Editorial: Let’s get tough with campaign scofflaws

Tuesday, March 11, 2003 | 8:54 a.m.

Secretary of State Dean Heller is upset that former Attorney General Frankie Sue Del Papa didn't file lawsuits against 15 political candidates who failed to turn in their campaign finance reports on time in 2000. Heller noted that the deadline for filing lawsuits against the candidates for infractions was January this year -- but Del Papa didn't do so even after Heller had urged her to take action last July. When Brian Sandoval took over as attorney general in January, he said it wasn't until he asked for a review of the open cases that he discovered the deadline had passed.

Heller, a Republican, and Del Papa, a Democrat, have had run-ins before over the enforcement of election and campaign laws. But Heller has run his office relatively free of partisan politics, and his accusations against Del Papa are troubling. It appears that the Republican Sandoval, who said he will send the matter to the state Bar Association for review, is taking this issue seriously. If enforced, candidates face a fine of $25 for every day their reports are late, with a cap of $5,000.

Lack of aggressive action against candidates who flout campaign finance reporting laws has been a recurring problem in Nevada. Some candidates have treated these laws as if they're a joke because they've known no one will come after them. Those days need to end.