Advisory opinions

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Opinion number	Program	Subject	Date issued	Requestor

467	Campaign Finance	A legislator may use principal campaign committee funds to pay for housing if the costs were incurred because of legislative service and funds from the legislature are not available to pay for those costs. - Noncampaign disbursements	2/13/2025	Nonpublic
466	Gift Ban	An association that is not a principal may pay travel expenses for a public official if a lobbyist or principal did not request that the official receive the travel or provide funding for the expenses. - Travel expenses	2/13/2025	Citizens League
465	Lobbying	Lobbying occurs when individuals attempt to influence the PUC's adoption of administrative rules, or PUC actions on rate setting, power plant and powerline siting, or granting of certificates of need under Minnesota Statutes section 216B.243. - Definition of lobbyist; definition of administrative action; definition of lobbying	11/6/2024	Citizens Utility Board of Minnesota, et al.
464	Campaign Finance	A communication that clearly identifies a candidate, clearly includes an electoral portion, and could only be interpreted by a reasonable person as encouraging them to vote for a specific candidate contains express advocacy. - Express advocacy	9/4/2024	Nonpublic
463	Lobbying	News media organizations and their employees and agents are not lobbyists as a result of publishing or broadcasting news items, editorial comments, or paid advertisements which directly or indirectly urge official action by public or local officials. - Definition of lobbyist	6/5/2024	MN Broadcasters Assn; MN Newspaper Assn
462	Campaign Finance	A partnership consisting of individuals may make political contributions from the general treasury of the partnership subject to the limitations and disclosure requirements of Chapter 10A - Corporate contributions	5/1/2024	Nonpublic
461	Lobbying	A vote to adopt a bargaining agreement is an official action of a political subdivision. Attempting to influence that vote is lobbying. Actions by union representatives to enforce a bargaining agreement or to represent union employees is not lobbying - Definition of lobbyist	2/7/2024	Education Minnesota, et al.
460	Lobbying	A nonelected local official or employee of a political subdivision is not a lobbyist unless the individual receives compensation in excess of $3,000 for lobbying in any year and spends more than 50 hours in any month on lobbying - Definition of lobbyist	1/3/2024	Minnesota School Boards Association
459	Campaign Finance	The Board cannot provide opinions without specific factual information, either real or hypothetical, about the requestor’s planned conduct - Express advocacy	3/8/2024	Nonpublic
458	Lobbying	Determining if an individual must register as a lobbyist requires an examination of the communication made by the individual, who the communication was made to, if the communication attempts to influence an official action, and the compensation received - Definition of lobbyist	1/3/2024	Nonpublic
457	Lobbying	Attorneys who represent clients by communicating with public or local officials are engaged in lobbying if that communication is intended to influence the official action of a political subdivision - Definition of lobbyist	1/3/2024	Nonpublic
456	Lobbying	A membership organization for political subdivisions that communicates with its members about lobbying efforts made on behalf of those members, and suggests that members take action to support those lobbying efforts, is not lobbying its own members - Reporting	12/13/2023	League of Minnesota Cities, et al.
455	Campaign Finance	A nonprofit corporation may make political contributions in Minnesota as an unregistered association if the nonprofit corporation is organized and operated consistent with requirements provided in Chapter 211B - Corporate contributions	4/6/2022	Nonpublic
454	Revoked	Revoked by the Board, July 6, 2023	10/6/2021	Nonpublic
453	Campaign Finance	A legislator may produce or participate in a podcast to discuss public policy and current events and may pay for the podcast with personal funds - Noncampaign disbursements	6/3/2020	Sen. Karla Bigham
452	Campaign Finance	Committees may jointly purchase services and products from a commercial vendor without the use of a third-party intermediary - In-kind contributions	2/5/2020	Nonpublic
451	Gift Ban	Providing meals to public officials is not a prohibited gift as long as the meals are funded by an association that is not a principal in Minnesota, and the meals were not provided to the public officials at the request of a lobbyist or principal - Food or beverage	1/3/2020	Dr. Kathryn Pearson
450	Campaign Finance	Principal campaign committee may pay expenses related to the operation of a legislative caucus that qualify as noncampaign disbursements - Noncampaign disbursements	2/6/2019	Rep. Steve Drazkowski; New House Republican Caucus
449	Campaign Finance	Association’s advertising policies for accepting political advertisements are not governed by Chapter 10A - Paid advertisements	8/16/2018	Nonpublic
448	Campaign Finance	Principal campaign committee is the vehicle for depositing and reporting a loan made to benefit a candidate’s campaign - Loans	9/12/2018	Nonpublic
447	Campaign Finance	A committee must consider an unregistered association’s sources of funding to determine whether it can accept a contribution from that association - Corporate contributions	6/6/2018	Nonpublic
446	Revoked	Revoked by the Board, July 6, 2023	5/2/2018	Nonpublic
445	Gift Ban	Principal may provide informational material to public officials under certain circumstances without violating the gift prohibition - Informational material	1/9/2018	Institute for Justice
444	Lobbying	Wind project siting proceedings before the Public Utilities Commission are administrative actions - Definition of administrative action	10/4/2017	Nonpublic
443	Revoked	Revoked by the Board, July 6, 2023	1/31/2017	Nancy Hylden
442	Campaign Finance	Under certain circumstances, a principal campaign committee's office space expenses may be classified as a constituent service - Noncampaign disbursements	3/1/2016	Nonpublic
441	Gift Ban	Minnesota state agencies are not principals - Definition of principal	1/15/2016	Kevin Willis
440	Withdrawn by Requester	Withdrawn by requester
439	Conflict of Interest	Employment of a legislator by an association represented by a lobbyist does not, by itself, create a conflict of interest - Outside employment	2/6/2015	Sen. David Tomassoni
438	Campaign Finance	Very limited activities may be undertaken by an individual exploring a candidacy without making the individual a candidate - Definition of candidate	2/11/2014	Nonpublic
437	Campaign Finance	Candidate's fundraising efforts for, or promotion of, an independent expenditure committee will destroy the independence of any future expenditures by that committee - Independent expenditures	2/11/2014	Nonpublic
436	Campaign Finance	Committees may jointly purchase services without creating in-kind contributions if each pays an equal or proportionate share - In-kind contributions	11/5/2013	Nonpublic
434	Campaign Finance	An internet-based processor of contributions does not make a contribution by virtue of processing and delivering a contribution to the recipient specified by a contributor - Internet contributions	5/7/2013	Democracy.com
433	Campaign Finance	Money donated by a terminating principal campaign committee to the state general fund or to a county obligated to incur special election expenses due to that candidate’s resignation are noncampaign disbursements - Noncampaign disbursements	2/5/2013	James Dunn
432	Withdrawn by Requester	Withdrawn by requester
431	Conflict of Interest	A government entity is not an associated business for purposes of identifying a conflict of interest - Definition of associated business	11/7/2012	City of Minneapolis, et al.
430	Withdrawn by Requester	Withdrawn by requester
429	Lobbying	Expenses that must be reported on lobbyist disbursement reports and annual reports of lobbyist principals - Reporting	3/5/2013	Nonpublic
428	Revoked	Revoked by the Board, July 6, 2023	8/7/2012	Nonpublic
427	Campaign Finance	An association may allow contributors to express preferences as to which candidates the association should support if those preferences do not result in donors directing their contributions to specific candidates - Earmarking	8/7/2012	Nonpublic
426	Campaign Finance	Disclosure and expenditures related to ballot question political funds - Reporting	5/1/2012	Nonpublic
425	Campaign Finance	A conduit fund operated by a union is not required to register with the Board or file reports and the union may contract with an individual to administer the conduit fund - Conduit funds	5/1/2012	Nonpublic
424	Campaign Finance	A principal campaign committee may classify costs for a candidate’s retirement party as noncampaign disbursements - Noncampaign disbursements	4/3/2012	Mindy Greiling Volunteer Committee
423	Campaign Finance	An association may make in-kind contributions to a ballot question political committee or fund - In-kind contributions	2/14/2012	Minnesota Council of Nonprofits
422	Campaign Finance	Chapter 10A requires disclosure when an association accepts contributions or uses its money for expenditures to promote or defeat a ballot question - Ballot question committees	1/3/2012	Nonpublic
421	Campaign Finance	Chapter 10A requires disclosure by an association that registers a political fund with the Board - Reporting	12/8/2011	Minnesota Family Council, et al.
