# Government Data Practices Act *Minnesota statute (Minn. Stat. ch. 13) on government data.* The **Government Data Practices Act** is chapter 13 of the [[Minnesota]] Statutes.[^1] Its law enforcement data section, [[§ 13.82]], classifies active criminal investigative data as confidential.[^2] In the record, the Act appears through one county office. The [[Carver County Attorney's Office]] lists compliance with the Act among its civil duties. It describes its own role as serving "in a role that is similar to that of an in-house corporate counsel."[^3] A February 2018 FOX 9 report on a Carver County data request quoted the position that confidential law enforcement data stayed confidential until the county attorney decided whether to bring charges.[^4] The office's client is Carver County. In its report for the year ended December 31, 2016, the [[Office of the State Auditor]] entered two internal-control material weaknesses and two repeat legal-compliance findings against the county.[^5] ## What Chapter 13 of the Minnesota Statutes is the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act.[^1] Section 13.82, headed *Law Enforcement Data*, classifies active criminal investigative data as confidential.[^2] The statutory sources in the record do not set out the section's text on when that classification ends. The record's account of that point is the 2018 statement reported by FOX 9.[^4] ## Who The Carver County Attorney's Office reports 34 employees, 19 of them attorneys.[^3] Its Civil Division portfolio covers: - litigation, property and contracts, and regulatory compliance; - Public Health enforcement, Public Works infrastructure, and property tax appeals; - Health and Human Services administration and child support enforcement; - "data privacy compliance under the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act."[^3] Its Criminal Division "contracts with ten of Carver County's eleven cities" for municipal prosecution.[^3] The office is headed by County Attorney Mark Metz. His official county biography lists service on the MCAA Board of Directors.[^6] ## How The record places two functions in the same office. First, the office advises Carver County on compliance with the Act.[^3] Second, FOX 9 reported in February 2018 on an objection to releasing data about Prince's death. The report quoted this statement: "This confidential law enforcement data remains confidential until the Carver County Attorney makes the decision to charge or decline any criminal charge."[^4] The record does not include a filing or court ruling on that request. It also does not establish whether any body with authority over the arrangement has evaluated it.[^4][^2] ## In the at-issue record Pair AI-Carver-011 is ranked 11 in Block A, *The Custody Mechanism*. It sets the office's self-description beside its two functions and states: "The adviser on disclosure and the decider on disclosure are the same office, and the client is the county." The pair rests on two sources, a county record and a statute.[^3][^2] The project anchors the pair to a March 2025 White House presidential action on eliminating information silos. Its stated reason for the anchor is "the auditee's counsel holding the disclosure switch."[^7] ## In the Minnesota record ### What The Office of the State Auditor issued a Management and Compliance Report on Carver County for the year ended December 31, 2016.[^5] It entered two internal-control material weaknesses: - **Finding 2016-001** was a prior-period adjustment for an unrecognized liability owed to other governments from a 2015 park land sale. The stated cause was "An oversight in identification of amounts due to other governments."[^5] - **Finding 2016-002** was a federal compliance material weakness in the Medical Assistance program, CFDA 93.778. The stated cause was that "the MAXIS system was not changed to reflect the updated information."[^5] The same report carried two repeat Minnesota legal-compliance findings, each marked "Partially Corrected": - **Finding 2013-001** concerned ditch systems with negative cash balances, in violation of [[Minn. Stat. § 103E.655]].[^5][^8] - **Finding 2015-002** concerned a ditch special revenue fund in deficit, in violation of Minn. Stat. § 385.04.[^5][^9] The State Auditor's FY2014 management letter had already reported Finding 2013-001 as not resolved. It stated that "The County is not in compliance with Minnesota statutes by having ditch systems with negative cash balances."[^10] The State Auditor's letters in the record also include an FY2009 management letter.[^11] The county keeps its own archive of audit and annual financial reports.[^12] The project's review of the Carver County State Auditor audits in the record reports that no fraud, embezzlement, or misuse of funds was identified.[^5][^10] The review also located no Office of the Legislative Auditor evaluation, financial audit, or special review naming Carver County. The project notes that this absence is structural: the Legislative Auditor audits state agencies, while counties fall to the State Auditor.[^13] ### How much - **2016:** Finding 2016-001 concerned an unrecognized liability of $360,896.[^5] - **2016:** Under Finding 2013-001, ten ditch systems carried negative cash balances totalling $83,904.[^5][^8] - **2016:** Under Finding 2015-002, the ditch special revenue fund was $30,824 in deficit.[^5][^9] - **FY2014:** Five ditch systems were negative in cash by a total of $69,907, and six had deficit fund balances totalling $157,563.[^10] ### How many In Finding 2016-002, 8 of 40 tested Medical Assistance case files showed asset discrepancies in the MAXIS system, and 2 showed income discrepancies.[^5] ## Notes [^1]: Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes, *Minnesota Statutes, chapter 13 (Government Data Practices)* — chapter 13 is the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act. https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/13 [^2]: Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes, *Minnesota Statutes § 13.82, Law Enforcement Data* — active criminal investigative data classified confidential. https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/13.82 [^3]: Carver County Attorney's Office, *Office Overview* — self-description as "similar to that of an in-house corporate counsel"; 34 employees, 19 attorneys; Civil Division duties including data privacy compliance under the Act; Criminal Division contracts with ten of eleven cities. https://www.carvercountymn.gov/departments/county-attorney/office-overview [^4]: FOX 9, *Carver County attorney objects to releasing data about Prince's death* (Feb. 2018) — quoted statement that the data "remains confidential until the Carver County Attorney makes the decision to charge or decline any criminal charge." https://www.fox9.com/news/carver-county-attorney-objects-to-releasing-data-about-princes-death [^5]: Minnesota Office of the State Auditor, *Carver County Management and Compliance Report, year ended December 31, 2016* — Findings 2016-001 ($360,896 liability), 2016-002 (CFDA 93.778; 8 of 40 and 2 case-file discrepancies), and repeat findings 2013-001 and 2015-002. https://www.auditor.state.mn.us/media/ru3fqh1t/carvercountyml_16_report.pdf [^6]: Carver County, *Mark Metz, County Attorney* (official biography) — MCAA Board of Directors. https://www.carvercountymn.gov/departments/county-attorney/mark-metz-county-attorney [^7]: The White House, *Presidential action on eliminating information silos* (March 2025) — the anchor document for at-issue pair AI-Carver-011. https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/03/stopping-waste-fraud-and-abuse-by-eliminating-information-silos/ [^8]: Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes, *Minnesota Statutes § 103E.655* — the statute cited in Finding 2013-001. https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/103E.655 [^9]: Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes, *Minnesota Statutes § 385.04* — the statute cited in Finding 2015-002. https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/385.04 [^10]: Minnesota Office of the State Auditor, *Carver County Management Letter, FY2014* — Finding 2013-001 not resolved; $69,907 negative cash across five ditch systems; $157,563 deficit fund balances across six. https://www.auditor.state.mn.us/media/bljfq12z/carvercountyml_14_report.pdf [^11]: Minnesota Office of the State Auditor, *Carver County Management Letter, FY2009* — earlier management letter in the record. https://www.osa.state.mn.us/media/zapljmpf/carvercountyml_09_report.pdf [^12]: Carver County, *Audit / Comprehensive Annual Financial Report* — the county's own audit archive. https://www.carvercountymn.gov/departments/property-finance/finance/audit-comprehensive-annual-financial-report [^13]: Minnesota Office of the Legislative Auditor, *OLA website* — site searched; no Legislative Auditor review naming Carver County located (negative-result finding). https://www.auditor.leg.state.mn.us/