Does an administrative cease and desist order violate the separation of powers? May the order require affirmative action? State v. Drum, 1998 WL 170118 (Minn. App. 1998)(Unpublished). Appellant was convicted of a misdemeanor for violating a cease and desist order issued by a Department of Natural Resources Conservation Officer when he failed to stop draining a pond on his property. He argued that a conservation officer is constitutionally forbidden from issuing a cease and desist clause under the separation of powers clause. The Court cited established State and federal case law in upholding administrative issuance of cease and desist orders. See F.T.C. v. Colgate-Palmolive Co., 380 U.S. 374, 394-95 (1965); S.E.C. v. Sloan, 436 U.S. 103, 110-11 (1978); In re Medcenters Health Care, Inc., 450 N.W.2d 635, 640 (Minn. App. 1990). The appellant also argued that he was not in violation of the cease and desist order, which required him to cease "activity." He claimed that he did not engage in any "activity" after the order was issued, but instead failed to stop the draining of the wetland. The court cited Minn. Stat. § 103G.2372, subds. 1, 2 (1996), which authorizes a cease and desist order to "stop any illegal activity."
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