Boulder City Magazine is a monthly publication full of information about Boulder City and Southern Nevada. Boulder City Magazine features the Boulder City Home Guide, a real estate guide to Boulder City and Southern Nevada.

Lawyer's Edge
by Bruce L. Woodbury, Esq.
Jolley, Urga, Wirth, Woodbury & Standish

County Government In Southern Nevada
The United States Constitution contemplates various levels of government, including federal, state and local jurisdictions. Within each level of government there are various agencies and departments which can often be confusing for our citizens.

In Southern Nevada our local governmental structure is unique in having a county government which possesses a much broader range of function and authority than exists almost anywhere else in the U.S. Counties are subdivisions of the state and derive their power from the legislature. Many years ago, the Nevada Legislature conferred broad general powers on the Clark County Commission and restricted the cities in the Las Vegas Valley from annexing areas which are part of unincorporated towns, including the area of the Las Vegas Strip.

As a result, the County Commission has county-wide jurisdiction for functions such as McCarran Airport, air quality management, the election department, social services, child and family services, much of the judicial system and most courthouse agencies. These are fairly typical roles for most county governments in the U.S. Other regional services are carried out through agencies consisting of elected representatives of the County Commission and each of the city councils (Regional Transportation Commission, Regional Flood Central District, Health District, Water Authority and Convention Authority).

The unusual feature of Clark County government is that it serves as the municipal government for nearly 900,000 people who do not live in any of the cities in our county. As such, it provides city services such as public works, parks and recreation, business licensing, utility services, planning and zoning for a population that is far larger than any city in Nevada. Since the local cities were legislatively limited years ago from annexing the Strip and much of the developing area of the county, the County Commission became both a traditional regional entity and a large and powerful municipal jurisdiction as well.

Bruce L. Woodbury, Jolley Urga Wirth Woodbury & Standish, www.juwws.com.



Boulder City Magazine®
688 Wells Rd #A
Boulder City, Nevada 89005
Phone (702) 294-1392 Fax (702) 294-1392
E-mail: BoulderCityMagazine@gmail.com



Web Site Design by Appleby Arts
Copyright © 2004 - 2008 - Boulder City Magazine - All Rights Reserved
E-mail Web Master at: webmaster@bouldercitymagazine.com

Disclaimer