420	Campaign Finance	Chapter 10A requires disclosure of underlying sources of funds when a committee or fund accepts contributions in excess of certain thresholds from an association not registered with the Board - Contributions from unregistered associations	12/8/2011	Minnesota for Marriage
419	Campaign Finance	Chapter 10A requires disclosure when an association accepts contributions or uses its money for expenditures to promote or defeat a ballot question - Contributions from unregistered associations	1/3/2012	National Organization for Marriage
418	Use of Board Data	Board data may be used by a nonprofit to distribute issue advocacy material, solicit membership, and solicit contributions - Definition of commercial purpose	10/4/2011	Nonpublic
415	Campaign Finance	A contribution by a principal campaign committee to the candidate's recount fund, affecting that candidate’s election, is a noncampaign disbursement - Noncampaign disbursements	11/24/2010	Dayton Transition Fund
414	Gift Ban	A personalized decorative item with a resale value of $5 or less is exempt from the gift prohibition - Plaque with resale value of $5 or less	12/9/2010	Nonpublic
413	Lobbying	A lobbyist must register on behalf of each association whose interests are promoted, regardless of the mechanism used to retain or direct the efforts of the lobbyist - Registration	11/1/2010	Nonpublic
412	Campaign Finance	A candidate may individually contribute to an independent expenditure political committee or fund, but the relationship between the contributor and the candidate benefited by an independent expenditure may destroy the expenditure's independence - Independent expenditures	10/5/2010	Nonpublic
411	Campaign Finance	A principal campaign committee may not classify the home health care costs of a close relative of the candidate while the candidate is traveling as a noncampaign disbursement - Noncampaign disbursements	9/7/2010	Nonpublic
410	Campaign Finance	Communications that do not include any candidate or principal campaign committee, either directly or through an agent, will not destroy the independence of an expenditure - Independent expenditures	9/7/2010	Nonpublic
409	Lobbying	An individual's paid communication with officials, or with individuals urging them to communicate with officials, may bring the individual within the definition of a lobbyist - Definition of lobbyist	8/3/2010	Nonpublic
408	Campaign Finance	Use of a motor vehicle as an advertising device for a principal campaign committee may result in an in-kind contribution from the vehicle owner to the committee - In-kind contributions	5/4/2010	Nonpublic
407	Gift Ban	A lobbyist principal's preferential treatment of officials in purchasing tickets for an event would violate the gift prohibition - Preferential treatment	3/2/2010	Daniel Rogan
406	Campaign Finance	A conduit fund is not required to register with the Board or file reports and the corporate sponsor may contract with an individual or another corporation to administer the conduit fund - Conduit funds	5/5/2009	ACEC/MN
405	Campaign Finance	An association is a political committee if its major purpose is to influence the nomination or election of candidates, even if it does not engage in express advocacy - Definition of political committee	6/2/2009	Nonpublic
404	Campaign Finance	The value of a candidate school or training is a contribution if provided to a candidate, but not if provided to an individual who has yet to become a candidate; candidate recruitment costs are generally not addressed by Chapter 10A - Definition of candidate	4/7/2009	Nonpublic
403	Campaign Finance	A principal campaign committee may not classify the cost to conduct a telephone survey of constituents as a noncampaign disbursement if the survey fails to provide a service to those being surveyed - Noncampaign disbursements	3/3/2009	Nonpublic
402	Gift Ban	A lobbyist is prohibited from paying for food and beverage for an official with the lobbyist’s unreimbursed personal funds - Food or beverage	3/3/2009	Nonpublic
400	Campaign Finance	Under certain circumstances, a consultant may provide services to both a candidate and an entity making independent expenditures affecting that same candidate without destroying the independence of the expenditures - Independent expenditures	7/22/2008	Nonpublic
399	Campaign Finance	Payment by an individual for services provided by a vendor to a political party unit is a donation in kind from the individual making the payment to the party unit - In-kind contributions	6/17/2008	Nonpublic
398	Revoked	Revoked by the Board, August 17, 2010	6/17/2008	Nonpublic
397	Public Subsidy	A candidate is a first-time candidate if the candidate’s prior activities were so insignificant as to not constitute running for office (Affected by statutory changes effective May 2013) - First-time candidate	5/16/2008	Nonpublic
396	Gift Ban	A lobbyist principal is prohibited from giving to officials a commercially produced DVD that is sold to the public at a retail price of approximately $19 - Services to assist an official	6/17/2008	Nonpublic
395	Campaign Finance	Issuance of a statement explaining reasons why approval of a ballot question would benefit Minnesota is an action to promote a ballot question - Definition of promote or defeat a ballot question	4/15/2008	Nonpublic
394	Campaign Finance	A public service announcement or advertisement featuring an elected official does not constitute a contribution to the official’s principal campaign committee if the purpose is not to influence the nomination or election of the official - Definition of contribution	10/29/2007	Gov. Tim Pawlenty
393	Gift Ban	A public official who is a member of a formal group, the majority of whose members are not officials, may enter a random drawing offered by a lobbyist principal - Membership in a group	10/9/2007	Nonpublic
392	Lobbying	Compensation paid to a lobbyist is not included in the calculation of lobbying disbursements - Reporting	8/21/2007	Nonpublic
391	Campaign Finance	Certain expenses related to the transition of a constitutional office to a newly elected official may be paid by the new official’s principal campaign committee and reported as noncampaign disbursements - Noncampaign disbursements	11/28/2006	Nonpublic
390	Campaign Finance	The cost of the specified foreign trip is neither a campaign expenditure nor a noncampaign disbursement that may be paid for by a principal campaign committee - Use of money collected for political purposes	11/28/2006	Nonpublic
389	Conflict of Interest	A conflict of interest does not exist when a public official takes an action that may eventually, but only indirectly, benefit the public official or an associated business - Volunteer service	11/28/2006	John Herman
388	Campaign Finance	The cost of producing magnets with a legislator's contact information that will be distributed to constituents is a noncampaign disbursement - Noncampaign disbursements	9/15/2006	Nonpublic
387	Revoked	Revoked by the Board, July 6, 2023	9/15/2006	Nonpublic
386	Campaign Finance	A candidate with principal campaign committees for two different offices may raise funds separately for each committee within the same year - Candidate with multiple committees	8/15/2006	Nonpublic
385	Campaign Finance	Whether expenses are independent expenditures or in-kind contributions can only be determined by examination of the specific facts (Opinion Four is affected by statutory changes effective June 2018) - Independent expenditures	8/15/2006	Nonpublic
384	Public Subsidy	A request to tabulate write-in ballots, standing alone, does not preclude an individual from being a first-time candidate in a subsequent election (Affected by statutory changes effective May 2013) - First-time candidate	8/15/2006	Ron Berry
383	Revoked	Revoked by the Board, July 6, 2023	8/15/2006	Nonpublic
381	Campaign Finance	The provision of the free use of a website to candidates is a donation in kind that counts against contribution limits and any applicable expenditure limit - In-kind contributions	5/16/2006	Nonpublic
380	Gift Ban	Lobbyist principals may provide educational programs without cost to legislators if the programs will assist the legislators in the performance of their official duties - Services to assist an official	5/16/2006	Nonpublic
379	Campaign Finance	A principal campaign committee may not pay compensation to its candidate for running for office - Use of money collected for political purposes	4/12/2006	Nonpublic
378	Campaign Finance	Mileage reimbursement paid to an intern who provided constituent services for a member of the legislature may be classified as a noncampaign disbursement - Noncampaign disbursements	3/13/2006	Nonpublic
377	Campaign Finance	Expenditures by a party unit for staff services and fundraising efforts that benefit three or more candidates may be classified as multicandidate expenditures - Multicandidate expenditures	3/13/2006	Nonpublic
376	Campaign Finance	Costs associated with a media campaign that include both lobbying disbursements and independent expenditures must be reasonably allocated and reported - Independent expenditures	2/24/2006	Nonpublic
375	Campaign Finance	The obligation of a national political committee to register and provide disclosure is not altered by the use of a segregated account for its activities in Minnesota - Reporting	1/11/2006	Nonpublic
374	Public Subsidy	The spending limit increase provided to first-time candidates applies to the entire election cycle (Opinion Two was codified by statutory changes effective July 2017) - First-time candidate	1/11/2006	Nonpublic
