A Day in Honor of The Centennial Birthday of William J. Raggio

WHEREAS, William J. Raggio was born on October 30, 1926, in Reno, Nevada, and would have celebrated his one hundredth birthday on October 30, 2026; and

WHEREAS, William J. Raggio, a fourth generation Nevadan, was educated in the Reno public schools; and

WHEREAS, during World War II, William J. Raggio entered Naval Officer Candidate training, and later was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps; after his military service, he received his B.A. from the University of Nevada, Reno, before going on to receive his J.D. from the University of California; and

WHEREAS, William J. Raggio was elected District Attorney of Washoe County in 1958, an office he held until 1970; while District Attorney, he was named "Outstanding Prosecutor in the United States" and elected President of the National District Attorneys Association; and 

WHEREAS, William J. Raggio was first elected to the Nevada Senate from Washoe County in November 1972 and served over 38 years until January 2011, having the longest Senate service in the history of Nevada; Senator Raggio served as Senate Majority Floor Leader in 1987-1989 and 1993-2008, making him the longest serving Senate Majority Floor Leader in Nevada history; he also served as Senate Minority Floor Leader for 6 regular and 4 special sessions; and 

WHEREAS, Senator Raggio was Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance in the regular sessions of 1987-1989 and 1993-2007, and served as either Chairman or Vice Chairman of the Interim Finance Committee during that same time period; and Senator Raggio served as Chairman of the Legislative Committee on Education in 1997-1998, 2001-2002, and 2005-2006; and

WHEREAS, among his legislative accomplishments, Senator Raggio sponsored Nevada's Education Reform Act, perhaps the most important education measure in State history; established the Nevada Economic Forum to provide nonpartisan, technical projections of state revenue; authored legislation providing comprehensive regional planning in Washoe County; and was honored as the "Father of the Airport Authority" in recognition of his legislation creating that entity; and

WHEREAS, Senator Raggio received numerous national awards and honors over the years for his legislative service, including the elected National Chairman of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) in 1993; the Lifetime Achievement Award of the National Italian American Foundation in 1999; and ALEC honoring him by establishing the William J. Raggio Excellence in Leadership and Outstanding Service Award; 

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOE LOMBARDO, GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, do hereby proclaim October 30, 2026, as a day in honor of 

THE CENTENNIAL BIRTHDAY OF WILLIAM J. RAGGIO