Jon Collins has a lengthy report detailing a steep drop (to 0) of conflict-of-interest disclosures by public officials since Tim Pawlenty became Minnesota's governor.
Dozens of disclosures were filed in Minnesota between 1975 and 2002, according to the board’s annual reports. Prior to 2003, there were only a handful of years that no disclosures were filed.
But since Pawlenty took office — and appointed many of the state’s officials, including the six governing members of the disclosure board — not one form disclosing a potential conflict of interest has been filed.
Pawlenty's response?
Pawlenty spokesman Brian McClung said the statute clearly places responsibility for the disclosure filings with individual officials, not the governing administration.
“It is up to each public official to either abstain from voting or taking action that presents a conflict or file the form as required by statute,” McClung said. “To claim that the governor or any other person is responsible for someone else’s failure to file the form, if necessary, is ludicrous.”
But why the drop then?
T-Paw's critics claim it's because some commissioners appointed by Pawlenty have been caught up in ethical lapses they themselves failed to report; thus setting a laissez-faire climate for other public officials.
Maybe. But another explanation is -- you guessed it -- loopholes.