373	Campaign Finance	A candidate who did not sign a spending limit agreement must provide written notice of exceeding a threshold established by Minnesota Statutes section 10A.25 as soon as the necessary facts are available - Spending limit	1/11/2006	Nonpublic
372	Gift Ban	Lobbyist principals may provide training to assist officials in the performance of official duties, but may not provide free food or drink at the training - Services to assist an official	12/15/2005	Nonpublic
371	Campaign Finance	A contribution from a federal committee that receives corporate funds to a Minnesota political entity is generally prohibited (Opinion Two is affected by judicial opinions and statutory changes effective May 2010) - Corporate contributions	11/22/2005	Nonpublic
370	Campaign Finance	A principal campaign committee may contribute funds to a party unit knowing the funds will be used on multicandidate expenditures (Opinion Three is affected by statutory changes effective June 2018) - Multicandidate expenditures	11/22/2005	Nonpublic
369	Campaign Finance	A political committee may serve as a vendor of services to candidates and may avoid making in-kind contributions to those candidates if the services are priced at their fair market value - Internet contributions	9/13/2005	Nonpublic
368	Conflict of Interest	Service by a member of the legislature on the board of an association does not in itself create a conflict of interest as defined in Chapter 10A - Volunteer service	3/22/2005	Nonpublic
367	Withdrawn by Requester	Withdrawn by requester
366	Campaign Finance	A principal campaign committee may pay to repair an automobile damaged while traveling to a campaign event - Automobile use	2/22/2005	Republican Party of Minnesota
365	Campaign Finance	A party unit that contributes time on a local cable TV program to a candidate is making an in-kind contribution to the candidate - In-kind contributions	2/22/2005	Nonpublic
364	Gift Ban	Lobbyist principals may pay for educational events to assist officials in the performance of official duties, but may not provide free food or drink at those events - Services to assist an official	1/25/2005	Saint Paul Public Schools
363	Campaign Finance	A principal campaign committee that solicits contributions during a regular legislative session must exclude registered lobbyists from its solicitations - Fundraising during legislative session	1/25/2005	Nonpublic
362	Campaign Finance	Musical performances at community events for purposes unrelated to the conduct of a campaign are not a constituent service and may not be paid for with principal campaign committee funds - Use of money collected for political purposes	10/15/2004	Nonpublic
361	Gift Ban	A lobbyist principal may help pay for an event at which a gift is provided to officials if the officials are members of a group, the majority of which are not officials, and an equivalent gift is given to all members - Membership in a group	7/22/2004	John Knapp
360	Campaign Finance	A party unit may provide a candidate with a web page to receive internet contributions but those contributions must be made directly to an account controlled by the candidate - Internet contributions	7/22/2004	Nonpublic
359	Campaign Finance	An association that endorses candidates must register as a political committee or fund if it has received contributions or made expenditures exceeding the registration thresholds established by Chapter 10A - Definition of political fund	7/22/2004	Nonpublic
358	Lobbying	Lobbyists and lobbyist principals must reasonably allocate and report expenditures for items and services that have both a lobbying and a nonlobbying purpose - Reporting	6/15/2004	Nonpublic
357	Campaign Finance	Party units and candidates may jointly hire staff but staff time must be closely tracked and segregated and if a third-party association also compensates staff, that compensation is an in-kind contribution from that association - In-kind contributions	5/26/2004	Nonpublic
356	Campaign Finance	A party unit may solicit contributions to support candidates of a specific gender if it does not refer to any specific candidate - Earmarking	4/28/2004	Nonpublic
355	Conflict of Interest	A specific vote, action, or decision that may benefit relatives of a legislator does not create a conflict of interest under Chapter 10A - Financial interests of family members	2/25/2004	Nonpublic
354	Campaign Finance	A principal campaign committee may not classify the cost of providing food for staff of an elected official as a noncampaign disbursement - Use of money collected for political purposes	2/25/2004	Nonpublic
353	Withdrawn by Requester	Withdrawn by requester
352	Campaign Finance	The state committee of a political party may use funds from the party check-off account to promote precinct caucuses if the promotion is a multicandidate expenditure - Multicandidate expenditures	11/19/2003	Independence Party of Minnesota
351	Campaign Finance	Use of a candidate's personal aircraft for campaign purposes is either an in-kind contribution from the candidate, valued based on the fair market value, or if reimbursed, a campaign expenditure that must be paid for with committee funds - Use of aircraft	11/19/2003	Nonpublic
350	Lobbying	Lobbyists may not provide services on a contingency fee basis to a client for which they are registered to lobby - Contingent fee	8/27/2003	Nonpublic
349	Lobbying	An individual who communicates with state employees, public officials, and elected officials to sell goods or services is not thereby required to register as a lobbyist - Definition of lobbyist	8/27/2003	Nonpublic
348	Gift Ban	A metropolitan governmental unit may not accept a gift given to an official in order to prevent the gift from violating the prohibition on gifts by lobbyist principals - Preferential treatment	5/28/2003	Nonpublic
347	Lobbying	The cost of producing and distributing a video that provides information about an issue before the legislature is a lobbying disbursement that must be disclosed - Reporting	2/24/2003	Nonpublic
346	Campaign Finance	Noncampaign Disbursements for Expenses of a Transition Office - Noncampaign disbursements	11/20/2002	Governor-elect Tim Pawlenty
345	Conflict of Interest	Serving on a state board and as an employee of an organization that receives funding from organizations regulated by that board creates the potential for a conflict of interest - Outside employment	11/20/2002	Nonpublic
344	Campaign Finance	Party units registered with the Board must be organized on the basis of one of the geographic or political districts specified in Chapter 10A - Definition of political party unit	10/23/2002	Nonpublic
343	Revoked	Revoked June 30, 2011	9/25/2002	Nonpublic
342	Campaign Finance	A mailing supporting an official and announcing an award is an expenditure that must be made via a political committee or fund - Definition of campaign expenditure	8/28/2002	Nonpublic
341	Campaign Finance	Providing paid leave to an employee so that employee may work on the campaign of a candidate constitutes an in-kind contribution from the employer to the candidate - In-kind contributions	6/6/2002	Nonpublic
340	Public Subsidy	Minor party and independent candidates who sign a spending limit agreement prior to August 1, 2002, may qualify to receive a general account public subsidy payment - Party affiliation	6/6/2002	Nonpublic
339	Campaign Finance	Internet-based campaign material is subject to Chapter 10A and may constitute in-kind contributions or independent expenditures (Opinions Two, Eight, and Nine are affected by statutory changes effective June 2018) - In-kind contributions	6/6/2002	Gov. Jesse Ventura
338	Campaign Finance	A consultant to a principal campaign committee and a spender is an agent of the committee so an expenditure supporting the candidate is generally not independent (Affected by statutory changes effective June 2018) - Independent expenditures	4/23/2002	Alan Weinblatt
337	Gift Ban	The gift of a coffee mug meets the exception for a trinket or memento of insignificant value - Trinket or memento costing $5 or less	1/25/2002	Nonpublic
336	Revoked	Revoked by the Board, August 17, 2010	1/25/2002	Nonpublic
335	Gift Ban	A lobbyist principal may provide gifts to officials if the officials are members of a group, a majority of whose members are not officials, and an equivalent gift is given to the other members of the group - Membership in a group	12/11/2001	AAA Minnesota/Iowa
334	Campaign Finance	The purpose of a communication determines whether it is a campaign expenditure or lobbying disbursement, or falls outside of Chapter 10A (Opinion One is affected by statutory changes effective August 2023) - Express advocacy	12/11/2001	Nonpublic
333	Public Subsidy	A candidate who raised or spent more than $100 in a year seeking an office cannot later qualify for first-time candidate status for the same office (Affected by statutory changes effective May 2013) - First-time candidate	10/24/2001	Nonpublic
332	Lobbying	Fees paid to a public relations firm for work that support a lobbying effort must be reported to the Board - Reporting	9/25/2001	Nonpublic
331	Campaign Finance	Referral fees paid to a party unit by a business constitute contributions from the individuals referred to that business by the party unit if those individuals select the party unit as the entity that made the referral - Referral fees	9/25/2001	Nonpublic
330	Gift Ban	A public official may attend a party paid for by a lobbyist principal only if the official pays the principal for the official's fair share of the expenses incurred or contributes an item to the party that meets or exceeds the value of that fair share - Food or beverage	8/28/2001	Jan Malcolm
