New ethics standards coming to Clark County government

Clark County commissioners and some county employees have some new ethics rules to follow.

Commissioners unanimously approved a handful of changes to the county’s ethical standards Tuesday, including revisions to how conflicts of interest are disclosed, clarifications to language about cooling-off periods and changes to required training on ethics standards.

Commissioner Jim Gibson, who requested the county manager’s office review current ethical processes in May 2023, said revising the ordinances is meant to bring more transparency and accountability throughout the county.

“I think that this is a really important step, and it’s something that we periodically should take a look at to see if anything else is worthy of consideration or inclusion,” Gibson said.

In addition to submitting disclosure statements, the ordinance requires a commissioner who disclosed an item of conflict to submit a copy of the meeting agenda within seven days of the meeting at which the disclosure occurred.

The ordinance also requires the county manager’s office to issue a list of “incompatible activities” annually to commissioners, staff and senior management employees.

The ordinance also requires newly elected or appointed commissioners, planning commission members, county management employees and commission staff to participate in the Nevada Ethics Commission’s ethics training annually.