Campaign Finance at Heart of Latest Skirmish Between Executive Branch And North Dakota Ethics Commission

Secretary of State Michael Howe. (Provided via the North Dakota Monitor)

(North Dakota Monitor) – The secretary of state is asking for a formal legal opinion from the attorney general on the North Dakota Ethics Commission’s authority, including whether it had the right to issue a recent advisory opinion.

The request joins previous questions about the commission’s authority raised by other executive branch leaders. The Legislature empowered the commission to issue advisory opinions if a public official wants to know whether an action is permitted under state law. But the governor and other elected officials say the agency has overstepped, with the conflict contributing to a stalled process to fill vacancies on the commission.

Secretary of State Michael Howe asked in a July 22 letter for Attorney General Drew Wrigley to weigh in on the overlapping responsibilities of his office and the Ethics Commission in response to an advisory opinion about campaign finance.

The inquiry is in response to a June 25 Ethics Commission advisory opinion about campaign finance. Howe asks the attorney general if the commission’s advisory opinion is accurate, what would happen if his office disagrees with future opinions, and whether his office is obligated to follow ethics rules adopted by the commission that differ from state law.