High Penalties, Low Payments
In Nevada, candidates and political action committees must file campaign finance reports on time or risk fines of up to $10,000. But in practice, these penalties rarely translate into full payments.
Over the first 11 months of 2024, the Nevada Secretary of State’s Office assessed more than $440,000 in fines for campaign finance violations. One of the largest—more than $20,000—was levied against the PAC tied to Attorney General Aaron Ford—for which no one is surprised.
Despite these figures, most fines remain unpaid, with many likely to be waived or reduced. The state has little means of enforcement.
The only tool—filing a lawsuit—is too costly and time-consuming, which is why Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar has not pursued a single case in his two years in office.
The problem has prompted officials to push for reform in this year’s legislative session, aiming for a system that ensures accountability without imposing disproportionate penalties. Under current law, candidates and PACs face fines ranging from $25 to $100 each day a report is late, with a $10,000 cap per violation.
However, some of the steepest fines have fallen on candidates in unpaid positions who neither raised nor spent money, contradicting existing rules meant to limit such penalties. Derek Stonebarger, candidate for the Beatty Water and Sanitation Board, was hit with a $18,000 fine—later reduced to $250.
Since 2008, the state has never collected more than $37,000 in campaign finance fines in a single year. During the 2020 election cycle, fines worth more than $2 million were assessed–but over half remain unpaid.
Officials hope legislative changes will provide a balance: strict enough to ensure compliance but reasonable so penalties don’t become punitive exercises in futility.
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