The Sparks City Charter was adopted by the Nevada Legislature in 1975 – 43 years ago. During the City Charter’s development, and prior to its adoption, a 1974 Ballot Question was presented to the voters in Sparks asking whether certain city officers should be elected or appointed; one such officer was the City Attorney.

In response to the 1974 Ballot Question, 7,893 voters in Sparks voted “Yes” to an elected City Attorney and 670 voters voted “No.” Accordingly, the resulting 1975 Sparks City Charter included the City Attorney as an elected officer within the Executive Branch of Sparks’s government.

While the Nevada Legislature has ultimate control over the City Charter, the City of Sparks Charter is typically updated and amended by the Sparks Charter Committee that makes formal recommendations to the Nevada Legislature by and through a Nevada Legislator.  

In 1991 the Sparks Charter Committee directed that an Advisory Question be presented to the  voters of Sparks asking whether the office of the Sparks City Attorney should remain an elected, non-partisan position within the government for the City of Sparks.

In response to the 1991 Advisory Question, the voters in Sparks responded affirmatively that the office of the Sparks City Attorney should remain an elected, non-partisan position within Sparks’s government. The Sparks Charter Committee thereafter declined to recommend that the Sparks City Charter be amended to change the City Attorney’s position from an elected office to an appointed position.

In 2007, the Nevada Legislature considered AB 570 which would have unilaterally amended the Sparks City Charter to change the office of the Sparks City Attorney from an elected, non-partisan office to that of an appointed position. After hearing the matter, the Assembly Committee struck the language in AB 570 relating to the Sparks City Charter.

In 2017, SB 434 was introduced into the 79th Session of the Nevada Legislature. SB 434 sought to amend the Sparks City Charter and change the Sparks City Attorney’s position from an elected, non-partisan office to an appointed position.

SB 434 was passed by both the Senate and Assembly of Nevada’s 79th Session. However, Governor Sandoval vetoed SB 434 and the Governor’s veto was not overridden.

Sparks’s voters desired to create, retain, and exercise their right to vote for their City Attorney in 1974 and again in 1991. The Nevada Legislature has recently considered changing the office of the Sparks City Attorney from an elected city office to an appointed position. Neither AB 570, nor SB 434 requested input or direction from the Sparks Charter Committee, the Sparks City Council, or the voters of Sparks. The citizens of Sparks currently have the right to vote for their elected representatives, including their City Attorney. The citizens of Sparks should therefore have a voice whether they want to keep their right to vote for their City Attorney.

The City Council may choose to revise, reword, or deny altogether the proposed Resolution and thereby refrain from placing an Advisory Question upon the November 2018 Sparks General Election Ballot.

I move to adopt Resolution No. 3334 authorizing the placement of an Advisory Question on the November 2018 Sparks General Election Ballot asking Sparks’ voters if the office of the Sparks City Attorney should continue to be an elected, non-partisan office.