Purpose

This bill would change Minnesota campaign finance reporting rules to require more thorough disclosures about an official’s financial interests. It adds new categories, especially around digital assets, and expands the kinds of assets and business interests that must be listed. The goal is to increase transparency about potential financial connections and conflicts of interest for public officials.

Main Provisions

• Definition added for digital asset

  • The bill defines “digital asset” as digital-only assets that confer economic ownership or access rights, including virtual currency, stablecoins, and nonfungible tokens (NFTs).

• Expanded reporting form and requirements

  • The statement of economic interest must be filed on a form prescribed by the ethics board, with specific required items:
  • Personal information: name, address, occupation, and principal place of business.
  • Business associations: list of every associated business and the nature of the association.
  • Real property in Minnesota (excluding homestead): disclose certain interests (like ownership, mortgage, contract for deed, or option to buy) if the value thresholds are met.
    • For individuals: interests valued over $2,500, or options to buy if property FMV is over $50,000.
    • For real property owned by partnerships in which the individual or spouse is a member: similar thresholds and required details (location and approximate size).
  • Investments in horse racing: any investments or property tied to parimutuel horse racing in the United States or Canada, including a racehorse in which the individual or a family member has an interest.
  • Principal business activity (employment): for businesses from which the individual or spouse earns more than $250 per month as an employee, if they own 25% or more of the business.
  • Independent contractor compensation: for principal activities from which compensation over $2,500 in the past 12 months was earned as an independent contractor.
  • Securities: full names of any securities with a value over $10,000 owned by the individual or spouse, at any time during the reporting period.
    • For each stock or stock option reported, include the dates and values of each purchase, sale, or option exercise.
  • Digital assets: full names of any digital assets with a value over $10,000 owned by the individual or spouse, at any time during the reporting period.
    • For each digital asset, include the dates and values of each purchase or sale during the reporting period.
  • Contracts, licenses, leases, or franchises: disclose any such item held by the individual or spouse (or by a business in which the individual has 25% or more ownership) that is with a government agency on which they serve as a public or local official.
  • Clarifications and rules
  • Business activity categories for items 6 and 7 should use the general IRS Schedule C headings; no requirement to use specific Schedule C codes, though additional categories can be added only if enacted by law.
  • When calculating compensation from a single source in a month, the total from that source in the month counts, even if it covers more than one month.
  • Real property value should be the market value shown on the property tax statement.
  • The “date of appointment” means the effective date of the appointment to the position; “accepting employment as a public official” means the appointment date stated by the appointing authority.
  • Some items must not identify whether the item is held by the filer or a spouse.
  • For items involving stock or digital assets, filers may report using predefined value ranges (e.g., 1-10,000; 10,001-50,000; up to over 50,000,000) rather than exact amounts.

Notable Changes to Law

• Digital asset disclosures: The bill explicitly adds digital assets (virtual currency, stablecoins, NFTs) to the types of assets that must be reported.
• More comprehensive asset reporting: In addition to stocks and real estate, officials must disclose ownership, interests, and certain transactions in digital assets and parimutuel racing investments.
• Privacy-oriented listing rules: Some item descriptions are required not to reveal whether the filer or spouse owns the listed item, protecting some privacy while still providing transparency.
• Use of IRS Schedule C categories: The bill adopts broad IRS Schedule C categories for business activity without forcing strict coding, aligning state reporting with familiar tax categories.
• Detailed transaction reporting: For stocks and digital assets, the bill requires dates and values of each purchase/sale/transaction, with optional reporting in ranges for certain fields to manage scope.

Scope and Potential Impact

• This expands transparency for Minnesota officials by requiring a broader and more detailed set of financial disclosures, including digital assets and certain racing investments.
• It aligns state reporting more closely with modern financial instruments, affecting how officials manage and report potential conflicts of interest.

Relevant Terms - digital asset - digital asset means digital-only asset - virtual currency - stablecoins - nonfungible tokens (NFTs) - statement of economic interest - real property - fee simple - mortgage - contract for deed - option to buy - parimutuel horse racing - racehorse - principal business activity category - independent contractor - securities - stock - stock option - government agency - public or local official - property tax statement - market value - appointment date - IRS Schedule C - reporting period - reporting form - associated business - spouse - ownership interest - ranges for reporting (1-10000, 10001-50000, etc.)