SF 628

as introduced - 79th Legislature (1995 - 1996) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to ethics in government; extending the 
  1.3             enforcement authority of the ethical practices board 
  1.4             to cover gifts to local officials; making advisory 
  1.5             opinions public data; authorizing civil penalties; 
  1.6             clarifying certain definitions; clarifying and 
  1.7             authorizing exceptions to the ban on gifts; 
  1.8             appropriating money; amending Minnesota Statutes 1994, 
  1.9             sections 10A.01, subdivision 28; 10A.02, subdivision 
  1.10            12; 10A.071, subdivisions 1 and 3; 10A.34; and 
  1.11            471.895, subdivisions 1 and 3. 
  1.12  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.13     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 10A.01, 
  1.14  subdivision 28, is amended to read: 
  1.15     Subd. 28.  [PRINCIPAL.] "Principal" means an individual or 
  1.16  association that:  
  1.17     (1) spends more than $500 in the aggregate in any calendar 
  1.18  year to engage a lobbyist, compensate a lobbyist, or authorize 
  1.19  the expenditure of money by a lobbyist; or 
  1.20     (2) is not included in clause (1) and spends a total of at 
  1.21  least $50,000 in any calendar year on efforts to influence 
  1.22  legislative action, administrative action, or the official 
  1.23  action of metropolitan governmental units, as described in 
  1.24  section 10A.04, subdivision 6.  
  1.25     The officers, employees, or members of an association that 
  1.26  is a principal do not become principals solely because their 
  1.27  association is a principal; their acts are the acts of a 
  1.28  principal when done on behalf of the association. 
  2.1      Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 10A.02, 
  2.2   subdivision 12, is amended to read: 
  2.3      Subd. 12.  [ADVISORY OPINIONS.] (a) The board may issue and 
  2.4   publish advisory opinions on the requirements of this chapter or 
  2.5   section 471.895 based upon real or hypothetical situations.  An 
  2.6   application for an advisory opinion may be made only by an 
  2.7   individual or association who wishes to use the opinion to guide 
  2.8   the individual's or the association's own conduct.  The board 
  2.9   shall issue written opinions on all such questions submitted to 
  2.10  it within 30 days after receipt of written application, unless a 
  2.11  majority of the board agrees to extend the time limit.  
  2.12     (b) A written advisory opinion issued by the board is 
  2.13  binding on the board in any subsequent board proceeding 
  2.14  concerning the person making or covered by the request and is a 
  2.15  defense in a judicial proceeding that involves the subject 
  2.16  matter of the opinion and is brought against the person making 
  2.17  or covered by the request unless: 
  2.18     (1) the board has amended or revoked the opinion before the 
  2.19  initiation of the board or judicial proceeding, has notified the 
  2.20  person making or covered by the request of its action, and has 
  2.21  allowed at least 30 days for the person to do anything that 
  2.22  might be necessary to comply with the amended or revoked 
  2.23  opinion; 
  2.24     (2) the request has omitted or misstated material facts; or 
  2.25     (3) the person making or covered by the request has not 
  2.26  acted in good faith in reliance on the opinion. 
  2.27     (c) A request for an opinion and the opinion itself are 
  2.28  nonpublic data.  The board, however, may publish an opinion or a 
  2.29  summary of an opinion, but may not include in the publication 
  2.30  the name of the requester, the name of a person covered by a 
  2.31  request from an agency or political subdivision, or any other 
  2.32  information that might identify the requester unless the person 
  2.33  consents to the inclusion. 
  2.34     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 10A.071, 
  2.35  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  2.36     Subdivision 1.  [DEFINITIONS.] (a) The definitions in this 
  3.1   subdivision apply to this section. 
  3.2      (b) "Family" means all the members of a household living 
  3.3   under one roof.  It also means a man and a woman and their 
  3.4   offspring even if not living under one roof. 
  3.5      (c) "Gift" means money, real or personal property, a 
  3.6   service, a loan, a forbearance or forgiveness of indebtedness, 
  3.7   or a promise of future employment, that is given and received 
  3.8   without the giver receiving consideration of equal or greater 
  3.9   value in return. 
  3.10     (c) (d) "Group" means a number of individuals who have 
  3.11  something in common; they need not be members of any formal 
  3.12  organization. 
  3.13     (e) "Official" means a public official, an employee of the 
  3.14  legislature, or a local official of a metropolitan governmental 
  3.15  unit. 
