WASHINGTON -- The Federal Elections Commission questioned newly elected Republican Rep. Tom Emmer on Thursday about debts and excessive contributions in his first quarter campaign filing.
Federal officials say Emmer accepted excessive contributions from individual donors and he failed to report roughly $16,800 in debt to mail and marketing companies accurately.
Emmer was first elected to Congress last year to represent the Sixth Congressional District.
His campaign manager and official chief of staff David FitzSimmons said the mistakes were human error. FitzSimmons said he planned to correct them in the next report, as well as respond to the FEC.
Excessive contributions from individuals can be refunded or "reattributed," which means they can come from another donor, usually a spouse, as long as both contributors testify to that, in writing.
This is the second warning letter this week sent by the FEC to a Minnesota member of Congress. Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar faced questions over the weekend.
