state law that created a modified workers’ compensation program for incarcerated people who are injured on the job. Under that program, the amount awarded is based on the person’s average monthly wage when the injury occurred.
In 2016, Darrell White, an injured prison firefighter who filed a claim under the modified program, learned he would receive a monthly disability payment of “$22.30 for a daily rate of $0.50.” By then, White already had been freed from prison, but he was left unable to work for months while he recovered from surgery to repair his fractured finger, which required physical therapy.
White sued the state prison system and Division of Forestry, saying his disability payments should have been calculated based on the state’s minimum wage of $7.25 at the time. The case went all the way up to the Nevada Supreme Court, which rejected his appeal, saying it remained an “open question” whether Nevada prisoners were constitutionally entitled to minimum wage compensation.
What to know about the 2024 Election
“It should be obvious that it is patently unfair to pay Mr. White $0.50 per day,” his lawyer, Travis Barrick, wrote in the appeal, adding that White’s needs while incarcerated were minimal compared to his needs after his release, including housing and utilities, food and transportation. “It is inconceivable that he could meet these needs on $0.50 per day.”
The California state Senate rejected a previous version of the proposal in 2022 after Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration cited concerns about the cost if the state had to start paying all prisoners the minimum wage.
Newsom signed a law earlier this year that would require the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to create a voluntary work program. The agency would set wages for people incarcerated in state prisons under the law. But the law would only take effect if voters approve the forced labor ban.
The law and accompanying measure will give incarcerated people more of an opportunity for rehabilitation through therapy or education instead of being forced to work, said California Assemblymember Lori Wilson, a Democrat representing Solano County who authored this year’s proposal.
Wilson suffered from trauma growing up in a household with dysfunction and abuse, she said. She was able to work through her trauma by going to therapy. But her brother, who did not get the same help, instead ended up in prison, she said.
“It’s just a tale of two stories of what happens when someone who has been traumatized, has anger issues and gets the rehabilitative work that they need to — what they could do with their life,” Wilson said.
Yannick Ortega, a formerly incarcerated woman who now works at an addiction recovery center in Fresno, California, was forced to work various jobs during the first half of her time serving 20 years in prison for a murder conviction, she said.
“When you are sentenced to prison, that is the punishment,” said Ortega, who later became a certified paralegal and substance abuse counselor by pursuing her education while working in prison. “You’re away from having the freedom to do anything on your own accord.”
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Yamat reported from Las Vegas. Austin is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Austin on Twitter: @ sophieadanna
:focal(0x0:3000x2000)/static.texastribune.org/media/files/37c17f9750e61048fe7c0ac508d7c084/Texas%20Dems%20Chief%20LS%20TT%2001.jpg "Texas Democrats select Kendall Scudder as state party chair")
Prediction market Kalshi filed a lawsuit against the Nevada Gaming Control Board and the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement after both state regulators sent cease and desist orders for the firm to pause all sports-related contracts in the states.
Kalshi’s legal team argued that the contracts fall under the jurisdiction of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and, therefore, cannot be regulated by state-level authorities.
The team also contends that the cease and desist orders fail to recognize that Kalshi’s event contracts are two-sided markets that trade as swaps as opposed to the sports-betting book model where the house controls the market. Kalshi co-founder Tarek Mansour said:
“Prediction markets are a critical innovation of the 21st century, and like all innovations, they are initially misunderstood. We are proud to be the company that has pioneered this technology and stand ready to defend it once again in a court of law.”
Additionally, the Nevada Gaming Control Board sent Kalshi a cease and desist order for its election contracts, which a United States judge ruled were legal in September 2024 — allowing the contracts to trade freely in the US.
Kalshi lawsuit against Nevada Gaming Control Board. Source: Kalshi
Massachusetts subpoenas Robinhood over sports prediction markets
CFTC commits to ending regulation by enforcement
On Feb. 4, acting CFTC director Caroline Pham issued a notice signaling a major regulatory pivot at the CFTC and ending regulation through enforcement actions, choosing to focus on fraud instead.
“The CFTC is strengthening its enforcement program to focus on victims of fraud, as well as remaining vigilant for other violations of law,” Pham said
This major change at the CFTC was welcomed by industry firms as a breath of fresh air following a torrent of regulatory lawsuits and enforcement actions under the Biden administration.
The regulator also initiated a probe into Super Bowl event contracts offered by Kalshi and Crypto.Com on the same day the notice was sent out.
The goal of the CFTC’s probe was to ensure that the Super Bowl event contracts complied with existing derivatives laws in the US, and the CFTC ultimately took no action to ban the contracts.
Magazine: Train AI agents to make better predictions… for token rewards
Nevada
How Nevada programs are faring the wake of Trump admin's cuts, cancellations – The Nevada Independent
Nevadans are learning that unlike Las Vegas, what happens in Washington (and Mar-a-Lago) doesn’t stay in Washington.
After more than two months into the Trump administration, we’re starting to see the impacts of the funding cuts, cancellations and rescissions pursued by Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
As my colleagues Tabitha Mueller and Eric Neugeboren reported, nearly 50 state health employees were let go after the sudden cancellation of pandemic-era federal grants.
Between cuts to two programs, Nevada food banks are facing 10 percent budget holes and seeing deliveries cancelled.
And though some fired federal employees (including at Great Basin National Park) are back to work thanks to a judicial order, the massive layoffs expected across federal agencies means there’s more to come.
The Walker River Paiute Tribe is one group in Nevada that’s been left in limbo by the torrent of executive action. A $20 million grant to the tribe for climate resiliency projects, including much-needed upgrades to the reservation’s water infrastructure, has been suspended by the Environmental Protection Agency.
