Accessibility and Language Access

The Legislative Department is committed to complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and ensuring that all people, regardless of ability, have access to the legislative process and can participate in that process. Additionally, the Legislative Department is committed to making its programs and services accessible to all people without regard to their race, color, national origin, ability, or any other protected class of which they may be a part. This commitment, in relevant part, includes ensuring that people are able to participate in the legislative process at our legislative facilities, as well as access online materials and other legislative services provided to the public.

Legislative Facilities

The Legislative Department is committed to making its buildings and grounds accessible, including providing accessible parking, entrances, elevators, restrooms, and seating in the chambers and committee rooms. More information about our legislative facilities, including building maps, are available on the Buildings Information page.

Interpretive Services and Transcription

American Sign Language (ASL) and oral interpretive services are available upon request for people who attend meetings in person. While the Legislative Department prefers to secure in-person interpreters, the Legislative Department also has the ability to use video remote interpreting. For example, if a remote ASL interpreter is used for a public meeting, the Legislative Department will use its videoconference technology to ensure that the picture of the ASL interpreter is shown on the screens in the committee room.

The Legislative Department also has software that displays a real-time transcript of the public meeting on the monitors in certain committee rooms. This software can provide transcription in English, Spanish, and Tagalog, the three most common languages spoken in Nevada. A person can request the display of the real-time transcript for a public meeting by submitting an accommodation request using the steps set forth below.

Additionally, the Legislative Department makes closed captioning in English automatically available for public meetings through its live stream of the meeting. To view the closed captioning, a person should go to the Nevada Legislature Homepage and click View Events in the top righthand corner. Once the person finds the meeting of their choice, they can click "view event" to see the live stream with closed captioning. If the person misses the live event, they can also view the archived video of the event, which includes closed captioning, on the Videos of Archived Events page.

Assistive Listening Technology

For people who are hard of hearing, the Legislative Department has assistive listening devices (ALDs) available for use at legislative facilities in both Carson City and Las Vegas. By way of background, an ALD amplifies sound to help people hear better, especially in noisy environments. These ALDs transmit sound directly to headphones worn by the listener. A person can request to use an ALD by submitting an accommodation request using the steps set forth below.

Accommodations and Language Service Requests

To ensure that our legislative facilities, materials, and services are accessible, the Legislative Department provides reasonable accommodations and certain language access services on request to members of the public. For example, a person may request an ASL or other interpreter, the real-time transcript software, a universal changing table, or an ALD by submitting a request to the Legislative Department's ADA Public Accommodations Coordinators (ADA Coordinators). A request for these or other reasonable accommodations or language access services may be submitted to the ADA Coordinators by phone at (775) 684-6903 or via email at accessibility@lcb.state.nv.us. This contact information is also available on committee agendas, and may be used to provide feedback regarding the Legislative Department's existing procedures related to accommodations and language access services. The Legislative Department asks that requests for such accommodations or language access services be made as soon as possible, but not less than 72 hours in advance of the need, if practicable.

The Legislative Department also asks that the person requesting the accommodation or language access service make the request personally, or through an authorized representative. This protects the confidentiality of the request itself, as well as any information necessarily provided in support of the request, and it also facilitates the direct communication that is often necessary when clarifying the requesting person's needs.

Once such a request is received, the ADA Coordinators review the request to determine what action can reasonably be taken to facilitate the needs of the requestor. The ADA Coordinators use their best efforts to respond in a timely manner to sufficiently detailed requests for accommodations or language access services.

Grievance Procedure under the Americans with Disabilities Act

This Grievance Procedure is established to meet the requirements of the ADA. It may be used by anyone who wishes to file a complaint alleging discrimination on the basis of disability in the provision of services, activities, programs, or benefits by the Legislative Department. The Legislative Department's personnel policies govern employment-related complaints of disability discrimination.

The complaint should be in writing and contain information about the alleged discrimination, such as the name, address, and phone number of the complainant and a description of the problem, including relevant dates and locations. Alternative means of filing complaints, such as personal interviews or a tape recording of the complaint, will be made available for persons with disabilities upon request.

The complaint should be submitted by the complainant or designee as soon as possible but not later than 60 calendar days after the alleged violation to:

ADA Coordinators
Nevada Legislative Counsel Bureau, Legal Division
401 S. Carson St.
Carson City, NV 89701

Within 15 calendar days after receipt of the complaint, the ADA Coordinators or their designee will meet with the complainant to discuss the complaint and the possible resolutions. Within 15 calendar days of the meeting, the ADA Coordinators or designee will respond in writing, and where appropriate, in a format accessible to the complainant, such as large print, Braille, or audio tape. The response will explain the position of the Legislative Department and offer options for substantive resolution of the complaint.

If the response by the ADA Coordinators or designee does not satisfactorily resolve the issue, the complainant or designee may appeal the decision within 15 calendar days after receipt of the response to the Director of the Nevada Legislative Counsel Bureau or designee.

Within 15 calendar days after receipt of the appeal, the Director of the Nevada Legislative Counsel Bureau or designee will meet with the complainant to discuss the complaint and possible resolutions. Within 15 calendar days after the meeting, the Director of the Nevada Legislative Counsel Bureau or designee will respond in writing, and, where appropriate, in a format accessible to the complainant, with a final resolution of the complaint.

All written complaints received by the ADA Coordinators or their designee, appeals to the Director of the Nevada Legislative Counsel Bureau or designee, and responses from these persons will be retained by the Legislative Department for at least three years.