In the last installment of our legislative "Follow the Money" series for 2021, we break down more than $2.8 million in legislative campaign spending from more than a dozen major industries.

Cox Communications, which is involved in a public-private partnership to bridge the digital divide, announced that it’s doubling the download speed for its low-income internet service called Connect2Compete.

If there is one thing Kennet Guerra has learned this year, it’s patience. The tenth-grader who attends Valley High School has been battling chronic internet problems amid remote learning. Freezing screens. Long upload times. Sudden program shutdowns.

Incumbent Democrats no longer universally led the money race in Nevada’s most competitive congressional districts, marking the first quarter this election cycle that a Republican — District 3’s Dan Rodimer — led all fundraising among the state’s congressional hopefuls.

Connect2Compete, the company’s program providing internet access to low-income families who qualify for government benefits, was first established in 2012 and has been greatly expanded in the past several weeks, with the company now offering two free months of service to those in need.

Details from the 2019 contribution and expenses reports, due on Jan. 15, detailed how much legislative incumbents and candidates raised over the last calendar year and painted a more hopeful picture for Republicans in several “swing” Assembly races, with a more mixed view in competitive state Senate seats.

The deal, which is up for approval at the water authority’s board meeting on Thursday, is worth $2.5 million with an automatic annual four percent increase that will see the annual payment top out at about $3.5 million by 2029.

The collected data offers a picture, though, of how the most powerful and well-connected industries in Nevada — gaming, energy and organized labor — contribute to campaigns and offers a glimpse at how legislative campaigns are funded and operate. It also lends useful context as the 120-day Legislature gets underway, and lawmakers face pressure and requests from the very same businesses and entities that helped fund their campaigns.