Ostensibly ensnared in the Trump administration’s crusade against diversity, equity and inclusion — the grant program has “environmental justice” in the name — the tribe and its partners are trying to leverage relationships in Congress, including with Rep. Mark Amodei (R-NV), to get the funding reinstated.
The federal government’s war on DEI goes beyond academia or corporate culture — and things such as the Walker River Paiute Tribe’s new water storage tank hang in the balance. Read more here.
Around the Capitol
🏛️Effectiveness ratings are in — Three Nevadans landed in the top 10 for their caucuses in the Center for Effective Lawmaking’s biannual scorecard, which attempts to quantify how effective members of Congress based on how many bills they get passed, and how substantive those bills are.
Rep. Dina Titus (D-NV) finished third among all House Democrats. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) was seventh among Senate Democrats and Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) was eighth. Titus’ influence was greatest on international affairs policy, Cortez Masto’s on Native Americans and Rosen’s on education.
📵Rosen sends a Signal — Rosen led a group of 15 Senate Democrats in a Thursday letter calling for hearings into top Trump administration figures’ handling of classified information after a bombshell story in The Atlantic revealed that Cabinet officials were discussing specific war plans in a Signal group chat that inadvertently included a journalist.
Rosen’s letter goes right to the top, calling for Vice President JD Vance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and National Security Advisor Michael Waltz, among others in the group chat, to testify.
💊Cortez Masto, Horsford go after drugmakers — Cortez Masto and Rep. Steven Horsford (D-NV) introduced bicameral legislation Thursday to expand a prescription drug policy created by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
The IRA included a provision that fines pharmaceutical companies for increasing prices at a rate faster than inflation for prescription drugs covered by Medicare. The Nevadans’ bill would expand that to private insurance.
What I’m Reading
Las Vegas Review-Journal: Sheriff rejects requests to use Las Vegas officers for immigration enforcement
Sheriff Kevin McMahill has been quite consistent about this — but it hasn’t stopped the feds from asking.
The Nevada Independent: Poll: Nevada voters oppose Medicaid cuts, Department of Education elimination
Trump’s Nevada poll number: +1. Trump’s 2024 margin of victory: +3.
The Associated Press: Man accused of setting fire to Tesla vehicles in Las Vegas arrested, police say
Attacks on Tesla have been reported around the country.
Notable and Quotable
“I don’t know what happened there or why or whatever, but if I ever suspect that I’m on a group whatever, I’m getting out of it.”
— Rep. Mark Amodei (R-NV), in an interview on Wednesday, on the Signal group chat
Vote of the Week
H.R.1048 — On Passage: DETERRENT Act
This Republican-sponsored bill tightens the standards for universities to receive foreign gifts, lowering the reporting threshold and prohibiting higher education from entering contracts with foreign countries of concern.
AMODEI: Not voting
HORSFORD: Yes
LEE: Yes
TITUS: No
The RGJ’s favorite drone shots of 2019: Reno, Lake Tahoe and much more.
See the best aerial shots taken this year from the Reno Gazette Journal’s drone team.
Sam Gross and Benjamin Spillman, Reno Gazette-Journal
Niche has named its 2025 Best Cities to Live in the U.S. The website also ranked the Silver State’s best communities.
Niche uses data from various sources including the U.S. Census Bureau, FBI, Centers for Disease Control and the Bureau of Labor Statistics to determine the best places to live in the United States.
Niche graded each place on 12 categories: public schools, housing, good for families, jobs, cost of living, outdoor activities, crime and safety, nightlife, diversity, weather, health and fitness, and commute.
Here’s a look at the best communities in Nevada and the nation.
What are the best communities in Northern Nevada?
- Incline Village
- Kingsbury
- Mogul
- South Lake Tahoe
- Reno
- Sparks
- Gardnerville
- Carson City
- Spanish Springs
- Minden
What are the best communities in Nevada overall?
- Incline Village
- Green Valley Ranch (a neighborhood in Henderson)
- Kingsbury
- MacDonald Ranch (a neighborhood in Henderson)
- Enterprise (suburb of Las Vegas)
- Summerlin
- Green Valley South (a neighborhood in Henderson)
- Anthem (a neighborhood in Henderson)
- Sovana (a neighborhood in Las Vegas)
- Henderson
What are the best places to live in the country?
The top 10 “Best Cities” in America, according to Niche:
- Naperville, Illinois
- The Woodlands, Texas
- Cambridge, Massachusetts
- Arlington, Virginia
- Irvine, California
- Plano, Texas
- Columbia, Maryland
- Overland Park, Kansas
- Bellevue, Washington
- Berkeley, California
Is Reno a good place to live?
Niche gave Reno a “B” grade based on 12 categories. Reno received the highest ratings from Niche in the Weather and Outdoor Activities categories where the Biggest Little City earned A-plusses. The ratings in Diversity and Commute followed close behind (A’s) as well as Health and Fitness, and Nightlife (Reno earned A-minus in both categories).
The Biggest Little City received B’s in the Public Schools and Good for Families categories and a B-minus in Jobs. Reno’s lowest scores were in Housing, Cost of Living, and Crime. Reno received a C-minus in all these categories.
Is Incline Village a good place to live?
Niche rated Incline Village as the best place to live not only in the Reno area, but Nevada as well. Incline Village received A ratings in Public Schools, Good for Families, Health and Fitness, and Outdoor Activities, followed closely by an A-minus rating in Jobs. Incline received B-plusses in Nightlife, Weather, Diversity and Commute.
Similar to Reno, Incline’s lowest ratings were in Housing (C) and Cost of Living (C-minus).
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