Secretary of state Ross Miller accused of disclosure violation

A national Republican group has sued Nevada Secretary of State Ross Miller, claiming he failed to turn over records that should be made public detailing his travel, compensation, public schedule and cellphone use.

The State Government Leadership Foundation, an affiliate of the Washington-based Republican State Leadership Committee, accused the Democrat of accepting generous gifts and trying to hide his assets.

Among other things, it said he received $5,390 in gifts for attending a conference at the Beverly Hills Hilton and $1,200 tickets to see the show “Jersey Boys.”

The lawsuit was filed Monday in District Court in Carson City. It claims Miller failed to comply with Nevada’s public records law after four separate public records requests were submitted by Timothy Baker on behalf of the foundation in March.

Catherine Lu, Miller’s public information officer, declined to comment on the lawsuit but said work was under way to fulfill the records request.

“However, the request is very extensive — thousands of pages and requires many hours of staff work,” Lu said.

The foundation said it made the requests as part of a review of Senate Bill 49, which would enhance gift and campaign reporting by candidates and elected officials. The bill, sought by Miller, is making its way through the Legislature.

“In order to better understand the bill and the claims made by the bill’s main proponent, SGLF decided to review the public documents related to Secretary Miller’s time in office,” the lawsuit said.

“What we’re finding is that Ross Miller is saying one thing and doing another,” added Matt Walter, managing director of communications and political affairs for the Republican State Leadership Committee.

Miller, the son of former Gov. Bob Miller, is in his last term as secretary of state and has indicated he will run for attorney general in the 2014 election.

The Republican State Leadership Committee recently launched a campaign with a website attacking Miller.

In response, Miller said: “It is no coincidence that on the eve of potential passage of landmark transparency and ethics reform, a shadowy, out-of-state group has attempted to politically smear me with completely unfounded attacks in an effort to derail our legislation.”

Information from: Las Vegas Review-Journal, http://www.lvrj.com