329	Campaign Finance	Under certain circumstances principal campaign committee funds may be used to pay travel expenses incurred by a candidate in order to participate in work group and conference committee meetings - Noncampaign disbursements	7/24/2001	Nonpublic
328	Campaign Finance	Under certain circumstances principal campaign committee funds may be used to pay for legal services if related to the candidate's chances of election and the candidate does not personally benefit - Noncampaign disbursements	6/26/2001	James Abler Volunteer Committee
327	Withdrawn by Requester	Withdrawn by requester
326	Lobbying	The potential for litigation on a given subject does not change the requirement to register as a lobbyist (Opinion Four is affected by statutory changes effective in 2003) - Definition of lobbyist	5/22/2001	Nonpublic
325	Conflict of Interest	The occupation of a legislator does not in itself create a conflict of interest but may do so in combination with a specific vote, action, or decision by that legislator - Outside employment	2/20/2001	Nonpublic
324	Public Subsidy	A principal campaign committee may register in an election year after the general election and participate in the PCR program for the remainder of that year if the candidate signs a spending limit agreement - Political contribution refund program	12/12/2000	Nonpublic
323	Campaign Finance	A principal campaign committee may not use its funds to make independent expenditures regarding, or give a contribution to, a candidate for federal office - Use of money collected for political purposes	10/17/2000	Rep. Irv Anderson
322	Public Subsidy	A House candidate who raised or spent more than $100 cannot later qualify for first-time candidate status as a Senate candidate within the same Senate district (Affected by statutory changes effective May 2013) - First-time candidate	9/21/2000	Nonpublic
321	Campaign Finance	An anonymous contribution of $20 or less may be retained but an anonymous contribution in excess of $20 must be forwarded to the Board in its entirety - Anonymous contributions	8/8/2000	Nonpublic
320	Campaign Finance	Registered entities may jointly purchase services from a business at fair market value and allocate the costs between themselves on a reasonable basis to avoid creating in-kind contributions - In-kind contributions	4/11/2000	Nonpublic
319	Campaign Finance	A business may receive and process contributions then forward the contributions monthly, minus a fee, to principal campaign committees (AO 360, Opinion 3, affects the structure of the required depository account) - Internet contributions	12/14/1999	Nonpublic
318	Campaign Finance	Litigation costs unrelated to a candidate's nomination or election are not noncampaign disbursements that may be paid for with principal campaign committee funds - Noncampaign disbursements	10/13/1999	Nonpublic
317	Gift Ban	An informational book available without charge to the public is not a prohibited gift when given to officials - Informational material	10/13/1999	Nonpublic
316	Gift Ban	The gift prohibition does not apply to employees of a state government office if those individuals are not officials - Definition of official	8/24/1999	Nonpublic
315	Gift Ban	Officials may attend an event funded by lobbyists and lobbyist principals if the event is held by a group the officials belong to, a majority of whose members are not officials - Membership in a group	6/14/1999	Nonpublic
314	Campaign Finance	Litigation costs unrelated to a candidate's nomination or election that are not an ordinary expense of serving in office are not noncampaign disbursements that may be paid for with principal campaign committee funds - Noncampaign disbursements	10/13/1999	Nonpublic
313	Campaign Finance	The cost of informational material distributed to constituents may be paid for by a principal campaign committee and be reported as a noncampaign disbursement - Noncampaign disbursements	6/14/1999	Rep. Ken Wolf
312	Withdrawn by Requester	Withdrawn by requester
311	Campaign Finance	Inclusion of links to candidate websites on the website operated by the Office of the Secretary of State does not constitute contributions to the candidates if each candidate for the same office is afforded the same opportunity - In-kind contributions	4/9/1999	Secretary of State Mary Kiffmeyer
310	Campaign Finance	A committee may solicit contributions to specific candidates, but if they are bundled or directed by the committee, the contributions are subject to the contribution limits applicable to the committee - Bundled or attributable contributions	3/19/1999	Nonpublic
309	Gift Ban	A gift made or requested by a lobbyist or lobbyist principal to a retiring official who is still an official is prohibited (AO 424 may affect the first paragraph of the opinion) - Retirement party	3/19/1999	Nonpublic
308	Lobbying	An individual who spends no personal money and does not have authority to spend money on behalf of an association, but communicates with public officials to urge them to take particular positions, without compensation, is not a lobbyist - Definition of lobbyist	2/26/1999	Nonpublic
307	Campaign Finance	Provision of bus transportation by a legislator's principal campaign committee so constituents may attend an educational day at the Capitol is a constituent service - Noncampaign disbursements	3/19/1999	Nonpublic
306	Campaign Finance	An association that owns and manages the intellectual property rights of a candidate or principal campaign committee is not a political committee or fund if it does not seek to influence the nomination or election of a candidate - Definition of political fund	6/14/1999	Ventura For Minnesota, Inc.
305	Campaign Finance	Multicandidate expenditures for fundraising efforts need not take a particular form or use specific language, but must clearly be identified as fundraising efforts and should not emphasize one candidate over another - Multicandidate expenditures	2/1/1999	Nonpublic
304	Lobbying	The exception to the definition of lobbyist for individuals engaged in the sale of goods or services extends to attorneys representing clients in such sales - Definition of lobbyist	10/30/1998	John Herman
303	Campaign Finance	The aggregate special source contribution limit is based on the spending limit for the office sought before any adjustments due to an individual candidate's status - Aggregate special source contribution limit	8/28/1998	Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party
302	Campaign Finance	A party may publish multiple versions of its official sample ballot and each version may include limited additional information beyond the representation of the ballot itself while remaining a multicandidate expenditure - Multicandidate expenditures	8/28/1998	Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party
301	Campaign Finance	An association must register a political fund after it raises or spends a threshold amount to influence the nomination or election of candidates (Affected by statutory changes effective August 2023) - Definition of political fund	8/28/1998	Nonpublic
298	Campaign Finance	A principal campaign committee's costs to produce a book about its candidate and the candidate's public policy positions are campaign expenditures - Definition of campaign expenditure	8/5/1998	Nonpublic
297	Lobbying	A political subdivision is not an association, as that term is used in Chapter 10A, and therefore cannot be a principal - Definition of principal	7/24/1998	Nonpublic
296	Campaign Finance	Actual rather than implied agency or cooperation is required to destroy the independence of an expenditure (Affected by statutory changes effective June 2018) - Independent expenditures	7/24/1998	Nonpublic
295	Campaign Finance	An association organized for the purpose of making volunteers available to candidates must register as a political committee if it raises or spends a threshold amount - Definition of political committee	7/24/1998	Michael Tavernier
294	Campaign Finance	Publication of a candidate's message at Christmas time is not a constituent service - Noncampaign disbursements	7/8/1998	Nonpublic
293	Campaign Finance	Fundraising from the sale of merchandise does not result in bundling or in a contribution from the manufacturer, distributor, or retailer, if fair market value is paid for services provided by those entities - Bundled or attributable contributions	7/24/1998	Jesse Ventura for Governor Volunteer Committee
292	Lobbying	An association that pays for a lobbyist's services is the lobbyist principal even if payment for those services is made to the association's national affiliate - Definition of principal	4/24/1998	Nonpublic
290	Campaign Finance	An Indian tribe that contributes to no more than three committees, funds, or party units in a calendar year may follow a specific procedure to satisfy its obligation to provide underlying source disclosure - Contributions from unregistered associations	7/8/1998	Nonpublic
289	Gift Ban	An attorney's referral of a legal matter to another attorney who is an official is not a gift - Definition of gift	4/24/1998	Richard Cohen
288	Lobbying	An individual is not required to register as a lobbyist based on activities undertaken within the scope of the individual's employment by a public higher education system - Definition of lobbyist	3/27/1998	Nonpublic
287	Gift Ban	A lobbyist principal is prohibited from selling to an official the right to sit in a box seating area it has leased for an athletic event unless the right to purchase equivalent seating is made available on the same terms to members of the public - Preferential treatment	1/23/1998	Nonpublic
