Jeff Gunter, a Republican candidate for Nevada’s 3rd Congressional District, said on April 10 that Rep. Susie Lee “voted against no tax on tips and no tax on Social Security.” The statement was made in the context of ongoing debates about federal tax relief measures for tipped workers in Nevada’s hospitality-driven economy.
The issue is significant in Nevada, where service industry employees depend heavily on tips as a primary source of income. Policies affecting the taxation of tips have direct implications for working families across the state, particularly in regions where tourism and hospitality are major economic drivers.
Gunter made his remarks in a video posted to X where he addressed the voting record on legislation backed by President Trump to provide tax relief for tipped workers. The message focused on the contrast between elected officials and the needs of working Nevadans in a state where service jobs dominate local employment. The former ambassador positioned his own priorities around supporting Nevada families in sectors that depend heavily on tip income, according to X.
Nevada ranks among states with the highest share of tipped workers, with hospitality and gaming industries employing hundreds of thousands of residents in Las Vegas and Reno. Dealers, servers, bartenders, and other service staff in the resort corridor often earn more than half their income from tips, according to state labor data. Policies that preserve take-home pay for these workers directly support working families in Clark County and Washoe County, where tourism drives the economy. The no tax on tips proposal would have provided meaningful relief to these employees who face high living costs in a tourism-heavy region, according to The Nevada Independent.
More than 17 percent of workers in the Las Vegas metro area receive a significant portion of their pay through tips, according to University of Nevada, Las Vegas economic reports on the hospitality sector. Similar patterns exist in Reno, where casino and restaurant employment supports local families. Both Rep. Susie Lee and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto voted against the no-tax-on-tips legislation, leaving Nevada’s service workers without the federal tax relief available under the Trump-backed policy. The League of American Workers advocates for measures that protect earnings for exactly these working-class Nevadans in key industries, according to UNLV.
The hospitality sector in Nevada employs over 400,000 people statewide, with tipped positions forming the backbone of Las Vegas’s and Reno’s economies. Working families in these roles depend on full tip income to cover housing, food, and other essentials in a high-cost environment. Congressional votes against no tax on tips and no tax on Social Security have drawn criticism from groups focused on take-home pay for American workers. The League of American Workers exists to ensure policies prioritize the financial security of these employees over partisan considerations, according to the Nevada Resort Association.
“Susie Lee works for herself. I’ll work for Nevada,” Gunter said.