  3.16     Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 10A.071, 
  3.17  subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  3.18     Subd. 3.  [EXCEPTIONS.] (a) The prohibitions in this 
  3.19  section do not apply if the gift is: 
  3.20     (1) a contribution as defined in section 10A.01, 
  3.21  subdivision 7, or 211A.01, subdivision 5, or as defined by 
  3.22  federal law for contributions to candidates for federal offices; 
  3.23     (2) services to assist an official in the performance of 
  3.24  official duties, including, but not limited, to providing 
  3.25  advice, consultation, information, and communication in 
  3.26  connection with legislation,; educational programs; and services 
  3.27  to constituents; 
  3.28     (3) services of insignificant monetary value; 
  3.29     (4) a plaque or similar memento recognizing individual 
  3.30  services in a field of specialty or to a charitable cause; 
  3.31     (5) a trinket or memento of insignificant value; 
  3.32     (6) informational material of unexceptional value; or 
  3.33     (7) anything that does not exceed $5 in cost; 
  3.34     (8) food or a beverage given at a reception, meal, or 
  3.35  meeting away from the recipient's place of work by an 
  3.36  organization before whom the recipient appears to make a speech 
  4.1   or answer questions as part of a program., and reasonable travel 
  4.2   and lodging expenses actually incurred to participate in the 
  4.3   program; 
  4.4      (9) food or a beverage offered to all the members of the 
  4.5   legislature or a house of the legislature or to all the members 
  4.6   of a local legislative body; or 
  4.7      (10) tickets or admission passes to an event given by the 
  4.8   producer or sponsor of the event held at a publicly owned or 
  4.9   operated facility, civic center, or facility of the metropolitan 
  4.10  sports facilities commission or Minnesota amateur sports 
  4.11  commission, to a commissioner, commission staff member, or 
  4.12  employee of the facility for the exclusive purpose of providing 
  4.13  access to the recipient in the performance of the recipient's 
  4.14  duties or to assist the facility in conducting normal, 
  4.15  reasonable, and necessary business activities of the facility 
  4.16  for the benefit of the facility in advertising or enhancing 
  4.17  attendance at the events in the facility. 
  4.18     (b) The prohibitions in this section do not apply if the 
  4.19  gift is given: 
  4.20     (1) because of the recipient's membership in a group, a 
  4.21  majority of whose members are not officials, and an equivalent 
  4.22  gift is given or offered to the other members of the group; or 
  4.23     (2) by an organization to a participant in a conference, 
  4.24  seminar, meeting, tournament, or trip sponsored by that 
  4.25  organization, even if the gift to the official was made possible 
  4.26  by a gift to the organization by a lobbyist or principal; 
  4.27     (3) by a lobbyist or principal who is a member of the 
  4.28  family of the recipient, unless the gift is given on behalf of 
  4.29  someone who is not a member of that family.; or 
  4.30     (4) to an official who acts only as the agent for the giver 
  4.31  in making a gift to a foreign dignitary. 
  4.32     (c) If an employer makes a gift in the normal course of 
  4.33  employment to an employee, and an official benefits from the 
  4.34  gift as a member of the employee's family, the prohibitions in 
  4.35  this section do not apply. 
  4.36     Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 10A.34, is 
  5.1   amended to read: 
  5.2      10A.34 [REMEDIES.] 
  5.3      Subdivision 1.  A person charged with a duty under sections 
  5.4   10A.02 to 10A.34 this chapter or section 471.895 shall be 
  5.5   personally liable for the penalty for failing to discharge it. 
  5.6      Subd. 1a.  The board may bring an action in the district 
  5.7   court in Ramsey county to recover any late filing fee imposed 
  5.8   pursuant to any provision of this chapter.  All money recovered 
  5.9   shall be deposited in the general fund of the state. 
  5.10     Subd. 2.  The board or a county attorney may seek an 
  5.11  injunction in the district court to enforce the provisions of 
  5.12  sections 10A.02 to 10A.34 this chapter or section 471.895. 
  5.13     Subd. 3.  Unless otherwise provided, a violation of 
  5.14  sections 10A.02 to 10A.34 this chapter or section 471.895 is not 
  5.15  a crime, but is subject to a civil penalty imposed by the board 
  5.16  in an amount up to $1,000. 
  5.17     Sec. 6.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 471.895, 
  5.18  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  5.19     Subdivision 1.  [DEFINITIONS.] (a) The definitions in this 
  5.20  subdivision apply to this section. 
