Efforts underway to outlaw brothels in 2 Nevada counties

Brothels in two Nevada counties are facing an uncertain future as referendum petition drives get underway to repeal ordinances that allow their existence. In Nye County, residents filed a referendum petition Tuesday that seeks to strike down the county ordinance that allows legal brothels to operate within its borders, weeks after Lyon County filed a similar measure. The Nye County referendum needs 1,963 valid signatures to qualify for the ballot in Nye, compared with 3,355 needed in Lyon. The deadline to collect enough signatures is June 15. County commissioners in each county will decide in July whether to strike down the ordinance or leave it up to voters. If brothels are banned in the two counties, eight of the state’s 21 brothels would be forced to close.