Locals · Today in Vegas · November 6, 2026

Clark County Scrapped Its Short-Term Rental Lottery and Set a 1% Cap. The Group Suing It Calls That Lipstick on a Pig.

By Hargreaves Ledger, Pace Vegas Desk · November 6, 2026

The short versionClark County commissioners on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, approved changes to short-term rental rules in unincorporated Clark County, replacing per-area license caps with one countywide cap equal to 1% of housing units and ending the annual lottery, according to News 3. The vote followed a Ninth Circuit ruling that largely upheld an injunction won by the Greater Las Vegas Short Term Rental Authority, whose president said the county had "put lipstick on a pig."

Neon sign of a small house with a key and a judge's gavel

Clark County rewrote its short-term rental rules again on Tuesday, according to News 3. Commissioners eliminated the rule that capped licenses by area and replaced it with a single countywide cap equal to 1% of all housing units in unincorporated Clark County. They also removed the annual lottery so applications can come in year round, and cut several paperwork requirements. KNPR, citing the Nevada Current, reported that the vote was unanimous and that new applications will be made by appointment rather than online. The rules cover only unincorporated areas; Las Vegas, Henderson and North Las Vegas set their own.

The changes are the county's answer to a lawsuit. A federal judge, U.S. District Judge Miranda Du, granted the Greater Las Vegas Short Term Rental Authority a preliminary injunction in December, writing that the licensing system likely violates constitutional due process, News 3 reported. In October the Ninth Circuit largely upheld that ruling but said the order was too broad because it let anyone operate an unlicensed rental, including people who never applied, and sent it back to be narrowed. The draft ordinance the county introduced on October 20 says complete applications will be considered in the order received, and lists a $45 application fee and a $150 inspection fee.

The plaintiffs are not satisfied. Jackie Flores, the group's president and founder, said in a statement quoted by News 3 that the county had "simply 'put lipstick on a pig'" by "making superficial or cosmetic changes to the licensing process in a futile effort to disguise its fundamental failings." She added: "We will continue to fight the County Commissioners in the only place where the law and the Constitution are respected and enforced: the courts." At an October 20 public comment session, KTNV reported, Flores had called parts of the proposal "steps in the right direction."

The desk's takeClark County spent four years building a short-term rental system so fussy that a federal judge called it a due process problem, and the fix is to make people book an appointment. In a town that runs on online check-in, the county has gone analog. The 1% cap is the real policy here, and everything else is the county trying to lose the lawsuit more slowly.

Clark County Scrapped Its Short-Term Rental Lottery and Set a 1% Cap. The Group Suing It Calls That Lipstick on a Pig.

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