HF 2426

Introduction - 79th Legislature (1995 - 1996)

Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00 a.m.

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to the ethical practices board; authorizing 
  1.3             the board to issue advisory opinions on the fair 
  1.4             campaign practices act and to local officials; 
  1.5             requiring lobbyists to report gifts given to employees 
  1.6             of the legislature; prohibiting lobbyists, political 
  1.7             committees, and political funds from making 
  1.8             contributions while the legislature is in session; 
  1.9             prohibiting principal campaign committees from making 
  1.10            independent expenditures; requiring return of 
  1.11            political contribution receipt forms; amending 
  1.12            Minnesota Statutes 1994, sections 10A.02, subdivision 
  1.13            12; 10A.04, subdivision 4; 10A.065, subdivisions 1 and 
  1.14            3; 10A.27, subdivision 9; and 10A.322, subdivision 4. 
  1.15  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.16     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 10A.02, 
  1.17  subdivision 12, is amended to read: 
  1.18     Subd. 12.  [ADVISORY OPINIONS.] (a) The board may issue and 
  1.19  publish advisory opinions on the requirements of this chapter, 
  1.20  chapter 211B, or section 471.895 based upon real or hypothetical 
  1.21  situations.  An application for an advisory opinion may be made 
  1.22  only by an individual or association who wishes to use the 
  1.23  opinion to guide the individual's or the association's own 
  1.24  conduct.  The board shall issue written opinions on all such 
  1.25  questions submitted to it within 30 days after receipt of 
  1.26  written application, unless a majority of the board agrees to 
  1.27  extend the time limit.  
  1.28     (b) A written advisory opinion issued by the board is 
  1.29  binding on the board in any subsequent board proceeding 
  1.30  concerning the person making or covered by the request and is a 
  2.1   defense in a judicial proceeding that involves the subject 
  2.2   matter of the opinion and is brought against the person making 
  2.3   or covered by the request unless: 
  2.4      (1) the board has amended or revoked the opinion before the 
  2.5   initiation of the board or judicial proceeding, has notified the 
  2.6   person making or covered by the request of its action, and has 
  2.7   allowed at least 30 days for the person to do anything that 
  2.8   might be necessary to comply with the amended or revoked 
  2.9   opinion; 
  2.10     (2) the request has omitted or misstated material facts; or 
  2.11     (3) the person making or covered by the request has not 
  2.12  acted in good faith in reliance on the opinion. 
  2.13     (c) A request for an opinion and the opinion itself are 
  2.14  nonpublic data.  The board, however, may publish an opinion or a 
  2.15  summary of an opinion, but may not include in the publication 
  2.16  the name of the requester, the name of a person covered by a 
  2.17  request from an agency or political subdivision, or any other 
  2.18  information that might identify the requester unless the person 
  2.19  consents to the inclusion. 
  2.20     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 10A.04, 
  2.21  subdivision 4, is amended to read: 
  2.22     Subd. 4.  (a) The report shall include such information as 
  2.23  the board may require from the registration form and the 
  2.24  information required by this subdivision for the reporting 
  2.25  period. 
  2.26     (b) Each lobbyist shall report the lobbyist's total 
  2.27  disbursements on lobbying, separately listing lobbying to 
  2.28  influence legislative action, lobbying to influence 
  2.29  administrative action, and lobbying to influence the official 
  2.30  actions of a metropolitan governmental unit, and a breakdown of 
  2.31  disbursements for each of those kinds of lobbying into 
  2.32  categories specified by the board, including but not limited to 
  2.33  the cost of publication and distribution of each publication 
  2.34  used in lobbying; other printing; media, including the cost of 
  2.35  production; postage; travel; fees, including allowances; 
  2.36  entertainment; telephone and telegraph; and other expenses. 
  3.1      (c) Each lobbyist shall report the amount and nature of 
  3.2   each honorarium, gift, loan, item or benefit, excluding 
  3.3   contributions to a candidate, equal in value to $5 or more, 
  3.4   given or paid to any public or local official or employee of the 
  3.5   legislature by the lobbyist or any employer or any employee of 
  3.6   the lobbyist.  The list shall include the name and address of 
  3.7   each public or local official to whom the honorarium, gift, 
  3.8   loan, item or benefit was given or paid and the date it was 
  3.9   given or paid.  A lobbyist need report only the aggregate amount 
  3.10  and nature of food or beverages given or made available to all 
  3.11  members of the legislature or a house of the legislature or to 
  3.12  all members of a local legislative body, along with the name of 
  3.13  the legislative body and the date it was given or made available.
  3.14     (d) Each lobbyist shall report each original source of 
  3.15  funds in excess of $500 in any year used for the purpose of 
  3.16  lobbying to influence legislative action, each such source of 
