Clark County Today is taking a brief look at each of the 10 amendments that the Clark County Charter Review Commission passed in expectation of bringing them to the November 2026 General Election

Paul Valencia
Clark County Today

Last week, the Clark County Charter Review Commission, an elected body of 15 members, passed 10 amendments in expectation of being placed on the November 2026 general election ballot.

In this series, Clark County Today is providing more context on each amendment, including quotes from the sponsor of each amendment.

In this story, we look at 26-14, Performance Audits.

According to the charter’s description, if passed by the voters, this amendment would change the charter to make it clear that the County Council, or the Legislative Branch, may conduct or cause to be conducted a performance audit of county finances or programs to review the effectiveness and efficiency of the programs and operations of the county.

This would allow the council to establish a performance-auditing process to independently assess the integrity of the county’s financial systems and records as well as evaluate the effectiveness of the programs.

This amendment, sponsored by Peter Silliman of District 5, passed the commissioners by vote of 13-2.

Silliman opened his presentation by recalling the great Ronald Reagan quote when referring to the Soviet Union and negotiations about nuclear disarmament. Trust but verify.

At the county level, there should be checks and balances, separation of powers, and accountability, Silliman said.

“I don’t think you can have checks and balances if you don’t have the ability to independently verify,” he said. “This is what this is about.”

Silliman also got a few laughs with another comparison. If his wife asks if he has something wrong on his phone, does he simply say no, or does he give his phone to his wife for her to check.

One person in public comment who did not want this amendment to pass noted that many of the commissioners have said that the county already has a spending problem. This would not help.

“There’s already a bunch of audits of various types that occur,” the person said. “This would just allow politicization of the audit process and cost the county more money.

Of note: The meeting on July 8 was to listen to public comment and to vote on the amendments. The sponsor of each amendment gave a brief argument for his or her amendment, but there were no discussions among the commissioners. Those discussions were made in previous Charter Review Commission meetings. In this meeting, it was just a yes or no vote on each amendment.

To see the recap on 26-01, Clarifying Nonpartisan Office Elections, go here: https://www.clarkcountytoday.com/news/charter-review-commission-amendment-26-01-clarifying-nonpartisan-office-elections/

To see the recap on 26-07, Housing Impact Analysis, go here: https://www.clarkcountytoday.com/news/charter-review-commission-amendment-26-07-housing-impact-analysis/

To see the recap on 26-08, Requiring Supermajority Council Approval for County Taxes, go here: https://www.clarkcountytoday.com/news/charter-review-commission-26-08-supermajority-council-approval-for-county-taxes/

To see the recap on 26-10, Revised Budget Transparency and Process, go here: https://www.clarkcountytoday.com/news/charter-review-commission-26-10-revised-budget-transparency-process/