A Henderson antheral who ran unsuccessfully for politician this twelvemonth is calling for much transparency astir consulting relationships involving the politician and different City Council members that helium says person led them to recuse themselves from votes connected section matters.
Adam Price, president of the Henderson Democratic Club, filed a ailment against Mayor Michelle Romero to the Nevada Commission connected Ethics connected Aug. 3.
“If members of Henderson City Council, including Michelle Romero and others, person formed LLCs and person recused themselves from voting connected matters due to the fact that they person stated they ‘consulted connected this project,’ past it is tenable for the nationalist to inquire for greater transparency,” the ailment states.
For her part, Romero said she is cautious to abstain from voting connected issues that could beryllium perceived arsenic a struggle of interest.
Price, successful a telephone interview, said helium doesn’t deliberation that immoderate City Council subordinate should “have a concern that is doing concern with immoderate developer that comes earlier the city,” adding that it’s a “huge struggle of interest.”
“I deliberation it is successful the champion involvement of Henderson residents to cognize precisely however overmuch they were paid and what precisely they consulted on,” helium added.
On Aug. 8, Price posted astir his ailment connected Facebook and attached fiscal disclosure forms from Romero, arsenic good arsenic Councilmen Jim Seebock and Dan Stewart, who each database fiscal interests successful businesses beyond their relation arsenic a assembly member.
Romero, who is seeking her 2nd word arsenic mayor, responded to the post, accusing Price of defaming her.
“I had a sole proprietorship with 1 client, Union Village, for respective years; however, I haven’t worked for them successful astir 2 years due to the fact that my enactment was complete,” Romero wrote. “I canceled my concern licence and fto my authorities licence expire. Your continued slander and attempts to defame of (sic) my quality volition not beryllium tolerated.”
Price finished 3rd down Romero and ex-Henderson Police Department Chief Hollie Chadwick during this year’s nonpartisan mayoral superior and has since endorsed Chadwick, who is the lone challenger to Romero to beforehand to the Nov. 10 wide election.
Romero: Consulting gig ‘extremely sporadic’
Responding to emailed questions seeking wherefore Romero continued her enactment with Union Village aft becoming an elected official, the politician told the Las Vegas Review-Journal her enactment mostly centered astir ensuring the improvement was pursuing indispensable requirements and regulations.
Union Village is simply a master-planned assemblage adjacent Galleria Drive and Interstate 11 that, according to its website, offers a “promenade” of retail, amusement and edifice options, residential abstraction and a “world-class” healthcare complex.
“My enactment for Union Village was highly sporadic, and lone progressive ensuring they complied with each requirements successful the agreements that were progressive successful the project,” Romero said successful an Aug. 18 email. “I appropriately abstained from immoderate items that came earlier assembly related to this task and was walled disconnected from immoderate unit treatment regarding national village.”
Price is not the archetypal idiosyncratic to rise concerns implicit the usage of consulting companies by Henderson officials.
Councilwoman Carrie Cox told Metropolitan Police Department detectives successful June 2025 that she and different assembly members were told — by an entity whose sanction was redacted from a transcript — that if they acceptable up consulting companies, they would person concern from radical who had pending matters earlier the City Council.
Cox, who is accused of illegally signaling a backstage speech involving Councilwoman Monica Larson and others, has repeatedly denied wrongdoing successful that case. A proceedings is scheduled to statesman successful District Court successful October.
“There is simply a batch of corruption,” Cox told detectives, according to a transcript.
Years of disclosures
Romero’s business, Michelle Romero Consulting, was formed successful 2016 and expired Feb. 28, according to Nevada caput of authorities records. Before being elected politician successful 2022, Romero was the manager of the Henderson Redevelopment Agency from 2007 until 2016 and was archetypal elected to the Henderson City Council successful 2019, according to the city’s website.
While Romero’s run says the scope of her enactment with Union Village has concluded, arsenic precocious arsenic the Jan. 6 Henderson City Council meeting, wherever officials adopted the 4th amendment to the Park Agreement for the Union Village development, Romero disclosed having a struggle of involvement and abstained from voting connected the docket item.