  3.17  funds used to influence administrative action, and each such 
  3.18  source of funds used to influence the official action of 
  3.19  metropolitan governmental units.  The list shall include the 
  3.20  name, address and employer, or, if self-employed, the occupation 
  3.21  and principal place of business, of each payer of funds in 
  3.22  excess of $500. 
  3.23     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 10A.065, 
  3.24  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  3.25     Subdivision 1.  [REGISTERED LOBBYIST CONTRIBUTIONS; 
  3.26  LEGISLATIVE SESSION.] A candidate for the legislature or for 
  3.27  constitutional office, a candidate's principal campaign 
  3.28  committee, any other political committee with the candidate's 
  3.29  name or title, any committee authorized by the candidate, or a 
  3.30  political committee established by all or a part of the party 
  3.31  organization within a house of the legislature, shall not 
  3.32  solicit or accept a contribution on behalf of a candidate's 
  3.33  principal campaign committee, any other political committee with 
  3.34  the candidate's name or title, any committee authorized by the 
  3.35  candidate, or a political committee established by all or a part 
  3.36  of the party organization within a house of the legislature, 
  4.1   from a registered lobbyist, political committee, or political 
  4.2   fund during a regular session of the legislature.  The lobbyist, 
  4.3   political committee, or political fund shall not make the 
  4.4   contribution.  
  4.5      Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 10A.065, 
  4.6   subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  4.7      Subd. 3.  [CIVIL PENALTY.] A candidate or, political 
  4.8   committee, political fund, or lobbyist that violates this 
  4.9   section is subject to a civil fine of up to $500.  If the board 
  4.10  makes a public finding that there is probable cause to believe a 
  4.11  violation of this section has occurred, the board shall bring an 
  4.12  action, or transmit the finding to a county attorney who shall 
  4.13  bring an action, in the district court of Ramsey county, to 
  4.14  impose a civil fine as prescribed by the board.  Fines paid 
  4.15  under this section must be deposited in the general fund in the 
  4.16  state treasury. 
  4.17     Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 10A.27, 
  4.18  subdivision 9, is amended to read: 
  4.19     Subd. 9.  (a) A candidate or the treasurer of a candidate's 
  4.20  principal campaign committee shall not accept a transfer or 
  4.21  contribution from another candidate's principal campaign 
  4.22  committee or from any other committee bearing the contributing 
  4.23  candidate's name or title or otherwise authorized by the 
  4.24  contributing candidate, unless the contributing candidate's 
  4.25  principal campaign committee is being dissolved.  A candidate's 
  4.26  principal campaign committee shall not make a transfer or 
  4.27  contribution to another candidate's principal campaign 
  4.28  committee, except when the contributing committee is being 
  4.29  dissolved.  
  4.30     (b) A principal campaign committee shall not make 
  4.31  independent expenditures.  
  4.32     (c) A candidate's principal campaign committee shall not 
  4.33  accept a transfer or contribution from, or make a transfer or 
  4.34  contribution to, a committee associated with a person who seeks 
  4.35  nomination or election to the office of President, Senator, or 
  4.36  Representative in Congress of the United States. 
  5.1      (c) (d) A candidate or the treasurer of a candidate's 
  5.2   principal campaign committee shall not accept a contribution 
  5.3   from a candidate for political subdivision office, unless the 
  5.4   contribution is from the personal funds of the candidate for 
  5.5   political subdivision office.  A candidate or the treasurer of a 
  5.6   candidate's principal campaign committee shall not make a 
  5.7   contribution from the principal campaign committee to a 
  5.8   candidate for political subdivision office. 
  5.9      Sec. 6.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 10A.322, 
  5.10  subdivision 4, is amended to read: 
  5.11     Subd. 4.  [REFUND RECEIPT FORMS; PENALTY.] The board shall 
  5.12  make available to a political party on request and to any 
  5.13  candidate for whom an agreement under this section is effective, 
  5.14  a supply of official refund receipt forms that state in boldface 
  5.15  type that (1) a contributor who is given a receipt form is 
  5.16  eligible to claim a refund as provided in section 290.06, 
  5.17  subdivision 23, and (2) if the contribution is to a candidate, 
  5.18  that the candidate has signed an agreement to limit campaign 
  5.19  expenditures as provided in this section.  The forms must 
  5.20  provide duplicate copies of the receipt to be attached to the 
  5.21  contributor's claim.  A candidate who does not sign an agreement 
  5.22  under this section and who willfully issues an official refund 
  5.23  receipt form or a facsimile of one to any of the candidate's 
  5.24  contributors is guilty of a misdemeanor.  A principal campaign 
  5.25  committee or party unit shall return to the board with its 
  5.26  termination report any official receipt forms that have not been 
  5.27  issued. 
  5.28     Sec. 7.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  5.29     This act is effective July 1, 1996.