1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to economic development; authorizing the use 
  1.3             of enterprise zone incentive grants for certain 
  1.4             purposes by Minneapolis and St. Paul; amending 
  1.5             Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 469.305, subdivision 
  1.6             1. 
  1.7   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.8      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 469.305, 
  1.9   subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  1.10     Subdivision 1.  [INCENTIVE GRANTS.] (a) An incentive grant 
  1.11  is available to businesses located in an enterprise zone that 
  1.12  meet the conditions of this section.  Each city designated as an 
  1.13  enterprise zone is allocated $3,000,000 to be used to provide 
  1.14  grants under this section for the duration of the program.  Each 
  1.15  city of the second class designated as an economically depressed 
  1.16  area by the United States Department of Commerce is allocated 
  1.17  $300,000 to be used to provide grants under this section for the 
  1.18  duration of the program.  For fiscal year 1998 and subsequent 
  1.19  years, the proration in section 469.31 shall continue to apply 
  1.20  until the amount designated in this subdivision is expended.  
  1.21  For the allocation in fiscal year 1998 and subsequent years, the 
  1.22  commissioner may use up to 15 percent of the allocation to the 
  1.23  city of Minneapolis for a grant to the city of Minneapolis and 
  1.24  up to 15 percent of the allocation to the city of St. Paul for a 
  1.25  grant to the city of St. Paul, for administration of the program 
  1.26  or employment services provided to the employers and employees 
  2.1   involved in the incentive grant program under this section.  The 
  2.2   commissioner may authorize the city of Minneapolis and the city 
  2.3   of St. Paul to use grant funds for employer-focused workforce 
  2.4   development initiatives designed to promote the hiring and 
  2.5   retention of city residents. 
  2.6      (b) The incentive grant is in an amount equal to 20 percent 
  2.7   of the wages paid to an employee, not to exceed $5,000 per 
  2.8   employee per calendar year.  The incentive grant is available to 
  2.9   an employer for a zone resident employed in the zone at 
  2.10  full-time wage levels of not less than 110 percent of the 
  2.11  federal poverty level for a family of four, as determined by the 
  2.12  United States Department of Agriculture.  The incentive grant is 
  2.13  not available to workers employed in construction or employees 
  2.14  of financial institutions, gambling enterprises, public 
  2.15  utilities, sports, fitness, and health facilities, or 
  2.16  racetracks.  The employee must be employed at that rate at the 
  2.17  time the business applies for a grant, and must have been 
  2.18  employed for at least one year at the business.  A grant may be 
  2.19  provided only for new jobs; for purposes of this section, a "new 
  2.20  job" is a job that did not exist in Minnesota before May 6, 
  2.21  1994.  The incentive grant authority is available for the five 
  2.22  calendar years after the application has been approved to the 
  2.23  extent the allocation to the city remains available to fund the 
  2.24  grants, and if the city certifies to the commissioner on an 
  2.25  annual basis that the business is in compliance with the plan to 
  2.26  recruit, hire, train, and retain zone residents.  The employer 
  2.27  may designate an organization that provides employment services 
  2.28  to receive all or a portion of the employer's incentive grant.