286	Gift Ban	Gift to officials of an informational booklet that costs $4.60 to produce and will be available in limited quantities to the public without charge is not prohibited - Informational material	1/23/1998	Nonpublic
285	Campaign Finance	Costs paid by a principal campaign committee for a party upon the retirement of the principal campaign committee's candidate are noncampaign disbursements (Affected by statutory changes effective June 2018) - Noncampaign disbursements	2/5/1998	Nonpublic
284	Campaign Finance	There are significant restrictions on corporations' rights to make political contributions or independent expenditures (Affected by judicial opinions and statutory changes effective in 2010, 2023, and 2024) - Corporate contributions	1/23/1998	Nonpublic
283	Gift Ban	A gift of greeting cards to the state is not a gift to an official, nor is it a contribution to a principal campaign committee or a lobbyist disbursement - Definition of gift	11/21/1997	Tanja Kozicky
282	Campaign Finance	Free legal services provided by an attorney to a committee are not a contribution, but the value of any support or resources provided by the attorney's firm is a contribution from that firm unless paid for by the committee - In-kind contributions	11/21/1997	Nonpublic
281	Public Subsidy	The spending limit increase applicable to first-time candidates applies in both election and non-election years (Affected by statutory changes effective May 2013) - First-time candidate	11/21/1997	Nonpublic
280	Gift Ban	A gift to a legislator of telephone directories falls within an exception to the gift prohibition because it constitutes a service to assist an official in the performance of official duties - Services to assist an official	11/21/1997	Nonpublic
279	Campaign Finance	If two associations with political funds merge, contributions from those funds are attributed to any new political fund formed by the new association for the purpose of determining whether the fund may make additional contributions to a candidates - Individual contribution limit	11/21/1997	Nonpublic
278	Gift Ban	The exception to the gift prohibition for meals given to program speakers or participants requires that the individual participant incur an obligation to appear and participate in a specific and significant manner - Food or beverage	10/31/1997	Nonpublic
277	Gift Ban	A gift from a lobbyist principal of travel, lodging, and conference costs, even when passed through a non-lobbyist entity, is prohibited - Membership in a group	10/31/1997	Rep. Ken Wolf
276	Gift Ban	A lobbyist principal's payment of food and lodging expenses related to a trip taken by officials to inspect a construction project is a prohibited gift unless each official pays for the value of those items - Services to assist an official	9/26/1997	Nonpublic
275	Campaign Finance	Signs advertising a legislator's status as an official, name, and telephone number are not a constituent service - Noncampaign disbursements	9/26/1997	Nonpublic
273	Gift Ban	The gift of meal or reception by a lobbyist principal to all members of a membership organization may be exempt from the gift prohibition under certain circumstances - Membership in a group	10/13/1997	Nonpublic
272	Withdrawn by Requester	Withdrawn by requester
271	Campaign Finance	A political committee may return contributions in order to liquidate its assets prior to termination - Use of money collected for political purposes	6/27/1997	Nonpublic
270	Campaign Finance	The sale of an item by an individual to a party unit for less than full retail value results in an in-kind contribution from the individual to the party unit - In-kind contributions	5/23/1997	Nonpublic
269	Gift Ban	The gift of an audio tape which costs $1.50 to produce and will be available to the public for $4 to $6 is a gift of informational materials of unexceptional value - Informational material	5/23/1997	Nonpublic
268	Gift Ban	A gift from a lobbyist principal to an organization that is not a principal, which is later given to an official, is not a prohibited gift if, at the time of the original gift, the principal was unaware of who would benefit from the gift - Indirect gift	5/23/1997	Nonpublic
267	Conflict of Interest	A potential conflict of interest exists only if an official must take an action that would substantially affect the official's financial interests in a manner greater than those of a similarly situated individual - Definition of associated business	4/25/1997	Nonpublic
266	Campaign Finance	The cost of training needed to enable a legislator to utilize a state-provided computer is an expense of serving in public office - Noncampaign disbursements	4/25/1997	Nonpublic
265	Campaign Finance	A party unit's communications naming a candidate of the opposing party may be a campaign expenditure, an approved expenditure, or an independent expenditure (Affected by statutory changes effective June 2018) - In-kind contributions	4/25/1997	Nonpublic
264	Conflict of Interest	A legislator's vote which does not affect the legislator's financial interests, or those of an associated business, does not create a potential conflict of interest - Outside employment	4/25/1997	Nonpublic
263	Campaign Finance	A committee's communications naming a candidate it opposes may be a campaign expenditure, an approved expenditure, or an independent expenditure (Opinion Three is affected by statutory changes effective June 2018) - In-kind contributions	3/21/1997	Nonpublic
262	Withdrawn by Requester	Withdrawn by requester
261	Campaign Finance	A candidate may not form or exert control over a political committee separate from the candidate's principal campaign committee; use of principal campaign committee funds to promote a constitutional amendment must be reported as campaign expenditures - Use of money collected for political purposes	3/21/1997	Nonpublic
260	Campaign Finance	A donation to the campaign of a candidate for local office is neither a contribution nor a gift to an official within the meaning of Chapter 10A - Definition of contribution	2/28/1997	Sen. Sandy Pappas
259	Gift Ban	Informal discussion at a dinner is insufficient for the food or beverage exception to the gift prohibition to apply, even if invitations indicate that participants are expected to engage in that interaction - Food or beverage	3/6/1997	Nonpublic
258	Gift Ban	The gift prohibition does not apply to gifts given to members of an association if the gifts are given because of membership in the association, the same gift is given to each member, and a majority of members are not officials - Membership in a group	2/28/1997	Peter Orput
257	Revoked	Revoked June 30, 2011	1/24/1997	Minnesota Environmental Trust Fund Coalition
256	Campaign Finance	The cost to replace campaign lawn signs that were stolen before being used is a noncampaign disbursement to the extent that it does not exceed the cost of the stolen signs - Noncampaign disbursements	1/24/1997	Nonpublic
255	Campaign Finance	Costs of attending dinners and similar functions that directly relate to and assist a legislator in the performance of official duties are noncampaign disbursements - Noncampaign disbursements	1/24/1997	Nonpublic
254	Lobbying	A teacher who, as a part of the teacher's job duties, teaches students to lobby and performs services in support of the students' lobbying efforts, does not thereby become a lobbyist - Definition of lobbyist	1/24/1997	Nonpublic
253	Campaign Finance	A newly elected candidate's expenses that are directly related to serving in the new office are expenses of serving in public office, even if they are incurred before the candidate is sworn in - Noncampaign disbursements	11/22/1996	Nonpublic
252	Gift Ban	Informal discussion at a dinner is insufficient for the food or beverage exception to the gift prohibition to apply, even if invitations indicate that participants are expected to engage in that interaction - Food or beverage	11/22/1996	Nonpublic
251	Public Subsidy	A Senate candidate who previously sought a House seat within the same Senate district is a first-time candidate as the House committee only raised and spent $220 (Affected by statutory changes effective May 2013) - First-time candidate	11/14/1996	People For Norman Volunteer Committee
250	Gift Ban	The provision of complementary professional services to public officials at the request of a lobbyist principal is a prohibited gift - Services of insignificant monetary value	10/25/1996	Nonpublic
249	Lobbying	An association's creation of a website containing the association's positions on legislative matters does not require the registration of a lobbyist - Definition of lobbyist	11/22/1996	State and Federal Communications, Inc.
248	Campaign Finance	A principal campaign committee's costs to educate other candidates about legislative issues are not a noncampaign disbursement; in order to be a constituent service, the service provided must actually serve constituents in some way - Noncampaign disbursements	9/26/1996	Nonpublic
247	Campaign Finance	Use by a party unit or committee of a service provided without charge to the public does not result in a contribution or a prohibited gift - In-kind contributions	9/26/1996	Nonpublic
246	Gift Ban	A gift to officials by a lobbyist of a legislative directory falls within the exception to the gift prohibition for information to assist an official in the performance of official duties - Services to assist an official	9/20/1996	Minnesota Political Press, Inc.
