Nevada's $68 billion leisure and hospitality sector, centered on the concentration of huge hotels and casinos in Las Vegas, employs directly or indirectly more than a quarter of the state's work force. The gaming industry is the largest contributor of state and local taxes. Nevada ranks as the country's fourth most tourism-dependent state, trailing behind the larger states of Texas, California and Florida.
With coronavirus-related restrictions continuing to limit event attendance and depress visitor levels, employment in the sector in September 2020 was down 16% from a year ago to 298,600. That drop is a major contributor to a rise in the state's unemployment rate to 12.6% in September from 3.7% a year ago.