1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to highways; repealing requirement that 
  1.3             designation of natural preservation routes on county 
  1.4             state-aid highways be reviewed by advisory committee; 
  1.5             amending Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 162.021, 
  1.6             subdivision 5.  
  1.7   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.8      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 162.021, 
  1.9   subdivision 5, is amended to read: 
  1.10     Subd. 5.  [DESIGNATION.] (a) The commissioner may designate 
  1.11  a county state-aid highway as a natural preservation route only 
  1.12  on petition of the county board of the county having 
  1.13  jurisdiction over the road.  Within 60 days after a county board 
  1.14  receives a written request to designate a county state-aid 
  1.15  highway as a natural preservation route, the county board shall 
  1.16  act on the request. 
  1.17     (b) The commissioner shall appoint an advisory committee 
  1.18  for each construction district consisting of seven members:  one 
  1.19  member of the Department of Natural Resources, one county 
  1.20  commissioner, one county highway engineer, one representative of 
  1.21  a recognized environmental organization, and three members of 
  1.22  the public.  The commissioner shall refer each petition received 
  1.23  under this subdivision to the appropriate advisory committee.  
  1.24  The advisory committee shall consider the petition for 
  1.25  designation and make a recommendation to the commissioner.  
  1.26  Following receipt of the committee's recommendation, the 
  2.1   commissioner may designate the highway as a natural preservation 
  2.2   route.