Audit Methodology

This page explains how we find unusual patterns in Nevada campaign finance data. Every flag is generated by a computer algorithm. Flags are not accusations. They point to patterns that may be worth investigating.

Severity levels

• Alert — Strong pattern that is highly unusual. Worth close investigation.
• Warning — Notable pattern that could indicate an issue. Worth a second look.
• Info — Mild pattern. Common in normal campaigns but logged for completeness.

Structuring detection

Structuring means breaking up a large donation into many smaller ones. This can be a way to avoid attention.

How we detect it: We look for the same donor giving to the same candidate 5 or more times, where the amounts are very similar (standard deviation less than 30% of the average). The total must be over $2,500.

Severity: Warning for 5-9 contributions. Alert for 10 or more.

What it does NOT mean: Many donors give regular amounts on purpose (monthly donations, for example). A flag here does not mean something illegal happened.

Single donor concentration

This flags candidates who get a large share of their money from just one donor.

How we detect it: We find cases where a single donor gave more than 25% of a candidate's total money. The candidate must have raised more than $10,000, and the donor must have given more than $5,000.

Severity: Warning for 25-50%. Alert for 50% or more.

What it does NOT mean: In small races (like school board), one large donation can easily be 25% of the total. This is normal. The flag helps you notice it, not judge it.

Timing clusters

This flags unusual spikes of donations on a single day.

How we detect it: We look for 15 or more contributions to the same candidate on the same day, or a daily total over $50,000.

Severity: Info for 15-29 per day. Warning for 30 or more, or over $50,000.

What it does NOT mean: Fundraising events naturally produce spikes. A flag here may just mean the candidate held a good event.

High out-of-state funding

This flags candidates who get most of their money from outside Nevada.

How we detect it: We calculate what percentage of each candidate's money comes from non-Nevada addresses. Only candidates with more than $10,000 total are checked.

Severity: Info for 60-75%. Warning for 75-90%. Alert for 90% or more.

What it does NOT mean: Federal candidates (like U.S. senators) often raise money from across the country. High out-of-state funding is normal for federal races but unusual for local ones.

Data limitations

Our analysis is only as good as the data. Here are the key limitations:

• No employer or occupation data. The Nevada Secretary of State database does not include employer or occupation for donors. This means we cannot do industry or sector analysis.
• No expenditure payee linking. Payees in expenditure records are not reliably linked to contributor records. We cannot track money flowing between entities.
• Limited contribution types. There are only 4 types: Monetary, In Kind, Written Commitment, and In Kind Written Commitment.
• Nevada has no contribution limits for most state and local races. This means we cannot check for limit violations in most cases.
• Shell company detection requires external data (business registry, ZIP code classification) that we do not currently have.

How to file a complaint

If you believe a campaign finance violation has occurred, you can file a complaint with the Nevada Secretary of State:

• Phone: (775) 684-5708
• Address: 101 N. Carson Street, Suite 3, Carson City, NV 89701

About this analysis

All algorithms run during the site build process. No data is analyzed in real time. Results are baked into static JSON files and rendered as HTML. The source data comes from public records filed with the Nevada Secretary of State.