Latest news with #EthicsSubcommittee
Yahoo
05-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ethics panel deadlocks on complaint against Minnesota Senate President
An ethics complaint Republicans filed against Minnesota Senate President Bobby Joe Champion, DFL-Minneapolis, stalled Monday after a legislative ethics panel failed to reach consensus on how to proceed. The two Democratic-Farmer-Labor and two Republican members of the Senate Subcommittee on Ethics deadlocked on whether there was probable cause that Champion broke ethics rules when he helped obtain millions in state funding for a nonprofit whose founder he had done free legal work for. They also tied in a 2-2 vote on a DFL-backed motion to dismiss the complaint. The lack of action comes after the subcommittee asked Champion to disclose any potential conflicts of interest at an April 24 meeting but made no other rulings. Champion initially asked for an advisory opinion from the Senate Subcommittee on Ethics after his pro bono work for a Minneapolis violence prevention organization had come to light earlier in April. He temporarily stepped down as chair of the Ethics Subcommittee and Sen. Sandy Pappas, DFL-St. Paul, took over the position as the panel handled the matter. Champion faced allegations about potential conflicts because he carried a 2023 bill that helped the Minneapolis violence prevention nonprofit 21 Days of Peace obtain $3 million in funding. In 2025, he sponsored another bill to help provide another $1 million. Republicans in their complaint argued Champion's pro bono work for the nonprofit's founder, Rev. Jerry McAfee and his parent group, Salem, Inc., harmed public perception of the Senate by giving the impression of a conflict of interest. 'Due to the relationship Salem Inc. had with Sen. Champion, it is difficult for the public to have faith that the projects selected by the Legislature for public funds are being chosen based on merit,' said Sen. Michael Kreun, R-Blaine, who brought the complaint against Champion. Champion has maintained that his pro bono work for McAfee ended in 2022 and did not coincide with his sponsorship of the bills. He and his lawyer also argued that his ties to the nonprofit do not violate Minnesota Senate ethics rules because there was no financial interest. 'I thank the members of the ethics subcommittee for their work. As I have maintained since the beginning of this discussion, I have followed the rules of the Senate,' Champion said in a statement. 'I did not introduce or advocate for legislation on which I had a conflict of interest and I'm grateful that the subcommittee did not find probable cause.' Minnesota's ethics rules for legislators are not particularly expansive. Current law bans members from voting on matters that result in a direct financial gain for themselves or their business disproportionate to others in the same field. Political observers and lawmakers of both parties have noted that Minnesota's part-time 'citizen legislature' naturally lends itself to members voting on issues directly related to their work and communities. Teachers, nurses and business owners often back or carry bills directly related to their lines of work. Champion's backers have argued that his work with nonprofits and religious leaders in his district is the mark of an effective state representative. In response to DFLers' unwillingness to join GOP members in backing the ethics complaint Monday, Kreun said it was 'disappointing that partisanship won out.' Letters: 'Let's not make it harder to learn,' Walz wrote. A private school principal responds. Debate on unemployment benefits for school workers derails key MN budget piece St. Paul, MN Wild trim Xcel Center's state request from $400M to $50M Minnesota loosens distance exemption on state employee return to office order Minnesota Senate OKs liquor bill with 'social districts' provision
Yahoo
05-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ethics panel deadlocks on complaint against Minnesota Senate President
An ethics complaint Republicans filed against Minnesota Senate President Bobby Joe Champion, DFL-Minneapolis, stalled Monday after a legislative ethics panel failed to reach consensus on how to proceed. The two Democratic-Farmer-Labor and two Republican members of the Senate Subcommittee on Ethics deadlocked on whether there was probable cause that Champion broke ethics rules when he helped obtain millions in state funding for a nonprofit whose founder he had done free legal work for. They also tied in a 2-2 vote on a DFL-backed motion to dismiss the complaint. The lack of action comes after the subcommittee asked Champion to disclose any potential conflicts of interest at an April 24 meeting but made no other rulings. Champion initially asked for an advisory opinion from the Senate Subcommittee on Ethics after his pro bono work for a Minneapolis violence prevention organization had come to light earlier in April. He temporarily stepped down as chair of the Ethics Subcommittee and Sen. Sandy Pappas, DFL-St. Paul, took over the position as the panel handled the matter. Champion faced allegations about potential conflicts because he carried a 2023 bill that helped the Minneapolis violence prevention nonprofit 21 Days of Peace obtain $3 million in funding. In 2025, he sponsored another bill to help provide another $1 million. Republicans in their complaint argued Champion's pro bono work for the nonprofit's founder, Rev. Jerry McAfee and his parent group, Salem, Inc., harmed public perception of the Senate by giving the impression of a conflict of interest. 'Due to the relationship Salem Inc. had with Sen. Champion, it is difficult for the public to have faith that the projects selected by the Legislature for public funds are being chosen based on merit,' said Sen. Michael Kreun, R-Blaine, who brought the complaint against Champion. Champion has maintained that his pro bono work for McAfee ended in 2022 and did not coincide with his sponsorship of the bills. He and his lawyer also argued that his ties to the nonprofit do not violate Minnesota Senate ethics rules because there was no financial interest. 