Welfare fraud in Nevada is defined as intentionally misrepresenting or omitting material information in an effort to obtain welfare benefits to which you are not entitled. In 2024, Nevada has seen a whopping 650% increase in welfare fraud.1
Depending on the case, welfare fraud can be prosecuted in state or federal court, or both.
Penalties
A single act of welfare fraud is usually prosecuted as a category E felony. This carries probation, but if you have two or more past felony convictions, the judge can order:
- 1 – 4 years in Nevada State Prison, and/or
- up to $5,000 in fines
If you are convicted on federal charges, the penalties may include hefty fines and time in Federal Prison, depending on the offense.
Defenses
Standard defenses in NRS 422A cases include taking the position that:
- The government made a clerical error,
- You had no intention to defraud, and/or
- The police conducted an unlawful search and seizure
In many cases, Nevada prosecutors are open to plea bargaining charges down to a more minor offense or even a dismissal.
The following graphic shows various ways welfare fraud occurs in Nevada:
In this article, our Las Vegas criminal defense attorneys discuss:
- 1. What is welfare fraud?
- 2. How do I fight the charges?
- 3. Can I go to jail?
- 4. Can I get my case sealed?
- 5. Will I get deported?
- Additional Reading
1. What is welfare fraud?
Nevada’s legal definition of “welfare fraud” is expansive and encompasses dozens of possible offenses committed by benefit recipients and applicants. Just a few of the more common crimes include the following:
- Making false statements in order to receive benefits
- Using a fake ID in order to receive benefits
- Not reporting all your real property or valuable possessions that could offset the benefits
- Secretly accepting benefits from more than one state
- Not reporting income or other monies you have received that could offset your benefits, or make you ineligible
- Not reporting when a child or other dependent leaves the home
- Accepting benefits you are no longer entitled to receive
Welfare office employees can also face allegations of fraud. This typically occurs when they enter incorrect information, either to grant benefits to an ineligible applicant or to deny benefits to an eligible one.
Note that the term “welfare” comprises various state and federal need-based programs, such as:
- Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) a.k.a. food stamps,
- Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF),
- Medicaid,
- Low-Income Home Energy Assistance,
- The Program for Child Care and Development, and
- State Supplementary Assistance2
Nevada’s Division of Welfare and Supportive Services of the Department manages and administers these public assistance programs.
Federal Crimes
Welfare fraud can be both a state and a federal crime.3 Depending on the particularities of the case, the FBI typically brings such fraud charges as mail fraud and/or wire fraud.
In practice, most criminal cases are prosecuted in either state or federal court. However, it is legal for you to face charges in both courts for the same alleged offense.4
2. What are the defenses?
Common defense strategies used to fight allegations of defrauding the Welfare Department include:
- clerical error
- lack of fraudulent intent
- illegal search and seizure
The prosecution bears the burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. If the attorney can show the prosecutor that there is insufficient evidence to meet this high standard or proof, your case may be dismissed.
Clerical Error
Like any bureaucracy, the welfare department is a slow-moving, understaffed agency that makes mistakes. Criminal defense attorney Michael Becker provides an example of how a government error can result in criminal charges for a welfare applicant:
Example: Ava applies for welfare in Las Vegas. By accident, her welfare caseworker inputs the wrong salary, and Ava starts receiving more money that she is entitled to. But Ava committed no crime because the caseworker committed the error, and Ava was unaware of this error or that she was receiving more money that she should have.
The caseworker’s records and communications between you and the agency would be useful evidence in situations like the example above. The case should be dismissed once the prosecutor determines that the mistake lies with the government, not you.
Lack of Fraudulent Intent
Violating NRS 422A is a “specific intent” crime. This means that you should not be convicted unless you had the intent to defraud. Therefore, a typical defense is that you did not deliberately try to deceive anyone.
Example: Catherine applies for welfare in Henderson. By accident, she types one too few zeroes so it appears Catherine is earning ten times less than what she really earns. If caught, Catherine may be arrested and booked at the Henderson Detention Center for violating NRS 422A. But if the defense attorney can show that Catherine made an innocent mistake, the charges should be dropped.
Some Nevada judges may go easy on distressed welfare applicants, such as Catherine in the example above. The welfare system is daunting and requires complex paperwork, so courts expect that law-abiding individuals may unintentionally commit errors.
Illegal Search
Prosecutors amass evidence through police searches and seizures. If the police had performed an illegal search (such as by not getting a search warrant when one was necessary), your defense attorney would file a motion to suppress evidence with the court.
If the court grants the motion, all the illegally obtained evidence will be excluded from your case.5 Then the D.A. may have no choice but to dismiss your case for lack of proof.
3. What are the penalties?
Nevada welfare fraud offenses are typically punished as a category E felony, carrying probation. However, if you have two or more past felony convictions, the judge may impose the following punishment for welfare fraud:
- one to four (1 – 4) years in prison, and
- repayment of any welfare benefits illegally obtained, and
- up to $5,000 in fines6
You may also be ineligible for future welfare benefits.
Federal Penalties
Below are the sentences for federal crimes that may be charged in welfare fraud cases.
| Federal crime | Penalties |
| Mail fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1341) |
|
| Wire fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1343) |
|
| Bank fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1344) |
|
| Interstate transportation of funds obtained by fraud (18 U.S.C. § 2314) |
|
| False statements to a financial institution (18 U.S.C. § 1814 ) |
|
| False statements to a government agency (18 U.S.C. § 1001) |
|
| Identity theft (18 U.S.C. § 1028) |
|
| Aggravated identity theft (18 U.S.C. § 1028A) |
|
| Use of false name or address in mailings (18 U.S. Code § 1342) |
|
| Use of a false Social Security number (42 U.S.C. § 408a) |
|
4. Can I get my welfare fraud case sealed?
If you are convicted of a category E felony for violating NRS 422A, you can usually petition for a Nevada record seal two (2) years after your case ends.7 If your case gets dismissed (so there is no conviction), the record seal process can begin immediately.8
Note that federal criminal convictions can never be sealed (with some exceptions).
5. Can welfare fraud get me deported?
Yes, the Department of Homeland Security has indicated that welfare fraud is a deportable crime.9 Therefore, if you are a non-citizen arrested for NRS 422A charges in Nevada, you should retain an attorney skilled in both immigration law and criminal defense. The attorney would attempt to persuade the prosecutor to either dismiss the charges or downgrade them to non-removable offenses.
Additional Reading
For more in-depth information, refer to these scholarly articles:
- Welfare Fraud and the Fourth Amendment – Pepperdine Law Review
- Broke people, broken rules: Explaining welfare fraud investigators’ attributions – Punishment and Society
- Detecting and preventing welfare fraud – Trends and Issues in Crime and Criminal Justice
- Welfare Law, Welfare Fraud, and the Moral Regulation of the ‘Never Deserving’ Poor – Social and Legal Studies
- Welfare fraud and welfare stigma – Journal of Economic Psychology
Legal References:
- Mike Allen, Welfare fraud sees 650% increase in Nevada, Fox5 KVVU (April 10, 2024).
- NRS 422A; What is Welfare fraud in the State of Nevada?, Division of Welfare and Supportive Services. See also Perelmen v. State (1999) ; Watson v. State (1994) . NRS 422A.065.
- 42 U.S. Code § 608a.
- Bartkus v. Illinois (1959) 359 U.S. 121.
- See Fourth Amendment.
- NRS 422A.700.
- NRS 179.245.
- NRS 179.255.
- Gaynor D. Daleno, DHS memo: Suspects of welfare fraud, other crimes are deportable, The Guam Daily Post (February 22, 2017).
