1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to counties; increasing payments in lieu of 
  1.3             taxes; imposing certain conditions on state 
  1.4             acquisition of lands in counties having 50 percent or 
  1.5             more of acreage in public ownership; amending 
  1.6             Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 477A.12; proposing 
  1.7             coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 84. 
  1.8   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.9      Section 1.  [84.0277] [CONDITIONS ON LAND ACQUISITION.] 
  1.10     Subdivision 1.  [GENERAL RULE.] If the commissioner of 
  1.11  natural resources acquires land in a county that has 50 percent 
  1.12  or more of its acreage in public ownership, the commissioner, at 
  1.13  the request of the county, shall sell or exchange other property 
  1.14  owned by the state to the county in which the land was acquired 
  1.15  that meets the requirements for a qualified transfer under 
  1.16  subdivision 4.  
  1.17     Subd. 2.  [OPTION TO PAY TAXES.] The commissioner of 
  1.18  natural resources may opt not to sell or exchange other property 
  1.19  owned by the state to the county according to subdivision 1 if 
  1.20  the commissioner pays all property taxes on the acquired 
  1.21  property as it was classified prior to acquisition, unless it 
  1.22  was homesteaded property, in which case the commissioner shall 
  1.23  pay taxes on the land as if it was nonhomesteaded property. 
  1.24     Subd. 3.  [APPLICATION; EXEMPTIONS.] (a) This section 
  1.25  applies to property purchases by, gifts to, and eminent domain 
  1.26  acquisitions of the commissioner of natural resources. 
  2.1      (b) This section does not apply if: 
  2.2      (1) the property was not subject to ad valorem property 
  2.3   taxation at any time within the three calendar years before the 
  2.4   acquisition; 
  2.5      (2) the acquisition was made through tax forfeiture; 
  2.6      (3) the acquisition resulted from a foreclosure or sale 
  2.7   under a tax lien or another security interest of the state 
  2.8   obtained by legal process other than a voluntary transfer by the 
  2.9   landowner or eminent domain; or 
  2.10     (4) the acquisition was made by the department of 
  2.11  transportation for road or highway construction. 
  2.12     Subd. 4.  [QUALIFIED TRANSFER.] (a) A qualified transfer 
  2.13  means a transfer to the county by the commissioner of natural 
  2.14  resources of other real property that meets all of the following:
  2.15     (1) the property transferred has a value for ad valorem 
  2.16  property tax purposes at least equal to 50 percent of the 
  2.17  property to be acquired by the commissioner; 
  2.18     (2) the property transferred was exempt from ad valorem 
  2.19  taxation for the three calendar years before the transfer; 
  2.20     (3) the property is located in the same county as the 
  2.21  property to be acquired by the commissioner; and 
  2.22     (4) there is a reasonable prospect that the transferred 
  2.23  property will be subject to ad valorem taxation after the 
  2.24  transfer. 
  2.25     (b) If the commissioner fulfills the requirements of 
  2.26  subdivision 1 through an exchange of property, the county must 
  2.27  then proceed to offer the property for sale.  If a parcel 
  2.28  offered for sale under this section is not sold within two years 
  2.29  of the transfer from the commissioner, the county may derive 
  2.30  income from the transferred property in the same way as 
  2.31  otherwise provided by law for counties to derive income from 
  2.32  tax-forfeited property, but shall continue to attempt to sell 
  2.33  the property to a taxable entity.  The county must remit to the 
  2.34  state all net proceeds from a sale of the land or from net 
  2.35  income derived from holding the property. 
  2.36     Subd. 5.  [COUNTY MAY WAIVE.] The governing body of the 
  3.1   county in which the property is located may waive, by 
  3.2   resolution, the application of this section. 
  3.3      Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 477A.12, is 
  3.4   amended to read: 
  3.5      477A.12 [ANNUAL APPROPRIATIONS; LANDS ELIGIBLE; 
  3.6   CERTIFICATION OF ACREAGE.] 
  3.7      (a) There is annually appropriated to the commissioner of 
  3.8   natural resources from the general fund for payment to counties 
  3.9   within the state an amount equal to: 
  3.10     (1) for acquired natural resources land, $3 $4.80 
  3.11  multiplied by the total number of acres of acquired natural 
  3.12  resources land or, beginning July 1, 1996, at the county's 
  3.13  option three-fourths of one percent of the appraised value of 
  3.14  all acquired natural resources land in the county, whichever is 
  3.15  greater; 
  3.16     (2) 75 cents $1.20 multiplied by the number of acres of 
  3.17  county-administered other natural resources land; and 
  3.18     (3) 37.5 cents 60 cents multiplied by the number of acres 
  3.19  of commissioner-administered other natural resources land 
  3.20  located in each county as of July 1 of each year. 
  3.21     (b) Lands for which payments in lieu are made pursuant to 
  3.22  section 97A.061, subdivision 3, and Laws 1973, chapter 567, 
  3.23  shall not be eligible for payments under this section.  Each 
  3.24  county auditor shall certify to the department of natural 
  3.25  resources during July of each year the number of acres of 
  3.26  county-administered other natural resources land within the 
  3.27  county.  The department of natural resources may, in addition to 
  3.28  the certification of acreage, require descriptive lists of land 
  3.29  so certified.  The commissioner of natural resources shall 
  3.30  determine and certify the number of acres of acquired natural 
  3.31  resources land and commissioner-administered natural resources 
  3.32  land within each county. 
  3.33     (c) For the purposes of this section, the appraised value 
  3.34  of acquired natural resources land is the purchase price for the 
  3.35  first five years after acquisition.  The appraised value of 
  3.36  acquired natural resources land received as a donation is the 
  4.1   value determined for the commissioner of natural resources by a 
  4.2   licensed appraiser, or the county assessor's estimated market 
  4.3   value if no appraisal is done.  The appraised value must be 
  4.4   determined by the county assessor every five years after the 
  4.5   land is acquired. 
  4.6      Sec. 3.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  4.7      Sections 1 and 2 are effective July 1, 2000.  Section 1 is 
  4.8   effective for interests acquired by the commissioner of natural 
  4.9   resources in a qualifying county after that date.