Housing advocates try to prevent evictions, criticize Lombardo for 2023 vetoes

Nevada housing advocates called out Gov. Lombardo for vetoing bills last year that would have reformed the summary eviction system and protected the thousands of Nevadans that have faced eviction court since 2023.

In an effort to learn more about the eviction process and highlight disparities in the tenant experience, the Nevada Housing Justice Alliance (NHJA) has observed hundreds of eviction court hearings since January across the different Justice Courts in Clark County. 

The NHJA and its community allies said in a press conference Tuesday that the combination of the quick summary eviction process and the slow provision of rental assistance creates a no-win situation for tenants.  

In an effort to help tenants, the NHJA and its allies also sit in the eviction court in Las Vegas. Their presence in the courtroom compelled the judge to give out more 10-day extensions to tenants, they said.

The advocates’ action came amid Nevada’s worsening housing crisis. 

Between recent rent increases — due in part to corporate investors buying up units and jacking up prices —  and a shortage of supply, tenants have been forced to spend more and more on rent in recent years. 

 A recent report from UNLV’s Lied Center for Real Estate, shows that 57.3% of Nevada renters are allocating more than 30% of their income towards monthly housing costs. The report ranks Nevada second to Florida in states that have “excessively cost burdened renters,” meaning renters have little room for savings or money left over after bills and other necessities. 

Ben Iness, the coalition coordinator for NHJA, said many families are “one crisis away” from not being able to afford rent that month and be face-to-face with an eviction notice. 

“Many renters are cost burdened, meaning they pay such a large portion of their income on rent. And of course, we know when that happens, there’s so little leftover, so you can’t get the food you need or one gas we know is high education, health care, transit,” Iness said. “So many folks are one crisis away — so you could still have a solid job but then ‘I don’t know how I can get my car fixed, get to my job, and then try to stay housed.’”

Although evictions for lack of payment cannot be overturned, advocates say that Gov. Joe Lombardo is to blame for the thousands of eviction cases in the last year due to his veto of bills passed during the 2023 legislative session. Among those bills was — SB 335, which would’ve expanded on an expired 2021 law that paused eviction proceedings for 60 days if a rental assistance application was pending. Lombardo also vetoed AB 340, which would’ve flipped the eviction system that currently requires tenants, rather than landlords, be the first to file a case with the courts.   

“All Nevadans deserve a place to call home. But vulture investors and corporations are buying our neighborhoods, and Gov. Lombardo’s cruel vetoes of legislation that would have kept Nevadans housed, has led to skyrocketing rates of homelessness,” said Laura Martin, executive director of the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada (PLAN). “There is no doubt that landlords are using Nevada’s uniquely insidious summary eviction process to push people out of their homes and raise rent. We will not allow the realtor or apartment associations to make up stories about tenants driving the housing crisis. We will happily hold up the mirror for them.”