245	Revoked	Revoked by the Board, August 17, 2010	8/23/1996	Nonpublic
244	Use of Board Data	The use of Board data on a website providing political information to citizens is related to political activity and is therefore not a prohibited commercial use - Definition of commercial purpose	10/12/1996	Nonpublic
243	Public Subsidy	A candidate may sign a public subsidy agreement even if the limits it imposes were exceeded in a previous year (Superseded by rule effective June 1997) - Spending limit	8/20/1996	Nonpublic
242	Gift Ban	Donations given by or at the request of lobbyists or lobbyist principals to a legal defense fund established for the benefit of an official are prohibited gifts - Definition of gift	7/26/1996	Nonpublic
241	Public Subsidy	A former House candidate is not a first-time candidate when seeking the same office in a different House district in a subsequent election cycle (Affected by statutory changes effective May 2013) - First-time candidate	7/26/1996	Nonpublic
240	Reprisals Prohibition	An employer may require, as a bona fide occupational qualification, that an employee who is a lobbyist refrain from being a party-endorsed candidate for the legislature - Definition of bona fide occupational qualification	6/28/1996	Nonpublic
239	Campaign Finance	The use of insurance proceeds to replace destroyed campaign signs is a noncampaign disbursement - Noncampaign disbursements	6/28/1996	Nonpublic
238	Revoked	Revoked by the Board, August 17, 2010	5/31/1996	Minnesota Licensed Beverage Association, Inc.
237	Conflict of Interest	In the absence of any associated business or financial interest, an official's action or decision does not create a potential conflict of interest - Definition of associated business	5/31/1996	Nonpublic
236	Gift Ban	The prohibition against a promise of future employment made by a lobbyist or lobbyist principal to an official does not prohibit bona fide employment search activities, including making and accepting an offer of employment - Definition of gift	4/26/1996	Nonpublic
235	Gift Ban	A gift to an official requested by a lobbyist of a computer mouse pad is exempt from the gift prohibition due to its insignificant value - Trinket or memento costing $5 or less	4/26/1996	Ronald Sieloff
234	Conflict of Interest	An official's service as an uncompensated board member does not make a nonprofit corporation an associated business of that official and the official may be reimbursed for actual and reasonable expenses - Definition of associated business	4/26/1996	Nonpublic
233	Withdrawn by Requester	Withdrawn by requester
232	Gift Ban	A baby shower given by a lobbyist for a friend who is an official would result in various violations of the gift prohibition - Definition of gift	2/23/1996	Sarah Janecek
231	Gift Ban	A contract for services is not a promise of future employment and payments made for services provided under a bona fide contract are not gifts - Definition of gift	2/23/1996	Sarah Janecek
230	Campaign Finance	A candidate may only control a single principal campaign committee but principal campaign committees may share officers and conduct joint campaign activities - Single committee	2/23/1996	Nonpublic
229	Gift Ban	A trip for two awarded by a lobbyist principal to its employee for superior performance is not a gift to an official, who is the employee's spouse and will accompany the employee on the trip - Definition of official	2/23/1996	Nonpublic
228	Public Subsidy	A candidate who makes expenditures exceeding the spending limit but reduces the amount of expenditures made to below the spending limit within the same calendar year has not violated the spending limit - Spending limit	1/26/1996	Nonpublic
227	Gift Ban	An official is not prohibited from attending a free public performance merely because a lobbyist principal has contributed to the funding of the performance - Indirect gift	1/26/1996	Nonpublic
226	Gift Ban	A calendar produced by a lobbyist principal containing informational material only, which is available for sale for $5, is exempt from the gift prohibition - Informational material	1/26/1996	Nonpublic
225	Campaign Finance	If a candidate's end-of-session report to constituents includes a fundraising component and a constituent services component, the cost must be allocated between campaign expenditures and noncampaign disbursements - Noncampaign disbursements	1/26/1996	Nonpublic
224	Lobbying	The University of Minnesota is not a lobbyist principal and its employees cannot be defined as lobbyists based on their activities as University employees - Principal	1/26/1996	Nonpublic
223	Campaign Finance	A Minnesota official is not subject to Chapter 10A with respect to fundraising for a federal campaign committee - Federal committees	12/18/1995	Nonpublic
222	Withdrawn by Requester	Withdrawn by requester
221	Campaign Finance	The costs of driver services needed to enable a disabled person to conduct a campaign for public office are noncampaign disbursements - Noncampaign disbursements	11/17/1995	Nonpublic
220	Gift Ban	An official may attend a reunion for former employees if payment of expenses for the reunion is not made by or requested by a lobbyist or lobbyist principal; the fact that an attorney with a firm is a lobbyist does not make the firm a principal - Definition of principal	10/20/1994	William Connors
219	Withdrawn by Requester	Withdrawn by requester
218	Revoked	Revoked by the Board, August 17, 2010	10/20/1995	Nonpublic
217	Gift Ban	A lobbyist is prohibited from giving a gift to a legislative employee and legislative employees are prohibited from accepting a gift from a lobbyist, including a wedding gift - Definition of gift	8/21/1995	Erin Roth
216	Campaign Finance	An association whose major purpose is not to influence elections but makes contributions to candidates must register its political organization as a political fund rather than a political committee - Definition of political fund	8/17/1995	Nonpublic
215	Gift Ban	An official who is employed by, or provides services on a contractual basis to, a lobbyist principal, may receive compensation, a promotion, or an increase in compensation from that principal without violating the gift prohibition - Definition of gift	8/21/1995	Nonpublic
214	Gift Ban	A donation by a lobbyist or a lobbyist principal to a 501(c)(3) organization, personally requested by an official who is a volunteer member of the organization's board, is a prohibited gift (Reversed by AO 234) - Charitable contributions	8/21/1995	Nonpublic
213	Gift Ban	A lobbyist or lobbyist principal’s payment for services provided by an official’s business at the same rate charged to other customers does not constitute a gift - Definition of gift	5/6/1995	Nonpublic
212	Gift Ban	An individual who is not a lobbyist may pay for an event for officials and their families as long as that payment was not requested by a lobbyist or a lobbyist principal - Definition of request	5/6/1995	Nonpublic
211	Campaign Finance	A principal campaign committee's purchase of computer equipment must be reported as a campaign expenditure - Reporting	4/10/1995	Nonpublic
210	Gift Ban	Meals and travel costs paid for by a lobbyist principal for an official who serves on the principal's advisory council fall within the exception to the gift prohibition for gifts given based on membership in a group - Membership in a group	4/10/1995	Sen. Cal Larson
209	Campaign Finance	A candidate with two principal campaign committees for two different offices may make expenditures via each committee simultaneously and if one committee uses a computer purchased by the other, it must pay for the fair market value of that use - Candidate with multiple committees	4/10/1995	Nonpublic
208	Lobbying	Time spent by an individual monitoring legislation is not considered communicating or urging others to communicate with officials; the cost of presenting factual material without comment is not a lobbying disbursement - Definition of lobbyist	4/10/1995	Otter Tail Power Company
207	Campaign Finance	Contributions and loans from a candidate to that candidate's principal campaign committee are combined for purposes of the personal contribution limit - Personal contribution limit	3/1/1995	Nonpublic
