1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to education; restoring certain levy
1.3 	authority; amending Minnesota Statutes 2004, sections
1.4 	126C.40, subdivision 1; 126C.43, subdivisions 2, 3;
1.5 	126C.44; 126C.45.
1.6 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.7 	Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 126C.40,
1.8 	subdivision 1, is amended to read:
1.9 		Subdivision 1.To lease building or land.  (a) When an
1.10 	independent or a special school district or a group of
1.11 	independent or special school districts finds it economically
1.12 	advantageous to rent or lease a building or land for any
1.13 	instructional purposes or for school storage or furniture
1.14 	repair, and it determines that the operating capital revenue
1.15 	authorized under section 126C.10, subdivision 13, is
1.16 	insufficient for this purpose, it may apply to the commissioner
1.17 	for permission to make an additional capital expenditure levy
1.18 	for this purpose.  An application for permission to levy under
1.19 	this subdivision must contain financial justification for the
1.20 	proposed levy, the terms and conditions of the proposed lease,
1.21 	and a description of the space to be leased and its proposed use.
1.22 	(b) The criteria for approval of applications to levy under
1.23 	this subdivision must include:  the reasonableness of the price,
1.24 	the appropriateness of the space to the proposed activity, the
1.25 	feasibility of transporting pupils to the leased building or
2.1 	land, conformity of the lease to the laws and rules of the state
2.2 	of Minnesota, and the appropriateness of the proposed lease to
2.3 	the space needs and the financial condition of the district.
2.4 	The commissioner must not authorize a levy under this
2.5 	subdivision in an amount greater than 90 percent of the cost to
2.6 	the district of renting or leasing a building or land for
2.7 	approved purposes.  The proceeds of this levy must not be used
2.8 	for custodial or other maintenance services.  A district may not
2.9 	levy under this subdivision for the purpose of leasing or
2.10 	renting a district-owned building or site to itself.
2.11 	(c) For agreements finalized after July 1, 1997, a district
2.12 	may not levy under this subdivision for the purpose of leasing:
2.13 	(1) a newly constructed building used primarily for regular
2.14 	kindergarten, elementary, or secondary instruction; or (2) a
2.15 	newly constructed building addition or additions used primarily
2.16 	for regular kindergarten, elementary, or secondary instruction
2.17 	that contains more than 20 percent of the square footage of the
2.18 	previously existing building.
2.19 	(d) Notwithstanding paragraph (b), a district may levy
2.20 	under this subdivision for the purpose of leasing or renting a
2.21 	district-owned building or site to itself only if the amount is
2.22 	needed by the district to make payments required by a lease
2.23 	purchase agreement, installment purchase agreement, or other
2.24 	deferred payments agreement authorized by law, and the levy
2.25 	meets the requirements of paragraph (c).  A levy authorized for
2.26 	a district by the commissioner under this paragraph may be in
2.27 	the amount needed by the district to make payments required by a
2.28 	lease purchase agreement, installment purchase agreement, or
2.29 	other deferred payments agreement authorized by law, provided
2.30 	that any agreement include a provision giving the school
2.31 	districts the right to terminate the agreement annually without
2.32 	penalty.
2.33 	(e) The total levy under this subdivision for a district
2.34 	for any year must not exceed $90 $100 times the resident pupil
2.35 	units for the fiscal year to which the levy is attributable.
2.36 	(f) For agreements for which a review and comment have been
3.1 	submitted to the Department of Education after April 1, 1998,
3.2 	the term "instructional purpose" as used in this subdivision
3.3 	excludes expenditures on stadiums.
3.4 	(g) The commissioner of education may authorize a school
3.5 	district to exceed the limit in paragraph (e) if the school
3.6 	district petitions the commissioner for approval.  The
3.7 	commissioner shall grant approval to a school district to exceed
3.8 	the limit in paragraph (e) for not more than five years if the
3.9 	district meets the following criteria:
3.10 	(1) the school district has been experiencing pupil
3.11 	enrollment growth in the preceding five years;
3.12 	(2) the purpose of the increased levy is in the long-term
3.13 	public interest;
3.14 	(3) the purpose of the increased levy promotes colocation
3.15 	of government services; and
3.16 	(4) the purpose of the increased levy is in the long-term
3.17 	interest of the district by avoiding over construction of school
3.18 	facilities.
3.19 	(h) A school district that is a member of an intermediate
3.20 	school district may include in its authority under this section
3.21 	90 percent of the costs associated with leases of administrative
3.22 	and classroom space for intermediate school district programs.
3.23 	This authority must not exceed $22.50 $25 times the adjusted
3.24 	marginal cost pupil units of the member districts.  This
3.25 	authority is in addition to any other authority authorized under
3.26 	this section.
3.27 	(i) In addition to the allowable capital levies in
3.28 	paragraph (a), a district that is a member of the "Technology
3.29 	and Information Education Systems" data processing joint board,
3.30 	that finds it economically advantageous to enter into a lease
3.31 	purchase agreement for a building for a group of school
3.32 	districts or special school districts for staff development
3.33 	purposes, may levy for its portion of lease costs attributed to
3.34 	the district within the total levy limit in paragraph (e).
3.35 	
EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective for taxes
3.36 	payable in 2006.

