LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The history of Juneteenth in Nevada goes back more than a decade, but the celebration is back in the news in part because of a gubernatorial veto of a commission to educate the public about the holiday.
Juneteenth recognizes the day in 1865 when a Union Army general informed slaves in Galveston, Texas, that they were free. It's been celebrated ever since.
VIDEO: President of Juneteenth Nevada reacts to Lombardo rejecting idea for committee to promote Juneteenth
In Nevada, the 2011 Legislature passed Assembly Bill 174, which required the governor to annually proclaim "Juneteenth Day" in the state.
"The proclamation must call upon the news media, educators and appropriate governmental officers to bring to the attention of Nevada’s residents the historical significance of the day when the last slaves in the United States were emancipated and the significant contributions of African-Americans to the State," the law reads.
Then in 2023, Gov. Joe Lombardo signed Assembly Bill 140, which elevated Juneteenth to an official state holiday. State and local government offices are closed on June 19 to commemorate the day.
But also in 2023, Assembly Bill 409 was introduced to create the Juneteenth Education and Economic Commission within the state Department of Tourism.
The commission's duties were to create and distribute Juneteenth educational materials, work with businesses and nonprofit groups to support education on the significance of Juneteenth, and to support programs and events to commemorate the day.
The bill — which would have created a Juneteenth fund — passed the Assembly's Revenue Committee but died in the Ways and Means Committee without ever getting a vote on the Assembly floor.
This year, things worked out differently.
Lombardo vetoed a host of measures recognizing special days or months in the state, including Diwali Day, Delores Huerta Day, Indigenous People's Day, Muslim American Heritage Month, Women Veterans History Month and Menopause Awareness Month.
WATCH | Steve Sebelius reports on the record-braking number of bills Lombardo vetoed this year
In each veto message, Lombardo said a version of the same thing: "Currently, there is no need to codify additional months into law. There is already an administrative process to request that a day, week, or month be proclaimed by the Governor."
Any resident can request a day be designated on the governor's website.
But Assemblymen Reuben D'Silva, Jovan Jackson and state Sen. Dina Neal, all D-Clark County, decided to bring back the idea of a Juneteenth Educational and Economic Commission in the form of Assembly Bill 328.
The bill passed, but on mostly party-line votes.
When it got to Lombardo, however, the governor used his veto pen to say no.
"While honoring Juneteenth is a worthy goal, we must approach new spending and mandates with care, especially during a period of economic uncertainty and increasing budgetary pressures," Lombardo wrote in his veto message.
He specifically objected to language in the bill that said local governments "shall, to the extent practicable, contribute to the [Juneteenth] fund."
"This language risks creating unintended disparities: communities with limited financial resources could feel discouraged from celebrating Juneteenth due to the perception of a funding requirement. Cultural recognition should not depend on a locality's ability to pay," Lombardo added.
The veto was a blow to the group Juneteenth Nevada, which has worked for years to raise awareness of the history behind the holiday.
"The first one would have to be disappointment, because we had figured, once we had made it through the voting process — and it was done on the last day of the Assembly — we still felt that it was a done deal, just a matter of waiting until it made it up the pile for him to sign. So disappointment," said Deborah Evans, president of Juneteenth Nevada.
Evans said Juneteenth supporters would not give up the idea of a commission with funding to do education and Juneteenth programs in Nevada, including a scholarship program for young women.
But she also said the money would be used for research into the history of Black Americans. "So these are the stories that have been hidden and have not been told," Evans said. "And we are trying to get these stories investigated. We want to vet. We don;t want to just say we heard. We go through the newspapers and we can prove where these things were done."
Asked what she thought of Lombardo's veto, Evans called it "an excuse," saying the bill was supported by Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, the three largest cities in the state.
And Evans said now is the time to spread awareness. "I have your attention," she said. "Let me get all the information I can now, word of mouth, because we are grassroots. We don't have the budget for marketing. We are grassroots. We need you to pass the word on to your neighbor."
Because the Juneteenth commission bill was vetoed after the 2025 Legislature adjourned, it will return to the 2027 Legislature for a possible override vote. No bills vetoed in 2023 were taken up by this session's lawmakers for overrides, however.
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