'I thank the members of the ethics subcommittee for their work. As I have maintained since the beginning of this discussion, I have followed the rules of the Senate,' Champion said in a statement. 'I did not introduce or advocate for legislation on which I had a conflict of interest and I'm grateful that the subcommittee did not find probable cause.' Minnesota's ethics rules for legislators are not particularly expansive. Current law bans members from voting on matters that result in a direct financial gain for themselves or their business disproportionate to others in the same field. Political observers and lawmakers of both parties have noted that Minnesota's part-time 'citizen legislature' naturally lends itself to members voting on issues directly related to their work and communities. Teachers, nurses and business owners often back or carry bills directly related to their lines of work. Champion's backers have argued that his work with nonprofits and religious leaders in his district is the mark of an effective state representative. In response to DFLers' unwillingness to join GOP members in backing the ethics complaint Monday, Kreun said it was 'disappointing that partisanship won out.' Letters: 'Let's not make it harder to learn,' Walz wrote. A private school principal responds. Debate on unemployment benefits for school workers derails key MN budget piece St. Paul, MN Wild trim Xcel Center's state request from $400M to $50M Minnesota loosens distance exemption on state employee return to office order Minnesota Senate OKs liquor bill with 'social districts' provision
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ethics panel: MN Senate President must disclose possible future conflicts
The Senate Subcommittee on Ethics on Thursday advised Minnesota Senate President Bobby Joe Champion to disclose potential conflicts of interest in future bills he sponsors. Though in that same motion, the panel made no finding on whether Champion had a conflict of interest when he carried a 2023 bill that gave state money to a nonprofit whose founder he had done free legal work for in the past. Further, they found no financial conflict in a bill he sponsored this year to bring that organization another $1 million. The decision was unanimous, though the Ethics Subcommittee has two Democratic-Farmer-Labor and two Republican members and often deadlocks or rules inconclusively. On May 5, it's expected to hear a Senate GOP complaint against Champion regarding his relationships with nonprofits he helped fund. Champion, a Minneapolis DFLer, has been under scrutiny in recent weeks after reports that he helped the violence prevention nonprofit 21 Days of Peace obtain $3 million in funding, and that he had done pro bono work for its founder, Jerry McAfee. The senator temporarily stepped down as chair of the Senate Subcommittee on Ethical Conduct and asked for an advisory opinion on April 7, and has maintained that his pro bono work did not coincide with his sponsorship of the bills. ''I appreciate the conclusion the members of the Ethics Subcommittee, which as expected found that I had not violated Senate rules,' Champion said in a statement. 'I sought the advisory opinion from the in full confidence that I have followed the rules of the Senate with regards to conflict of interest, and conducted myself with integrity.' Minnesota's ethics rules for legislators are not particularly expansive. Current law bans members from voting on matters that result in a direct financial gain for themselves or their business disproportionate to others in the same field. Political observers and lawmakers of both parties have noted that Minnesota's part-time 'citizen legislature' naturally lends itself to members voting on issues directly related to their work and communities. Teachers, nurses and business owners often back or carry bills directly related to their lines of work. As the Senate Ethics Subcommittee prepared to pass a motion Thursday, Chair Sandy Pappas, DFL-St. Paul, who joined the committee after Champion stepped down, reflected on that challenge for Minnesota lawmakers. 'I think that we have to be very careful with this advisory opinion and what we issue, because if we're doing our job as legislators, as I said, we have a lot of relationships and a lot of people we know in the community, and that informs our work as legislators,' she said. 'That should be considered a good thing.' Pappas said the advisory opinion from the Ethics Subcommittee telling Champion to disclose potential conflicts in the future was a reminder for all members to weigh how their connections might affect their work. Champion's connection to nonprofits he helped fund has raised questions in the Legislature about changing state ethics rules. Senate Republicans have said that regardless of whether Champion violated rules, state lawmakers should hold themselves to a higher standard of conduct. Sen. Michael Kreun, R-Blaine, who brought the complaint against Champion, has said a big part of his concern is that Champion had interactions with McAfee, which would be private under attorney-client privilege rules. 'The choice to carry legislation that provided funding to an entity with which Champion has a privileged relationship without disclosing the relationship fails to meet those standards,' he said in a Thursday statement. 'This opinion from the Subcommittee on Ethical Conduct acknowledges that fact by saying he should make disclosures in the future.' The Ethics Subcommittee will hear Kreun's complaint at a meeting where they'll officially adopt Thursday's advisory opinion. Kreun's complaint requests that the subcommittee look into whether Champion violated rules prohibiting actions that discredit the Senate or undermine public trust in government. UMN disease research center to launch vaccine integrity project Walz seeks GOP help on budget, blasts Trump 'chaos' in State of the State speech Jim Gelbmann: Our partisan endorsement process is unrepresentative, polarizing and self-serving Minnesota gun-carry permit age drops from 21 to 18 after legal challenge Keith Ellison sues Trump administration over orders on transgender issues