4.1 	Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 126C.43,
4.2 	subdivision 2, is amended to read:
4.3 		Subd. 2.Payment to unemployment insurance program trust
4.4 	fund by state and political subdivisions.  A district may
4.5 	levy 90 percent of the amount exceeding $10 times the district's
4.6 	adjusted marginal cost pupil units for the fiscal year ending in
4.7 	the year before the year the levy is certified necessary (i) to
4.8 	pay the district's obligations under section 268.052,
4.9 	subdivision 1, and (ii) to pay for job placement services
4.10 	offered to employees who may become eligible for benefits
4.11 	pursuant to section 268.085 for the fiscal year the levy is
4.12 	certified.
4.13 	
EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective for taxes
4.14 	payable in 2006.

4.15 	Sec. 3. Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 126C.43,
4.16 	subdivision 3, is amended to read:
4.17 		Subd. 3.Tax levy for judgment.  A district may levy 90
4.18 	percent of the amount exceeding $10 times the district's
4.19 	adjusted marginal cost pupil units for the fiscal year ending in
4.20 	the year before the year the levy is certified necessary to pay
4.21 	judgments against the district under section 123B.25 that became
4.22 	final after the date the district certified its proposed levy in
4.23 	the previous year.  With the approval of the commissioner, a
4.24 	district may spread this levy over a period not to exceed three
4.25 	years.  Upon approval through the adoption of a resolution by
4.26 	each of an intermediate district's member school district
4.27 	boards, a member school district may include its proportionate
4.28 	share of the costs of a judgment against an intermediate school
4.29 	district that became final under section 123B.25 after the date
4.30 	that the earliest member school district certified its proposed
4.31 	levy in the previous year.  With the approval of the
4.32 	commissioner, an intermediate school district member school
4.33 	district may spread this levy over a period not to exceed three
4.34 	years.
4.35 	
EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective for taxes
4.36 	payable in 2006.

5.1 	Sec. 4. Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 126C.44, is
5.2 	amended to read:
5.3 	126C.44 SAFE SCHOOLS LEVY.
5.4 	Each district may make a levy on all taxable property
5.5 	located within the district for the purposes specified in this
5.6 	section.  The maximum amount which may be levied for all costs
5.7 	under this section shall be equal to $27 $30 multiplied by the
5.8 	district's adjusted marginal cost pupil units for the school
5.9 	year.  The proceeds of the levy must be used for directly
5.10 	funding the following purposes or for reimbursing the cities and
5.11 	counties who contract with the district for the following
5.12 	purposes:  (1) to pay the costs incurred for the salaries,
5.13 	benefits, and transportation costs of peace officers and
5.14 	sheriffs for liaison in services in the district's schools; (2)
5.15 	to pay the costs for a drug abuse prevention program as defined
5.16 	in section 609.101, subdivision 3, paragraph (e), in the
5.17 	elementary schools; (3) to pay the costs for a gang resistance
5.18 	education training curriculum in the district's schools; (4) to
5.19 	pay the costs for security in the district's schools and on
5.20 	school property; or (5) to pay the costs for other crime
5.21 	prevention, drug abuse, student and staff safety, and violence
5.22 	prevention measures taken by the school district.  The district
5.23 	must initially attempt to contract for services to be provided
5.24 	by peace officers or sheriffs with the police department of each
5.25 	city or the sheriff's department of the county within the
5.26 	district containing the school receiving the services.  If a
5.27 	local police department or a county sheriff's department does
5.28 	not wish to provide the necessary services, the district may
5.29 	contract for these services with any other police or sheriff's
5.30 	department located entirely or partially within the school
5.31 	district's boundaries.  The levy authorized under this section
5.32 	is not included in determining the school district's levy
5.33 	limitations.

5.34 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective for taxes
5.35 	payable in 2006.

5.36 	Sec. 5. Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 126C.45, is
6.1 	amended to read:
6.2 	126C.45 ICE ARENA LEVY.
6.3 	(a) Each year, an independent school district operating and
6.4 	maintaining an ice arena, may levy for the net operational costs
6.5 	of the ice arena. The levy may not exceed 90 percent of the net
6.6 	actual costs of operation of the arena for the previous year.
6.7 	Net actual costs are defined as operating costs less any
6.8 	operating revenues.
6.9 	(b) Any district operating and maintaining an ice arena
6.10 	must demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Office of Monitoring
6.11 	in the department that the district will offer equal sports
6.12 	opportunities for male and female students to use its ice arena,
6.13 	particularly in areas of access to prime practice time, team
6.14 	support, and providing junior varsity and younger level teams
6.15 	for girls' ice sports and ice sports offerings.

6.16 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective for taxes
6.17 	payable in 2006.