as introduced - 90th Legislature (2017 - 2018) Posted on 02/09/2017 01:47pm
A bill for an act
relating to state government; prohibiting individuals and private associations from
providing certain gifts to officials; amending Minnesota Statutes 2016, section
10A.071, subdivisions 2, 3.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
Minnesota Statutes 2016, section 10A.071, subdivision 2, is amended to read:
new text begin (a) new text end A lobbyist or principal may not give a gift or
request another to give a gift to an official. An official may not accept a gift from a lobbyist
or principal.
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(b) An individual or private association, regardless of whether the individual or private
association is a lobbyist or principal, may not give an official a gift in the form of preferential
admission to an event held in a publicly owned event or entertainment facility, if the purpose
for giving the gift is due to the recipient's status as an official. For purposes of this paragraph,
"preferential admission" includes, but is not limited to:
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(1) free or discounted admission tickets or parking privileges;
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(2) free or discounted access to private suites, premium seating areas, or premium event
experiences; and
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(3) early or priority access to purchase tickets, ticket upgrades, or premium event
experiences for the event.
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An official may not accept a gift that an individual or private association is prohibited from
giving under this paragraph.
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Minnesota Statutes 2016, section 10A.071, subdivision 3, is amended to read:
(a) The prohibitions in this section do not apply if the gift is:
(1) a contribution as defined in section 10A.01, subdivision 11;
(2) services to assist an official in the performance of official duties, including but not
limited to providing advice, consultation, information, and communication in connection
with legislation, and services to constituents;
(3) services of insignificant monetary value;
(4) a plaque with a resale value of $5 or less;
(5) a trinket or memento costing $5 or less;
(6) informational material with a resale value of $5 or less; or
(7) food or a beverage given at a reception, meal, or meeting if:
(i) the reception, meal, or meeting is held away from the recipient's place of work by an
organization before whom the recipient appears to make a speech or answer questions as
part of a program; or
(ii) the recipient is a member or employee of the legislature and an invitation to attend
the reception, meal, or meeting was provided to all members of the legislature at least five
days prior to the date of the event.
(b) The prohibitions in this section do not apply if the gift is given:
(1) because of the recipient's membership in a group, a majority of whose members are
not officials, and an equivalent gift is given to the other members of the group; or
(2) by a lobbyist deleted text begin ordeleted text end new text begin ,new text end principalnew text begin , or individualnew text end who is a member of the family of the
recipient, unless the gift is given on behalf of someone who is not a member of that family.