A state agency's support of a company devoted to Democratic fundraising and campaigns is generating criticism from government ethics scholars and some legislators, but it may not run afoul of state law.
Minnesota Legislative Auditor Jim Nobles said he would examine the loans made by the Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board (IRRRB) to Meyer Associates following a Star Tribune story about the deal on Sunday. But state law is "surprisingly sketchy" on the topic of using public funds for partisan political activity, Nobles said.
Meyer, a St. Cloud company whose core business was Democratic fundraising and campaigns, opened a call center in Eveleth with loans it got in 2006 from the IRRRB economic development agency. Meyer folded last year, owing the agency $250,000.
A related Democratic-oriented campaign company, New Partners consulting, bought the equipment that was collateral for the loan and quickly reopened the call center.
"It clearly smells bad," said David Schultz, a political-science professor at Hamline University in St. Paul. "A lot of this sort of has the look of good old-fashioned patronage, and good old-fashioned quid pro quo."
According to Schultz, state and federal courts across the country have ruled that public officials cannot spend public dollars for partisan political purposes. Alaska, for example, specifically prohibits the use of public funds for political activity. Yet Minnesota's weak conflict-of-interest laws don't fully address the subject of using government resources for partisan politics, he said.
Minnesota was at the forefront of campaign ethics and reform two decades ago, but a backlash from lobbyists and political parties and "resting on laurels" caused reform to stall in the 1990s, Schultz said.
Ethics enforcement
The responsibility for enforcing ethics laws is fragmented. The state's Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board enforces a law focused on public officials disclosing any personal financial gain from their decisions.