Governor Steve Sisolak wants to create a statewide Office for New Americans to help immigrants adjust to working and living in America.
He addressed it in his State of the State address, and now a State Senate committee has introduced a bill to make it a reality.
But it was met with mixed emotions in Carson City, by those who think serving the undocumented is equivalent to rewarding people who break laws.
“It did get pretty tense at one point,” Michelle Rindels who writes for the Nevada Independent told KNPR's State of Nevada about the hearing for the bill.
“There was kind of a sense among the opponents that this would be rewarding or abetting illegal immigration,” she said.
Rindell said some people opposed to the idea continued to use the word "illegals" until one senator finally said they wouldn't refer to human beings as 'illegal' and asked that everyone refer to people as "undocumented."
She also said there was a man silently holding a sign that read "Stop the Illegal Invasion."
Some immigration activists were concerned and felt harassed by the protester but as Rindels pointed out there is a free speech issue in the case.
Those who support the idea argue legal status shouldn't matter.
“The proponents of the bill say that people go through a lot of different statues in their lifetime," she said, “It is difficult to say that someone has to be of a certain legal status to get these services.”
The services in question aren't public assistance but instead would be better access to state services, including business licenses or occupational license.
Proponents also argue a clearinghouse for information about the state could cut down on fraud through notarios. In Latin America, notarios are considered a prestigious person with good information but that is not necessarily the case in the United States.
Notarios have become infamous for giving out bad information, improperly filing immigration paperwork or even defrauding clients.
Under the current bill, the Office for New Americans wouldn't handle immigration or legal issues, Rindel said.
“There is definitely a need for those legal services but I think the proposal is starting at a more basic level,” she said, “It would start out as an office based in Vegas but one of its chief projects would be a website that would have resources to help folks who are immigrants better access state services.”
If the bill is passed, the office would be set up for around $400,000.
Michelle Rindels, reporter, The Nevada Independent