Henderson documents show the city paid over $100M to Water Authority

Want to know how Henderson spent its money last year? Here’s a snapshot of how the city spent its funds in 2023.

Henderson spent the most money outside of payroll, water and retirement benefits, according to city documents, specifically its cash requirements registers.

The cash requirements register is a document required by state law that lists all of a city’s “non-payroll expenditures,” according to city spokesperson Justin Emerson. The registers are ledgers of how Henderson spends its money, not counting paying employees, so any taxpaying Henderson resident can use the registers to see what the city spends its tax money on. The city publishes the register in every other City Council agenda.

The city spent just under $243 million on payroll and $133.7 million on employee benefits last year.

All of the cash requirement registers published in 2023 showed what Henderson spent from Dec. 22, 2022, through Dec. 15, 2023, in one-month increments. During that time, the city spent over half a billion dollars in total reported expenditures.

Henderson paid the most to the Southern Nevada Water Authority during that period, spending over $100 million, according to the cash requirements registers. The city spent over $65 million on retirement benefits under the Public Employee Retirement Benefit System and paid just under $17.9 million to the Bank of New York Mellon, which provides investment management and services, according to its website.

The city paid just under $17 million to McCarthy Building Companies Inc. and over $11 million last year to the Clark County treasurer, and over $10 million for Teamsters Local 14 health insurance.

Henderson also spent $7 million on Wells Fargo expense cards last year, which Emerson described as “city company credit cards for approved department expenses,” like airfare, gas costs and room fares for trips regarding city business, among other expenses.

The city also spent millions on entities such as construction and development companies, service providers and local institutions such as the school district.

One of those construction companies is Las Vegas Paving, which holds multiple contracts with the city and employs Henderson Mayor Michelle Romero’s husband and son. Though Romero refused herself from voting on contracts with the company, Las Vegas Paving received just over $9.6 million from the city.

Contact Mark Credico at mcredico@reviewjournal.com. Follow him on Instagram @writermark2.