Council may accept voters’ will on expansion

Tuesday, March 9, 1999 | 10:44 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- A compromise is in the offing on Sen. Joe Neal's bill to expand the Las Vegas City Council from four to six wards to give minorities a greater voice.

Las Vegas officials told the Senate Committee on Government Affairs Monday they will recommend to the City Council at its next meeting that the advisory question on the June election ballot be made mandatory.

The question, as it stands now, asks voters if they favor increasing the council from four to six members. But the City Council would have the final say, no matter the outcome.

Marvin Leavitt, lobbyist for the city, said officials will recommend the vote be mandatory, not advisory. The council will meet in two weeks to consider the motion.

Neal, D-North Las Vegas, said he doesn't want the issue to go back to the council. "We want it mandatory," he said.

The measure, Senate Bill 274, required the council to expand to six seats without any decision by the voters. The bill will be held in committee until the council acts.

Neal said expanding the council will give minorities a more influential voice in the election and provide a better chance for Hispanics and blacks to get elected.

Two years ago, Neal sought to expand the council, which agreed it would examine the issue. It decided to put the advisory question on the ballot in the June municipal election.