2021 Legislative Session

In 2021 we fought for critical progressive legislation in health equity, education equity, voting rights, and compressive immigration reform.

The Nevada Legislature adjourned the 2021 session Sine Die on May 31st. For a session that was held primarily online and facing difficult budget restrictions, One APIA Nevada worked throughout the session to ensure the passage of legislation that positively impacted the lives of the Asian Pacific Islander community in Nevada. As the fastest growing community in Nevada, we focus on language justice, healthcare equity, education equity, voting rights, and justice & equity. While the progress made this session is measurable, there are many areas where more work is needed.

Over the course of the 2021 Nevada Legislative Session, we employed a multi-prong approach to advocacy, including social media coverage, creating informational Tik Toks, lobbying, grassroots action, and in-language advocacy. In May, in honor of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, we hosted an in-person APIA Lobby Day with 25+ participants, to lobby on specific issues impacting the API community in Nevada. We met with over 19 legislators throughout the course of the day, and were the first group welcomed into the Capitol and Governor’s Mansion since the shutdown in March 2020.

We shared our experiences with legislators. Our stories about how our limited English proficient (LEP) and immigrant families brought us huge language justice wins. Our APIA small businesses united to testify for a Nevada Public Option and won.

In addition to lobbying, we provided both written and verbal testimony on our priority bills, working in conjunction with other progressive organizations to craft messaging and bring community members to testify on bills. This session, we worked in coalition with the following groups on our legislative priorities: Let Nevadans Vote, LGBTQ+ Equality Coalition, and Nevada Immigrant Coalition (NIC).

AAPI Legislative Caucus

We also want to recognize the important contributions and work of the members in our AAPI Legislative Caucus. First formed in 2019, the caucus currently has four members who identify as Asian American Pacific Islander, including Assembly Minority Whip Glen Leavitt, Assemblywoman Brittney Miller, Assemblywoman Rochelle Nguyen, Assemblywoman Cecelia Gonzalez, and Assemblywoman Selena Torres.

Legislative Advocacy:

✓ AB177 & ✓ SB318—Ensures LEP Nevadans have translated resources when accessing public health information and taking prescription medicines.

✓ AB195—Requires schools to inform parents and students about their rights under the English Language Learner Bill of Rights (ELL BOR).

✓ AB327—Requires mental health providers to take cultural competency courses during licensing renewal, which will ensure more professionals are trained to understand issues such as intergenerational trauma or cultural differences.

✓ AB235—Requires schools to hold FAFSA workshops for students and parents.

✓ AB261—Requires the education of AANHPI history to be taught in K-12 education,

✓ AB371—Ensures that race-based bullying is properly investigated and documented in our schools.

✓ AB321—Extends vote-by-mail expansions from the 2019 Special Session (AB4)

✓ AB126—Changes the voting system in the presidential primary from a caucus system to a primary election.

✓ AB116—Decriminalizes minor traffic violations so Nevadans don’t face jail time for unpaid traffic tickets.

✓ SB219—Ensures Nevadans don’t lose their licenses for unpaid fines and fees

✓ AB376—Funds the UNLV Immigration Clinic, the only full-time pro-bono community advocacy office, and create a task force within the Lieutenant Governor’s office.