1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to metropolitan agencies; providing for 
  1.3             staggered terms of metropolitan council members; 
  1.4             providing that public meetings are not required to 
  1.5             fill metropolitan council vacancies within 12 months 
  1.6             of initial appointment; amending Minnesota Statutes 
  1.7             2002, section 473.123, subdivisions 2a, 3. 
  1.8   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.9      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 473.123, 
  1.10  subdivision 2a, is amended to read: 
  1.11     Subd. 2a.  [TERMS.] Following each apportionment of council 
  1.12  districts, as provided under subdivision 3a, council members 
  1.13  must be appointed from newly drawn districts as provided in 
  1.14  subdivision 3a.  Each council member, other than the chair, must 
  1.15  reside in the council district represented.  Each council 
  1.16  district must be represented by one member of the council.  The 
  1.17  terms of members end with the term of the governor Members serve 
  1.18  four-year terms, except that all terms expire on the effective 
  1.19  date of the next apportionment and half of the initial 
  1.20  appointments following each apportionment shall be for two-year 
  1.21  terms, with the members from odd-numbered districts serving 
  1.22  initial terms of two years and the members from even-numbered 
  1.23  districts serving initial terms of four years.  A member serves 
  1.24  at the pleasure of the governor.  A member shall continue to 
  1.25  serve the member's district until a successor is appointed and 
  1.26  qualified; except that, following each apportionment, the member 
  2.1   shall continue to serve at large until the governor appoints 16 
  2.2   council members, one from each of the newly drawn council 
  2.3   districts as provided under subdivision 3a, to serve terms as 
  2.4   provided under this section.  The appointment to the council 
  2.5   must be made by the first Monday in March of the year in which 
  2.6   the term ends.  
  2.7      Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 473.123, 
  2.8   subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  2.9      Subd. 3.  [MEMBERSHIP; APPOINTMENT; QUALIFICATIONS.] (a) 
  2.10  Sixteen members must be appointed by the governor from districts 
  2.11  defined by this section.  Each council member must reside in the 
  2.12  council district represented.  Each council district must be 
  2.13  represented by one member of the council. 
  2.14     (b) In addition to the notice required by section 15.0597, 
  2.15  subdivision 4, notice of vacancies and expiration of terms must 
  2.16  be published in newspapers of general circulation in the 
  2.17  metropolitan area and the appropriate districts.  The governing 
  2.18  bodies of the statutory and home rule charter cities, counties, 
  2.19  and towns having territory in the district for which a member is 
  2.20  to be appointed must be notified in writing.  The notices must 
  2.21  describe the appointments process and invite participation and 
  2.22  recommendations on the appointment.  
  2.23     (c) The governor shall create a nominating committee, 
  2.24  composed of seven metropolitan citizens appointed by the 
  2.25  governor, to nominate persons for appointment to the council 
  2.26  from districts.  Three of the committee members must be local 
  2.27  elected officials.  Following the submission of applications as 
  2.28  provided under section 15.0597, subdivision 5, the nominating 
  2.29  committee shall conduct public meetings, after appropriate 
  2.30  notice, to accept statements from or on behalf of persons who 
  2.31  have applied or been nominated for appointment and to allow 
  2.32  consultation with and secure the advice of the public and local 
  2.33  elected officials.  The committee shall hold the meeting on each 
  2.34  appointment in the district or in a reasonably convenient and 
  2.35  accessible location in the part of the metropolitan area in 
  2.36  which the district is located.  The committee may consolidate 
  3.1   meetings.  Following the meetings, the committee shall submit to 
  3.2   the governor a list of nominees for each appointment.  The 
  3.3   governor is not required to appoint from the list.  
  3.4      (d) Before making an appointment, the governor shall 
  3.5   consult with all members of the legislature from the council 
  3.6   district for which the member is to be appointed.  
  3.7      (e) Appointments to the council are subject to the advice 
  3.8   and consent of the senate as provided in section 15.066. 
  3.9      (f) Members of the council must be appointed to reflect 
  3.10  fairly the various demographic, political, and other interests 
  3.11  in the metropolitan area and the districts.  
  3.12     (g) Members of the council must be persons knowledgeable 
  3.13  about urban and metropolitan affairs. 
  3.14     (h) Any vacancy in the office of a commissioner shall 
  3.15  immediately be filled for the unexpired term.  The governor may 
  3.16  forgo the requirements of paragraph (c) in filling a vacancy for 
  3.17  a council district occurring within 12 months of an appointment 
  3.18  for that district for which the governor has fulfilled all the 
  3.19  requirements of this subdivision. 
  3.20     Sec. 3.  [EFFECTIVE DATE; APPLICATION.] 
  3.21     Sections 1 and 2 are effective the day following final 
  3.22  enactment and apply in the counties of Anoka, Carver, Dakota, 
  3.23  Hennepin, Ramsey, Scott, and Washington.