Political career
Harris was elected to the Nevada Senate in 2014, representing the 9th district. During the 2015 legislative session, she chaired the Senate Education Committee and participated in the development of education legislation that was characterized at the time as a major reform package. She subsequently served as Republican co-caucus policy coordinator and held assignments on the Senate Judiciary, Finance, Education, and Commerce, Labor and Energy committees.
Harris resigned from the Senate in January 2018 after being appointed chair of the Nevada Gaming Control Board. Her resignation created a vacancy in Senate District 9 during the 2018 election cycle.
Nevada Gaming Control Board
In 2018, Harris was appointed chair of the Nevada Gaming Control Board, becoming the first woman to lead the agency. She served as chair from 2018 to 2019. The board regulates commercial gaming in Nevada and oversees licensing and regulatory matters involving the state's gaming industry.
Her tenure coincided with increased national attention to the regulation of sports wagering following the 2018 repeal of the federal prohibition on state-authorized sports betting. Harris was navigated regulatory issues arising from the expansion of sports betting following the repeal of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, the relationship between legalized recreational cannabis and gaming regulation, sexual-harassment issues in the gaming industry, and questions concerning the federal Wire Act.
Harris subsequently became a commentator and author on sports-betting regulation, including through her work at the International Gaming Institute at UNLV.
Academic and professional career
Harris has been associated with UNLV in several academic and professional capacities. She is currently a Distinguished Fellow in Gaming and Leadership with Lifelong Learning at UNLV and a visiting professor at the William S. Boyd School of Law. Her areas of teaching and research include gaming policy, gaming regulation, sports betting, legislative affairs, casino law, and anti-money-laundering regulation and workforce development.
At Boyd Law, Harris teaches the Gaming Law and Policy Seminar, Anti-Money Laundering in Gaming Law, and Resort Hotel Casino Law. Her work also includes education and training involving gambling regulators and other participants in the gaming regulatory system.
Harris has also worked with UNLV's International Center for Gaming Regulation and has participated in research and educational programs concerning sports betting, esports, gambling regulation, and workforce development.
In addition to her academic work, Harris is a commissioner of the Uniform Law Commission. Her work with the organization has included participation in committees dealing with college-athlete name, image and likeness issues, electronic wills, common-interest ownership, virtual currency consumer protection, and deepfake-related legislation.
Harris served as a non-executive director of PointsBet Holdings, an Australian sports-betting company, from 2019 until October 2025. She left the board following the company's acquisition by MIXI Australia and the subsequent reconstitution of its board. PointsBet announced the resignation of Harris and four other directors in October 2025.
