ATLANTA (AP) — The head of the state ethics commission claims in a memo sent last year that an attorney for Gov. Nathan Deal once threatened to thwart legislative efforts to expand the agency's authority unless she made complaints against the governor "go away."

Holly LaBerge, the commission's executive secretary, said in the memo obtained Monday from the Attorney General's Office that the threat came during a 2012 call with Deal's chief counsel, Ryan Teague.

Deal's personal attorney, Randy Evans, says the memo proves the contentious negotiations between the governor's attorneys and commission staff, arguing the case against the governor still went to a full commission hearing. The commission later dismissed the main complaints and Deal paid administrative fees to settle the rest.

LaBerge referred questions to her attorney, who declined comment.