The Capitol Note: Dayton raised $1.1 million for re-election during 2013

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1.) Gov. Mark Dayton raised $1.1 million toward his re-election campaign during 2013, and brings $772,00 into this year, according to a press release issued Tuesday. Dayton’s total is a record for off-year fundraising, and campaign manager Katharine Tinucci said the figure “shows Minnesotans are excited about Gov. Dayton’s re-election.” Dayton has kept a relatively low profile about his donation appeals to this point, but was known to have held a series of fundraising events following the 2013 session. The total collection gives him a significant advantage over the Republican field, where Scott Honour leads all comers with just over $500,000. On Monday, former House minority leader Marty Seifert announced that his campaign had pulled in an impressive $150,000 during just five weeks, despite the fact that his campaign was launched around the holiday season, when donors historically tend to be less generous.

2.) A new bill brought by a pair of DFL committee chairs would provide services and, in some cases, financial reparations for Minnesotans who serve time in prison for crimes they did not commit. Sen. Ron Latz, DFL-St. Louis Park, and Rep. John Lesch, DFL-St. Paul, announced their proposal with a press conference on Tuesday, explaining that 29 states have similar programs in place, as does the federal justice system. Under the terms of their bill, which was drafted with assistance from the Minnesota Innocence Project, convicted people who are later proven innocent could file for medical and dental assistance, career guidance and other services, and would be eligible to appeal for up to $700,000 in restitution. Innocence Project attorney Julie Jonas said awards granted by administrative law judges would be based on the individual’s possible earning potential during their stint in prison, and said the proposal “isn’t about trying to get someone rich.”

3.) Leaders from the DFL and Republican Party of Minnesota held a joint press conference on Tuesday to bring attention to the Feb. 4 caucus date, but that didn’t stop the state’s Democrats from issuing a legal challenge against their conservative counterparts. The DFL filed a campaign finance complaint alleging that the GOP had sent 20 different pieces of campaign literature to many thousands of Minnesotans, but failed to disclose the corresponding expense on its official filing with the state. The same complaint also accuses the state’s Republican machine of under-reporting its mailing expenses by $144,000. In a press release announcing the DFL filing, party chair Ken Martin said the GOP’s lack of full disclosure “not only violate the law, they undermine the public’s trust.”

COMINGS & GOINGS

• Winthrop & Weinstine lobbyist Tom Hanson registered three new clients with the campaign finance board, making public his agreements to lobby for the Prairie Island Dakota Community, CenturyLink and AMS Holdings LLS; he is joined on registering the latter client by Eric Swanson, also of Winthrop & Weinstine.
• The House Republican caucus is hiring for a pair of positions; the party is looking for an art and production coordinator and a constituent services specialist and writer. Applications for both gigs are due Jan. 31. More information at the House employment website.
• Lobbyist Kathleen Mock has signed up to work for the local branch of the Animal Humane Society, becoming that organization’s third lobbyist on record. Mock had formerly worked for BlueCross/BlueShield of Minneesota.
• Though its activities were probably limited for some time, the state-based version of Republican U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann‘s political action committee has finally terminated its registration with the state. Michele PAC Minnesota had been chaired by Chase Kroll, a former Bachmann staffer who now works for the federal lobbying firm David Turch and Associates Washington, D.C.
• Former Minnesota legislator Charlie Berg — who holds the distinction of being the only member of the Legislature to serve as a Democrat, a Republican and an independent — has died at the age of 86. Berg, of Chokio, died on January 22; the West-Central Tribune has an obituary today.