Lombardo Called It ‘The Biggest Scandal’ in Nevada History. Then He Gave the Same Lobbyist Access to His Own Budget.

Joe Lombardo won the governor’s race accusing his predecessor of letting a lobbyist’s influence compromise public safety. Weeks after taking office, he quietly brought that same lobbyist in to help build his own state budget.

Shortly after winning the 2022 governor’s race, Lombardo turned to lobbyist Mike Willden for help building Nevada’s state budget, giving Willden access to confidential budget documents during the process, according to records of Lombardo’s transition.

During his campaign, Lombardo had accused then-Gov. Steve Sisolak of favoritism tied to the same lobbyist, over the licensing of a COVID-19 testing lab connected to a campaign donor’s family. Lombardo’s campaign described the matter as the biggest scandal in the state’s history at the time.

Willden’s name did not appear on the publicly announced list of people Lombardo appointed to his formal transition team, even as he was given access to confidential budget materials and a role advocating for state funding that could affect his own lobbying clients.

The owner of the lobbying firm employing Willden said in a statement that Willden volunteered hundreds of hours to help Lombardo’s transition team with the budget, and said none of Willden’s clients materially benefited from his involvement in the process.

Nevada’s lobbyist disclosure rules require registered lobbyists to report which clients they represent during legislative sessions, but those rules do not extend to informal advisory roles during a governor’s transition period, when a lobbyist’s involvement in shaping a state budget can occur with limited public visibility.

Ben Kieckhefer, Lombardo’s eventual chief of staff, said in comments at the time that the campaign-era criticism of lobbyist influence wasn’t on his mind when Willden was brought in to help prepare the state’s $11.4 billion two-year budget.

Lombardo ran for governor on the idea that a lobbyist’s quiet access to state government was a scandal large enough to define his opponent’s legacy. Within weeks of winning, he gave a different lobbyist that same access to his own administration’s budget — and called it volunteer work.