Commentary: Democrats swept Nevada. Now protect all workers.

Aaron Ford defeated Governor Joe Lombardo, leading a historic Democratic sweep of every statewide office. Nevadans have delivered a clear mandate to Democratic leadership. Now, voters expect them to deliver tangible improvements to daily life and lower the cost of living. A meaningful portion of that political capital ought to be invested directly in protecting the Nevadans who work for themselves.

That constituency includes nearly 100,000 independent workers, and nearly three times that when you include solo business operators. Standard social safety net programs are traditionally delivered through traditional employment structures, leaving self-employed individuals entirely on their own. When a client refuses to pay or contract work dries up, freelancers have no unemployment benefits to fall back on, no cost-effective legal avenues, and no PTO.

The state’s immediate priority should be passing guaranteed payment protections. When a client fails to pay a freelancer, there is no corporate payroll department to contact and no wage enforcement law to lean on. Freelancers are forced to resend invoices, send polite follow-up emails, and weigh whether pursuing unpaid earnings is worth risking the business relationship and hard-earned savings if there is any. 

Nevada should mandate written contracts, set strict payment deadlines, prohibit retaliation against workers who claim unpaid fees, and establish a clear right to sue delinquent clients. Proven models already exist: California’s Freelance Worker Protection Act, Illinois’s Freelance Worker Protection Act, and New York’s Freelance Isn’t Free Act require client payments according to contractual terms or within 30 days, backed by formal legal recourse.

Full disclosure: I serve on the board of the Freelancers Union, which actively advocated for these laws.

Securing affordable health insurance remains one of the most significant hurdles for self-employed workers. Without an employer to subsidize monthly premiums, freelancers absorb the entire expense directly. Rates for plans purchased through Nevada’s state health insurance exchange are set to increase by an average of 17% for 2027. While federal tax credits offset costs for some buyers, rate hikes disproportionately impact independent workers paying out-of-pocket.

Nevada already possesses a starting foundation: under a federally approved waiver, the state marketplace provides targeted premium relief to eligible residents. Nevada should expand this model by offering dedicated, state-funded premium assistance specifically tailored to freelancers, ensuring their solo health coverage costs remain manageable. 

Another critical vulnerability occurs during sudden work stoppages. Unlike traditional employees who can claim unemployment benefits after a layoff, independent workers in Nevada do not pay into the state unemployment trust fund and are legally barred from collecting assistance. Periods without contract work must be financed entirely through personal savings.

To bridge this gap, Nevada should establish a dedicated unemployment coverage framework for self-employed individuals, providing temporary income support between client projects. Because no state currently operates such a framework, designing it presents novel administrative questions. 

Specifically, verifying when contract work has legitimately stopped poses a hurdle: a California Employment Development Department study concluded that without standardized employer wage reporting, validating active work status is uniquely complex. However, mandatory written contracts, coupled with 1099 reporting requirements, would give Nevada the exact verification tools needed to solve this problem.

Paid leave presents a similar financial hazard when a freelancer experiences illness or welcomes a child, income halts entirely. States like Washington, Oregon, Massachusetts, and several others allow self-employed workers to opt into state-managed paid family leave programs. 

Nevada lawmakers should explicitly resolve this in the statutory text by naming independent contractors and granting them automatic coverage for paid leave, sick days, and disability benefits without requiring complex opt-in procedures. As legislative proceedings begin in February, lawmakers must ensure that “all workers” truly includes the self-employed workers.

Sustaining these protections requires a reliable funding mechanism, which should be financed by the hiring businesses. Contracting companies should be legally mandated to make automatic contributions into portable benefit accounts for every freelancer they engage. These accounts would remain tied to the individual worker across client relationships, funding health coverage, paid sick time, and disability protections. 

Corporate opponents will undoubtedly argue that mandatory benefit contributions raise hiring costs, which is accurate. Businesses frequently utilize contract labor specifically to lower payroll overhead by omitting benefit contributions. That cost savings comes directly at the expense of freelancer security, and closing that loophole is precisely the goal. 

Critics may also push to make benefit contributions voluntary. Nevada has already considered this approach: a voluntary portable benefits bill sponsored by Republican Senator Lori Rogich passed the Senate in 2025 before expiring at the end of the session. That proposal left employer contributions optional and allowed businesses to deduct contribution costs directly from freelancer pay upon written consent. Similar voluntary frameworks exist in Louisiana and Utah.

The core flaw of voluntary systems is economic: low participation rates inevitably drive up individual costs, discouraging enrollment. California offers elective disability insurance to self-employed residents, yet in 2023, only 1,509 individuals enrolled out of a total self-employed workforce of over one million. This dismal turnout demonstrates why opt-in models consistently fail to deliver real protection.

The Nevada Legislature convenes on February 1, 2027, and the official bill drafting list is filling rapidly. At present, no requested measure specifically references independent workers, freelancers, or the self-employed in its title, leaving general paid leave as the sole active policy discussion.

Key legislative leaders are well-positioned to champion these reforms. Elaine Marzola, the incoming Assembly Speaker, previously chaired the Assembly Commerce and Labor Committee, while Julie Pazina led the Senate Commerce and Labor Committee in 2025. Both committees hold jurisdiction over labor legislation.

Assemblymember Selena La Rue Hatch has pledged to reintroduce paid family leave legislation in 2027, providing an ideal vehicle to include freelance protections. Ultimately, Governor Aaron Ford holds final authority to sign these measures into law.

With unified control, Nevada Democrats have a clear path forward. Models from California, Illinois, and New York offer proven solutions for wage protections, leaving Nevada to craft statutory safeguards for its growing freelance workforce. 

Passing these protections is entirely a matter of political will. Democrats can either build an economy that works for everyone who labors in Nevada, or prove that independent workers simply don’t count.