Senate committee advances elections budget after debate on billing major parties for presidential nominating primary

The Minnesota Senate Finance Committee on April 23 reviewed Senate File 3096, the elections omnibus budget bill, and accepted a reporting amendment on voter outreach before laying the bill, as amended, on the table.

Committee members heard a walk-through of fiscal items from a nonpartisan fiscal analyst and then debated a provision that would have the state bill major political parties for their share of the cost of administering a presidential nominating primary. Opponents said the move could discourage third-party participation; supporters called the primary essentially a party-run straw poll and argued the parties should pay if they ask the state to run it.

The committee’s fiscal analyst, Mr. Erickson, described the bill’s net fiscal changes to the secretary of state and the campaign finance board. Erickson said the bill includes “$260,000 one time for the secretary of state to conduct some voter outreach efforts,” “$200,000 one time for a HAVA federal funds match,” about $79,000 in an operating adjustment for the campaign finance board, and “$500,000 in one time money to the campaign finance board for litigation expenses.”

Erickson also explained how the bill would recognize costs for the presidential nominating primary in the revenues section: “money in fiscal 28 of $15,252,000. This is part of a change item to bill parties for the cost of the presidential nomination primary,” he said, adding that the bill would invoice parties and deposit the receipts in the general fund as non-dedicated receipts.

Senator Pratt and other members questioned the policy and precedent of billing parties for a statewide primary. Pratt said the expense of holding the primary is the same regardless of how many parties participate and warned the change could “stifle third party voices.” Senator Westland, the bill sponsor, described the primary as “basically...a straw poll” and said initial estimates rose from approximately $3 million to about $15 million, leaving few other budget options for covering the cost in a tight budget year.

Senators also debated mechanics if one party declined to participate. Erickson and Westland explained that the secretary of state would certify an initial cost estimate and invoice major parties for an equal share of that certified amount; any shortfall beyond the initial certification would come from the open appropriation and thereby affect general-fund revenues.

On amendments, Senator Pratt offered the A-9 amendment to allocate new money to the secretary of state for voter-turnout work and to require reporting on how that money was spent and any impact on turnout. Senator Westland accepted the amendment as friendly, and the committee adopted it by voice vote.

After further discussion, Senator Frentz (listed in the transcript as Senator Friends) moved to lay Senate File 3096, as amended, on the table. The committee recorded a roll call. The clerk announced 9 ayes and 2 nays; the chair declared the motion carried and the committee recessed for 10 minutes.

The committee’s actions on the elections omnibus will be incorporated into later work on the state and local government omnibus budget, as the committee continued to consider related bills later in the day.

Questions raised during the discussion centered on: whether a state-run presidential nominating primary is a party function (the parties request administration), how the state would invoice and certify costs, the risk that billing may suppress participation by smaller parties, and the limited size of the elections portion of the overall budget.

The committee did not adopt final passage of the elections omnibus at the April 23 hearing; it laid the bill on the table after amendments and a recorded roll-call vote.