Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar and his office are proposing a wide range of legislation in the upcoming legislative session addressing Nevada’s elections and business systems, from regulating the use of artificial intelligence to modernizing commercial recordings.
“Everything we’re trying to do is really focused on ‘how does it impact the Nevadan?’” Aguilar said. “How do we take the politics out of the conversation? How do we work in a collaborative way to get people to come to the table to drive a solution forward?”
Here are five bills that could make their way through the legislative process and be signed into law.
1. Artificial intelligence in elections
Assembly Bill 73 would require campaign-related communications, such as an advertisement or a request for donation, to disclose whether it has been manipulated with artificial intelligence. It also would create a public database for communications that have disclosed the use of AI for both the public and the secretary of state to review.
“It is making sure that voters have accurate information, that they’re getting correct information, or if they’re being given synthetic media that they are made aware that it’s synthetic media,” Aguilar said.
2. Voting changes
A sweeping election bill, Senate Bill 74, proposes several changes to the state’s election systems, including allowing for people with disabilities or physical barriers to vote online using the state’s EASE program and requiring the secretary of state to adopt a cyber-incident response plan for elections.
It also proposes changing the voter registration party affiliation process. If someone registers to vote without an affiliated party, it would list affiliation as “no political party” rather than “nonpartisan.”
Through another election-related bill yet to be numbered, Aguilar would also like to expand the use of EASE to include people in local jails.
He will also address issues Aguilar and clerks observed through the 2024 election, such as ensuring that the counties have the resources to process ballots in a timely manner.
Clark County had 98 percent of the ballots on hand election night, and 90 percent of the results were released that night, Aguilar said. That remaining 8 to 10 percent needs to become more efficient, he said.
“The clerks have done a phenomenal job; our elections went well,” Aguilar said. “It’s the processing that we really have to focus on, and we know that’s our issue.”
3. Campaign finances
Assembly Bill 79 makes changes to campaign finances in the state in order to align with the Federal Election Commission and clarifies the roles of political action committees, according to Aguilar.
It includes authorizing an elected public officer to use unspent campaign contributions to pay for child care costs, caring for an elderly parent or for health insurance premiums if they wouldn’t be able to afford it due to serving in office.
4. Fund for investment fraud victims
Aguilar will also re-introduce Senate Bill 76 to create a fund that would compensate victims of securities fraud. The goal of the fund is not only to compensate victims of fraud so they are not completely set back, but also to encourage people to come forward and hold bad actors accountable, he said.
Investment fraud impacts the retirement community heavily, Aguilar said, and “when you’ve worked really hard your whole life to build up a savings to be able to live the life you want to live, and you’ve been a victim of fraud, it sets you back,” he said.
5. Commercial licensing
Senate Bill 75 concerns commercial recordings and seeks to expand language access for Nevadans by allowing forms to be filed in different languages other than English. It also would allow the secretary of state to better respond to the market by adjusting the price of the state business license, according to Aguilar.
Aguilar said his goal is for Nevada to compete with states like Delaware, which is considered to be the “king of the business file” and great at attracting businesses. If the secretary of state has flexibility to respond to market conditions, the state can be more competitive, Aguilar said.
“We want to be the Delaware of the West,” he said. “We need to be aggressive in making sure business owners understand why Nevada is the place to do business.”
Contact Jessica Hill at jehill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @jess_hillyeah on X.
