Congressional candidate to stop paying himself salary from campaign fund

Nevada congressional candidate Andrew Matthews said on Friday he'll stop paying himself a salary from his campaign fund and return the nearly $12,000 he has received since filing as a candidate in late July.

Matthews, a Republican running in the 3rd Congressional District, said his campaign was initially told by the Federal Election Commission that he can collect a salary right away. His new decision was spurred by an inquiry from the Las Vegas Review-Journal that asked him about his salary because a federal rule states candidates cannot collect paychecks from campaign funds until after a state's filing deadline. In Nevada, the filing period for running in the primaries is March 7-18.

Matthews' move to stop collecting a salary is a shift from last week, when he initially said his campaign wasn't changing the practice. Matthews filed as a candidate with the FEC on July 27 and started receiving paychecks right away. He has maintained that the FEC told his campaign on a phone call that he could do so.

"New information has come to light that suggests there's some doubt as to whether that's the case," Matthews said Friday, referencing the newspaper's questions. "We have taken this step on our own to make sure that there is absolutely no doubt as to whether or not we are in compliance."

Matthews had quit his roughly $80,000-a-year job as president of the Nevada Policy Research Institute, a nonprofit conservative think tank. He has been campaigning full time since announcing he's running for the congressional seat, which is an open race because incumbent Rep. Joe Heck, a Republican, is running for the seat of retiring U.S. Sen. Harry Reid, a Democrat.

The next steps, Matthews said, are to talk to the FEC and learn about the process for returning the funds to his campaign war chest.

"I expect we'll be able to get that sorted out in the next few days," Matthews said.

Matthews said his decision isn't because of any request from the FEC or in response to any complaints.

"I do think, unlike a lot of people who do run for office, I'm not someone who's wealthy so this was something that we did," Matthews said. "And I've always been honest with my supporters about it."

Matthews, 37, said he still plans to campaign full time without a salary by relying on his personal finances. It's undecided yet if he'll get a paycheck after the March filing deadline.

"I'll make that work," he said.

Under the rules, candidates cannot be paid a salary that exceeds what they earned the prior year. Nor can they be paid a campaign salary that is higher than what a member of Congress gets.

Matthews' campaign has spent $28,325 total, including the salary, during its first quarter, which ended Sept. 30. He has received $135,867 in contributions and reported $107,541 cash on hand.

The 3rd District includes Henderson, Boulder City and parts of Clark County south to Laughlin and west to California.

Other Republican candidates running are Michael Roberson, Nevada Senate majority leader; Danny Tarkanian, a private sports facility owner; and Annette Teijeiro, a medical doctor. Democrat Jesse Sbaih, an attorney, is also running.

Nevada's primary election will be held June 14, the general election Nov. 8. Members of Congress serve two-year terms. They're paid $174,000 a year, plus benefits.

Contact Ben Botkin at bbotkin@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2904. Follow him: @BenBotkin1