Prosperity Minnesota group prohibited by law, will dissolve

Prosperity Minnesota doesn’t have much of a future.

Just days after two Republican legislators formed the campaign committee to promote fiscally conservative, pro-business candidates, they were told the committee was prohibited by Minnesota law and have acted to dissolve it.

Gary Goldsmith, chair of the Minnesota Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board, said he had just met with Rep. Keith Downey and communicated with Sen. Dave Thompson.

 “They are now aware of the statute that prohibits this type of committee,” he said.  “They have verbally requested that the board allow them to withdraw the application.” Goldsmith says the board meets Tuesday and is expected to accept the request.

Contacted earlier about the ruling, Thompson said he would try to make the committee comply with state law.

But Goldsmith said that in Minnesota it would be almost impossible legally to structure such a committee.

“In Minnesota, it’s not really possible for a candidate to control another committee,” he said.

Minnesota law was changed in the 1990s.

 “It was quite a prevalent practice back then. Legislators would form ‘Friends of the Speaker’ and those kinds of groups,” Goldsmith said. “But at a certain point the Legislature said this had to stop.”