Before Romero joined the City Council, she testified astatine a Feb. 19, 2019, City Council gathering connected Union Village’s behalf connected a presumption to widen a deadline connected the development’s Park Agreement. Since joining the council, Romero has disclosed her consulting narration with Union Village and has abstained from voting connected matters related to the improvement astatine slightest 11 times, a Review-Journal reappraisal of Henderson City Council meetings, agendas and minutes found.
In 2023, Romero voted to o.k. a concern licence for a massage concern operating successful the Union Village development, and successful 2025, she voted to o.k. a restricted gaming and liquor licence for a tavern successful the development, according to metropolis records.
The politician besides often discloses an ongoing struggle and abstains from voting connected matters related to Las Vegas Paving Corp., which employs her hubby and son.
Cox said successful a substance connection connected Friday that repeated recusals negatively interaction constituents.
“As elected leaders, our work is to ballot connected behalf of the people,” Cox said. “When a person cannot formed a ballot they neglect to talk for the taxpayers who mightiness reason oregon enactment the docket item.”
Boyd Law School subordinate dean Benjamin Edwards said the state’s morals laws are designed to promote nationalist officials to disclose matters that could hinder their judgement.
“If idiosyncratic had a struggle due to the fact that of immoderate enactment they had done, either portion they were a nationalist authoritative oregon earlier they were a nationalist official, and they disclosed that they had a struggle and they were going to abstain from participating oregon voting connected a matter, that is simply a bully thing,” Edwards said.
Other concern dealings
Seebock formed Bock Consulting Ltd. successful 2024 but the institution has since dissolved, according to caput of authorities records. Seebock’s fiscal disclosure signifier besides lists him arsenic having a fiscal involvement successful Feelz Inc., which helium described during an August telephone interrogation arsenic a exertion broadside concern of his that has nary engagement with City Council affairs.
Seebock, a 30-year seasoned of the Metropolitan Police Department, said his consulting institution was acceptable up successful bid to supply information grooming and consulting for 1 client, but was ne'er hired. Seebock said Bock Consulting closed successful January of this year.
“I nary longer person it,” Seebock said. “And I didn’t prosecute immoderate different enactment related to it due to the fact that I stayed focused connected City Council business.”
Councilman Dan Stewart did not respond to aggregate requests for comment, but reported having respective concern interests, including Valley Construction Company, Nevada Rock and Sand Co., DM Stewart Investments LLC and others. The city’s website states Stewart is the president of Valley Construction arsenic good arsenic the vice president of improvement for Gardner Company, which helped make the UNLV Harry Reid Research and Technology Park.
Councilwoman Monica Larson does not database immoderate concern interests connected her fiscal disclosure form. She did not respond to requests for comment.
Cox has served connected the committee of Lutheran Social Services of Nevada, a nonprofit whose operations were suspended successful October amid fiscal turmoil and allegations of mismanagement, according to erstwhile Review-Journal reporting. Cox’s fiscal disclosure signifier besides reported income from a kid attraction business.
City: No rules connected extracurricular employment for mayor, assembly members
Edwards, the UNLV dean, said the Henderson City Council serves part-time and that it is not antithetic for assembly members to enactment intimately with the backstage assemblage successful their backstage capacity.
The metropolis of Henderson Ethics Code requires that full-time employees indispensable person support from their section manager and quality resources successful bid to question extracurricular employment. The metropolis does not person a argumentation that governs extracurricular employment for the politician oregon assembly members, a metropolis spokesperson said successful an email.
According to Price, disclosures and recusals are not bully capable to guarantee nationalist officials are acting transparently.
“Those assembly members inactive person power implicit the different assembly members to walk a ballot successful their favor,” careless if they recuse themselves, Price said.
It is unclear whether the Nevada Commission connected Ethics volition beforehand Price’s complaint.
But careless of wherever it goes, Price vowed to effect alteration by pushing for greater disclosure requirements — astatine either the authorities oregon national level.
“I’m talking to 2 congresswomen astir putting immoderate benignant of legislative enactment guardant to marque definite this isn’t going connected successful Las Vegas and North Las Vegas and Henderson,” Price said.
Contact Casey Harrison astatine charrison@reviewjournal.com. Follow @Casey_Harrison1 connected X.
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