The legislation passed by the Nevada Senate and Assembly today marks an important transition for our entire state as it ensures maintaining Las Vegas’ world leading position as a tourism and convention city by laying the groundwork for significant expansion and development of the world-class entertainment already offered by Las Vegas in an industry that employs hundreds of thousands and contributes approximately half of all tax revenues in the state.
Over the last 16 months, representatives of the University of Nevada-Las Vegas, the City of Las Vegas, the Clark County Commission, along with representatives of the major gaming and hospitality industry employers, have worked together as the Southern Nevada Tourism Infrastructure Committee to draft recommendations for keeping Las Vegas the premier tourism destination of the world.
The committee unanimously recommended legislation to bolster law enforcement in the tourism corridor, fund a critical expansion and modernization of the Las Vegas Convention Center, and provide a stadium not only for professional and UNLV football but also as a new entertainment venue capable of hosting events previously unattainable in Las Vegas. The recommended legislation also protects Nevada taxpayers from cost overruns.
Indeed, the stadium and Convention Center package will provide tens of millions of tax dollars annually to state and local governments. These projects – the Convention Center upgrade and expansion as well as a new stadium – will strengthen Nevada’s economy by creating thousands of jobs, generating more than a billion dollars in new economic activity annually and providing even more tax revenue for infrastructure projects and our classrooms at all levels.
Las Vegas has historically been willing to reinvest and reinvent in order to remain as the leading tourism and hospitality destination in the world. Today’s action sets in motion two projects that will help to secure this effort for generations to come.