  5.21     (b) "Family," "gift," has and "group" have the 
  5.22  meaning meanings given it them in section 10A.071, subdivision 
  5.23  1. 
  5.24     (c) "Interested person" means a person or a representative 
  5.25  of a person or association that has a direct financial interest 
  5.26  in a decision that a the local official receiving a gift from 
  5.27  the person is authorized to make.  To be "direct," the financial 
  5.28  interest of the giver must be of greater consequence to the 
  5.29  giver than the general interest of all residents or taxpayers of 
  5.30  the official's governmental unit. 
  5.31     (d) "Local official" means an elected or appointed official 
  5.32  of a county or a home rule charter or statutory city or of an 
  5.33  agency, authority, or instrumentality of a county or city.  To 
  5.34  be an "official," a person must have authority to make, or to 
  5.35  vote on as a member of a governing body, final recommendations 
  5.36  and decisions regarding the expenditure or investment of public 
  6.1   money.  
  6.2      Sec. 7.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 471.895, 
  6.3   subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  6.4      Subd. 3.  [EXCEPTIONS.] (a) The prohibitions in this 
  6.5   section do not apply if the gift is: 
  6.6      (1) a contribution as defined in section 10A.01, 
  6.7   subdivision 7, or 211A.01, subdivision 5, or as defined by 
  6.8   federal law for contributions to candidates for federal offices; 
  6.9      (2) services to assist an official in the performance of 
  6.10  official duties, including, but not limited to, providing 
  6.11  advice, consultation, information, and communication in 
  6.12  connection with legislation, and services to constituents; 
  6.13     (3) services of insignificant monetary value; 
  6.14     (4) a plaque or similar memento recognizing individual 
  6.15  services in a field of specialty or to a charitable cause; 
  6.16     (5) a trinket or memento of insignificant value; 
  6.17     (6) informational material of unexceptional value; or 
  6.18     (7) anything that does not exceed $5 in cost; 
  6.19     (8) food or a beverage given at a reception, meal, or 
  6.20  meeting away from the recipient's place of work by an 
  6.21  organization before whom the recipient appears to make a speech 
  6.22  or answer questions as part of a program., and reasonable travel 
  6.23  and lodging expenses actually incurred to participate in the 
  6.24  program; 
  6.25     (9) food or a beverage offered to all the members of a 
  6.26  local legislative body; or 
  6.27     (10) tickets or admission passes to an event given by the 
  6.28  producer or sponsor of the event held at a publicly owned or 
  6.29  operated facility, civic center, or facility of the metropolitan 
  6.30  sports facilities commission or Minnesota amateur sports 
  6.31  commission, to a commissioner, commission staff member, or 
  6.32  employee of the facility for the exclusive purpose of providing 
  6.33  access to the recipient in the performance of the recipient's 
  6.34  duties or to assist the facility in conducting normal, 
  6.35  reasonable, and necessary business activities of the facility 
  6.36  for the benefit of the facility in advertising or enhancing 
  7.1   attendance at the events in the facility. 
  7.2      (b) The prohibitions in this section do not apply if the 
  7.3   gift is given: 
  7.4      (1) because of the recipient's membership in a group, a 
  7.5   majority of whose members are not local officials, and an 
  7.6   equivalent gift is given or offered to the other members of the 
  7.7   group; or 
  7.8      (2) by an organization to participants in a conference, 
  7.9   seminar, meeting, tournament, or trip sponsored by that 
  7.10  organization, even if the gift to the local official was made 
  7.11  possible by a gift to the organization by an interested person; 
  7.12     (3) by an interested person who is a member of the family 
  7.13  of the recipient, unless the gift is given on behalf of someone 
  7.14  who is not a member of that family.; or 
  7.15     (4) to a local official who acts only as the agent for the 
  7.16  giver in making a gift to a foreign dignitary. 
  7.17     (c) If an employer makes a gift in the normal course of 
  7.18  employment to an employee, and a local official benefits from 
  7.19  the gift as a member of the employee's family, the prohibitions 
  7.20  in this section do not apply. 
  7.21     Sec. 8.  [APPROPRIATION.] 
  7.22     $....... is appropriated from the general fund to the 
  7.23  ethical practices board to enforce Minnesota Statutes, chapter 
  7.24  10A and section 471.895, to be available until June 30, 1997. 
  7.25     Sec. 9.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  7.26     This act is effective the day following final enactment.