206	Gift Ban	An official may not accept transportation paid for by a lobbyist principal even if the trip will involve promoting and recruiting business for the state; gifts to spouses of officials are not addressed by Chapter 10A - Services to assist an official	3/1/1995	Nonpublic
205	Gift Ban	A membership association that is not a lobbyist principal may distribute a directory to legislators without violating the gift prohibition - Definition of principal	3/1/1995	Minnesota Information & Referral Alliance
204	Gift Ban	The membership directory of a lobbyist principal falls within the exceptions to the gift prohibition for informational material and services to assist an official - Informational material	3/1/1995	Minnesota Broadcasters Association
203	Gift Ban	A tax guide that costs $6 per copy to print, provided to legislators by a lobbyist principal, is a prohibited gift (Affected by statutory changes effective August 2010) - Informational material	3/1/1995	Minnesota Society of Certified Public Accountants
202	Lobbying	A public issues forum does not constitute a prohibited gift but may require that the association paying for the event register a lobbyist (Opinion One is affected by statutory changes effective in 2003) - Definition of lobbyist	2/3/1995	American Legislative Exchange Council
201	Gift Ban	A purely personal gift to an official by an officer, member of the board, or employee of a lobbyist principal is not prohibited unless the gift is paid for, reimbursed, or requested by a lobbyist or lobbyist principal - Definition of request	2/13/1995	Nonpublic
200	Gift Ban	A book that sells for $30 does not fall within any exception to the gift prohibition - Definition of request	2/3/1995	Harold Thomas High
199	Public Subsidy	An affiliate of a political party is not itself a political party or party unit unless it meets the statutory definition of one of those terms, therefore it is not eligible to issue receipts as part of the political contribution refund program - Definition of political party unit	3/1/1995	Nonpublic
198	Revoked	Revoked by the Board, August 17, 2010	2/3/1995	Nonpublic
197	Gift Ban	A lobbyist or lobbyist principal is prohibited from requesting that another individual or entity pay for food and beverages provided to legislators at a reception - Definition of request	2/13/1995	Nonpublic
196	Withdrawn by Requester	Withdrawn by requester
195	Gift Ban	A nonprofit corporation may not accept donations from lobbyists or lobbyist principals and use those donations to subsidize the price of tickets sold to officials for events presented by the nonprofit corporation - Preferential treatment	12/21/1994	Nonpublic
194	Withdrawn by Requester	Withdrawn by requester
193	Gift Ban	An organization funded by a lobbyist principal may not provide a free meal to an official unless the official speaks as part of a program (Affected by statutory changes effective May 2013) - Food or beverage	12/21/1994	Nonpublic
192	Lobbying	A nonelected local official who otherwise meets the definition of lobbyist is a lobbyist if the local official spends more than 50 hours in any month on the lobbying activities specified by statute - Definition of lobbyist	2/3/1995	Nonpublic
191	Gift Ban	A lobbyist principal may not sponsor a reception and provide food and beverages to officials at the event, regardless of whether those attending are required to make a charitable contribution in order to attend - Definition of gift	12/21/1994	Nonpublic
190	Gift Ban	An official who volunteers on the board of a lobbyist principal may accept meals from that principal if equivalent meals are provided to other board members, the majority of whom are not officials - Membership in a group	12/21/1994	Nonpublic
189	Gift Ban	A lobbyist principal may not provide to officials a free calendar book containing the names and addresses of the officers and directors of the principal (Affected by statutory changes effective August 2010) - Informational material	12/21/1994	Minnesota State Fire Department Association
188	Gift Ban	To prevent a violation of the gift prohibition, an official must pay for air transportation provided by a lobbyist principal in an amount equal to what the official would have to pay for equivalent commercial airfare - Consideration of equal or greater value	12/21/1994	Nonpublic
187	Gift Ban	An association that is not a lobbyist principal is not prohibited by Chapter 10A from giving a gift to an official, despite being represented by a lobbyist - Definition of principal	12/21/1994	John Quarnstrom
186	Gift Ban	A lobbyist principal may provide food, beverages, etc. to officials at a conference if registration fees paid by those attending the conference cover the cost, but it may not use donations or other funding provided by others to cover those costs - Consideration of equal or greater value	12/21/1994	Economic Development Association of Minnesota
185	Gift Ban	To avoid violating the gift prohibition, a lobbyist principal must charge officials to attend an event at which the officials will be provided food and beverages and will not make formal presentations - Food or beverage	11/22/1994	Nonpublic
184	Gift Ban	The membership directory of an organization whose members are lobbyists falls within the exceptions to the gift prohibition for informational material and services to assist an official - Informational material	2/13/1995	John Apitz
183	Gift Ban	A lobbyist principal is prohibited from providing complimentary breakfasts to officials in conjunction with an event - Definition of official	11/22/1994	Nonpublic
182	Public Subsidy	A candidate may only be released from a spending limit agreement as the result of the conduct of an opponent who is a candidate of a major political party (Superseded by statutory changes effective April 1996) - Spending limit	10/29/1994	Rep. Dee Long
181	Gift Ban	The loaning of a picture to be hung in an official's office by a lobbyist principal constitutes a prohibited gift - Definition of gift	10/26/1994	Rep. Loren Solberg
180	Gift Ban	An organization may not use funds provided by lobbyists or lobbyist principals to underwrite the cost of services or educational programs provided to officials free of charge - Indirect gift	11/4/1994	Minnesota Coalition of Family Organizations
179	Gift Ban	An official may not attend a conference underwritten by a lobbyist principal unless the official gives consideration of equal or greater value (May be reversed by AO 273) - Membership in a group	10/29/1994	Nonpublic
178	Gift Ban	A lobbyist principal is prohibited from offering to officials the opportunity to purchase tickets to an event operated by the lobbyist principal in advance of ticket sales to the general public - Preferential treatment	11/22/1994	Nonpublic
177	Gift Ban	A purely personal gift to an official from a board member of an association that is a lobbyist principal is not prohibited unless the gift is paid for or reimbursed by the principal or the board member is a lobbyist or lobbyist principal - Definition of lobbyist	10/29/1994	Nonpublic
176	Gift Ban	Gifts given to official by lobbyist principal for distributing to foreign visitors - Gift to state	10/29/1994	Nonpublic
175	Gift Ban	For purposes of the group membership exception to the gift prohibition, individuals who attend a conference are not a group solely by virtue of choosing to attend that conference (Reversed by AO 273) - Membership in a group	10/29/1994	Nonpublic
174	Gift Ban	An official may not receive a gift of travel and a conference registration fee paid for, in part, by lobbyist principals, regardless of whether attending the conference is unrelated to the official's duties as an official - Definition of official	11/4/1994	Nonpublic
173	Gift Ban	For purposes of the group membership exception to the gift prohibition, an individual is not a member of a group by virtue of being part of a National Conference of State Legislatures committee (Reversed by AO 273) - Membership in a group	10/7/1994	Peter Wattson
172	Gift Ban	Funds provided by lobbyist principals may not be used to underwrite the cost of an educational seminar including food and beverages that public officials are invited to attend free of charge - Definition of gift	10/26/1994	Nonpublic
171	Gift Ban	The relationship between a lobbyist principal and a foundation may be so close that gifts by the foundation are deemed to be requested by the principal - Definition of request	7/26/1996	Printing Industry of Minnesota, Inc.
170	Withdrawn by Requester	Withdrawn by requester
169	Gift Ban	To avoid violating the gift prohibition, a lobbyist principal must charge a fee for attending officials that covers the cost of food and beverages provided at a meeting and require contemporaneous payment of that fee - Consideration of equal or greater value	10/7/1994	John Apitz
168	Gift Ban	An official may accept travel, lodging, and meals in order to attend a conference if those expenses are paid for entirely by funds provided by individuals that are neither lobbyists nor lobbyist principals - Indirect gift	10/7/1994	Nonpublic
167	Gift Ban	Complimentary copies of publications by a lobbyist principal are not within the exceptions to the gift prohibition (Opinion One is affected by statutory changes effective August 2010) - Informational material	10/29/1994	Minnesota Medical Association
166	Gift Ban	An official may not accept complimentary admission to events sponsored by lobbyists or lobbyist principals - Definition of principal	10/14/1994	Nonpublic
165	Gift Ban	A certificate given to an official by a lobbyist principal, recognizing individual service within a field, falls within an exception to the gift prohibition (Superseded by statutory changes effective June 2008) - Plaque with resale value of $5 or less	10/7/1994	Nonpublic
164	Gift Ban	An official must pay for admission to events, meals, airfare, and lodging provided by a lobbyist principal in order to avoid violating the gift prohibition, even if those items are given because the official's spouse is an employee of the principal - Definition of gift	9/15/1994	Nonpublic
163	Gift Ban	An official is prohibited from accepting the payment of costs related to attending an event if a lobbyist or lobbyist principal contributes toward the cost of the event - Indirect gift	9/15/1994	Nonpublic
162	Gift Ban	A lobbyist principal may not provide complimentary registration fees for an official to attend the principal's educational programs - Services to assist an official	9/15/1994	Nonpublic
161	Gift Ban	Prizes donated or paid for by lobbyists or lobbyist principals for a charitable event hosted by an official are not exempt from the gift prohibition; prizes won by officials based on skill are not gifts - Definition of gift	9/15/1994	Nonpublic
160	Gift Ban	The per capita value of a gift is calculated by taking the total cost of providing the benefits that constitute a gift to all individuals, then dividing that amount by the number of individuals who receive those benefits - Definition of gift	9/15/1994	Nonpublic
159	Gift Ban	To avoid violating the gift prohibition, an official must provide contemporaneous payment for a meal paid for by a lobbyist principal (Opinions Three and Four may be reversed by AO 273) - Consideration of equal or greater value	8/22/1994	Nonpublic
158	Campaign Finance	The propriety of the establishment of a political committee or fund by a nonprofit corporation whose members are corporations is controlled by Minnesota Statutes section 211B.15 - Corporate contributions	9/15/1994	Nonpublic
157	Gift Ban	Computer training falls within the exception to the gift prohibition for services to assist an official in the performance of official duties - Services to assist an official	8/22/1994	Nonpublic
156	Gift Ban	The publication of a lobbyist principal related to public policy issues falls within the exceptions to the gift prohibition for informational material of unexceptional value and services to assist an official - Informational material	8/12/1994	Minnesota Transportation Alliance
155	Gift Ban	A lobbyist principal may not provide meals and lodging to officials who attend a conference unless consideration of equal or greater value is received in return - Food or beverage	8/12/1994	HealthSpan Health Systems Corporation
154	Campaign Finance	The production and broadcasting of a cable public access program by a candidate without compensation or cost to the candidate does not constitute an in-kind contribution to the candidate - In-kind contributions	8/12/1994	Duane Schumacher, Jr.
153	Gift Ban	Breakfasts given to legislators who appear at meetings sponsored by a lobbyist principal, to speak or respond to questions as part of the program, fall within the food or beverage exception to the gift prohibition - Food or beverage	8/2/1994	Twin West Chamber of Commerce
152	Campaign Finance	A candidate for governor and a candidate for lieutenant governor, running together, are treated as a single entity for purposes of contribution limits and limits on loans - Personal contribution limit	6/24/1994	(Anthony) Bouza for Governor
151	Campaign Finance	Services provided without compensation by an individual volunteering personal time on behalf of a candidate are not considered a contribution to that candidate - In-kind contributions	6/30/1994	Kathryn Nelson
150	Campaign Finance	A letter and additional information from a principal campaign committee regarding a specific transaction was accepted in lieu of an amended report of receipts and expenditures - Reporting	6/27/1994	Thomas Heffelfinger
149	Public Subsidy	A candidate who runs for a statewide office, then seeks another statewide office, is not a first-time candidate with respect to the second office, and expenditures incurred seeking each office must be combined for purposes of the spending limit - First-time candidate	6/27/1994	Alan Weinblatt
148	Gift Ban	A local official of a metropolitan governmental unit is subject to the gift prohibition - Definition of official	6/27/1994	G. D. Garski
147	Gift Ban	Chapter 10A does not prohibit gifts to officials unless the gifts are given by a lobbyist or lobbyist principal - Indirect gift	6/30/1994	Rollin Dennistoun
146	Campaign Finance	If an association wishes to give a contribution in excess of a threshold amount to its own political fund, it must first register that political fund with the Board, or provide the disclosure statement required by statute with the contribution - Contributions from unregistered associations	8/12/1994	Minnesota Petroleum Marketers Association
145	Public Subsidy	An individual who runs for lieutenant governor with an individual who has run previously for governor does not qualify as a first-time candidate with respect to the spending limit - First-time candidate	6/15/1994	Carlson/Benson Volunteer Committee
143	Gift Ban	The distribution of complimentary copies of a newspaper to legislators by the newspaper's publisher is included in the exceptions to the gift prohibition - Informational material	6/7/1994	Mark Anfinson
142	Gift Ban	Officials generally may not accept meals or other items or services paid for by lobbyists or lobbyist principals at meetings hosted by a separate organization (May be reversed by AO 273) - Membership in a group	8/12/1994	Minnesota Association of County Officers
141	Gift Ban	A lobbyist principal may not give desk diaries or pocket calendars to officials that cost in excess of $12 each to produce without violating the gift prohibition (Affected by statutory changes effective August 2010) - Informational material	6/2/1994	Minnesota D.R.I.V.E.
139	Public Subsidy	An individual who ran for state representative and a soil and water conservation board seat is not a first-time candidate when later running for state representative (Affected by statutory changes effective May 2013) - First-time candidate	3/23/1994	Richard Ottman
138	Campaign Finance	The prohibition on contributions from certain types of contributors to candidates during a regular legislative session does not apply to fundraising by federal candidates - Fundraising during legislative session	2/22/1994	Rep. Gil Gutknecht
137	Campaign Finance	The limit on contributions to political committees and funds will not be imposed upon a political fund established solely to support or oppose a ballot question (Superseded by statutory changes effective August 1999) - Individual contribution limit	12/21/1993	League of Women Voters of Minnesota
136	Campaign Finance	Candidates for statewide, legislative, and judicial offices are prohibited from making contributions to and receiving contributions from the campaign committees of individuals seeking political subdivision office - Local candidate contributions	11/23/1993	Kenneth Stevens
129	Campaign Finance	An affiliate of a national political party is not itself a national political party for purposes of determining whether it is exempt from the disclosure requirements applicable to unregistered associations - Contributions from unregistered associations	4/21/1993	B. Holly Schadler
127	Campaign Finance	The purchase of a fax machine by a principal campaign committee is a campaign expenditure, not a noncampaign disbursement - Noncampaign disbursements	11/12/1992	Alan Weinblatt
119	Conflict of Interest	An official is not required to file a potential conflict of interest notice in a case involving legislation of general application to the official's business or profession - Outside employment	2/11/1992	Sen. Ted Mondale
114	Campaign Finance	A political fund may make independent expenditures in support of candidates its supporting association has endorsed; the contributions of affiliated but separate organizations are not aggregated for purposes of applying individual contribution limits - Independent expenditures	12/9/1991	Minnesota Education Association
111	Lobbying	The governing body of a metropolitan governmental unit may determine what constitute "major decisions" for purposes of lobbyist disclosure and economic interest disclosure under Chapter 10A - Definition of lobbyist	6/6/1991	City of St. Paul
106	Lobbying	Payment of a bonus to an employee who is a lobbyist is not a prohibited contingent fee if the payment was not contemplated or discussed with the lobbyist prior to the lobbying efforts in question - Contingent fee	7/26/1990	James Volling
101	Campaign Finance	Contributions to and payments from a legal defense fund established by a candidate are not subject to the registration and reporting requirements of Chapter 10A - Definition of campaign expenditure	7/27/1989	Eric Sandrock
89	Campaign Finance	The purchase of a typewriter or computer by a principal campaign committee is a campaign expenditure, not a noncampaign disbursement - Noncampaign disbursements	5/22/1984	Rep. Joel Jacobs
86	Campaign Finance	A reverse checkoff system may be used by a membership association to solicit contributions to the association's political fund - Definition of contribution	2/2/1984	Minnesota Trial Lawyers Political Action Committee
73	Campaign Finance	A corporation may spend money to promote or defeat a ballot question by registering its own political fund or contributing to an existing political fund that does not give contributions to candidates - Corporate contributions	9/19/1980	Michael Flanagan
46	Economic Interest	Tax Court judges are not considered public officials and therefore are not required to file statements of economic interest - Definition of public official	4/13/1978	Earl Gustafson
6	Campaign Finance	A corporation may establish a nonpartisan conduit fund to facilitate voluntary contributions from employees to candidates if each contributor retains control over the distribution of the funds; a conduit fund is not required to register with the Board - Conduit funds	9/9/1974	First Bank System