1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to agriculture; establishing a sustainable 
  1.3             development of Minnesota agriculture program; 
  1.4             appropriating money; proposing coding for new law in 
  1.5             Minnesota Statutes, chapter 17. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  [17.1161] [SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF MINNESOTA 
  1.8   AGRICULTURE PROGRAM.] 
  1.9      Subdivision 1.  [PURPOSE; STRUCTURE.] The Minnesota 
  1.10  institute for sustainable agriculture shall establish a 
  1.11  framework for participatory problem solving in local communities 
  1.12  throughout rural Minnesota that will strengthen the connection 
  1.13  between local communities, regions, and the land-grant 
  1.14  university; invest research, education, and outreach dollars to 
  1.15  meet agreed-upon local and regional needs; and foster the 
  1.16  development of integrated agricultural systems that are 
  1.17  profitable, enhance environmental quality, and support rural 
  1.18  communities.  The framework must be based on five regional, 
  1.19  community-controlled agricultural sustainable development 
  1.20  centers located at University of Minnesota regional experiment 
  1.21  stations.  At each center, the Minnesota institute for 
  1.22  sustainable agriculture shall facilitate the development of a 
  1.23  leadership team comprised of farmers, researchers, nonprofit 
  1.24  organizations, public agencies, and other local community 
  1.25  representatives to identify problems, chart trends in problems 
  2.1   over time, and develop an understanding of the agricultural 
  2.2   system as a whole, common goals for development of the system, 
  2.3   and five-year action plans to address those goals.  The 
  2.4   Minnesota institute for sustainable agriculture shall appoint a 
  2.5   statewide oversight group of persons with a statewide 
  2.6   perspective on agriculture-related issues, including farmers' 
  2.7   organizations, commodity groups, rural economic development 
  2.8   groups, legislators, the Minnesota department of agriculture, 
  2.9   and other public agencies, academic personnel, the agricultural 
  2.10  utilization research institute, the Minnesota extension service, 
  2.11  and representatives from each regional leadership team.  The 
  2.12  oversight group shall review and comment on the five regional 
  2.13  centers' action plans and integrate them into a comprehensive 
  2.14  agenda for long-term basic and applied research, education, and 
  2.15  outreach activities.  The oversight group shall use this agenda 
  2.16  to guide decisions on the allocation of funds for regional or 
  2.17  statewide use.  The Minnesota institute for sustainable 
  2.18  agriculture board of directors shall review and give final 
  2.19  approval of the allocation of funds after consultation with the 
  2.20  dean of the college of agricultural, food, and environmental 
  2.21  sciences at the University of Minnesota. 
  2.22     Subd. 2.  [PROGRAM AREAS.] Long-term research and education 
  2.23  activities must be focused in four program areas: 
  2.24     (1) sustainable cropping systems; 
  2.25     (2) development of markets and agriculture-related 
  2.26  businesses; 
  2.27     (3) sustainable livestock systems; and 
  2.28     (4) intergenerational transfer in agriculture. 
  2.29     Subd. 3.  [ANNUAL REPORT.] The Minnesota institute for 
  2.30  sustainable agriculture shall submit a report annually to the 
  2.31  legislature on or before February 1 describing its activities 
  2.32  and accomplishments in the four program areas. 
  2.33     Sec. 2.  [APPROPRIATION.] 
  2.34     $16,000,000 is appropriated from the general fund to the 
  2.35  University of Minnesota.  The regents of the University of 
  2.36  Minnesota must create an endowment fund, the interest and 
  3.1   earnings of which must be allocated by the regents to the 
  3.2   college of agricultural, food, and environmental sciences to be 
  3.3   used for the Minnesota institute for sustainable agriculture for 
  3.4   the purposes set forth in section 1, subdivision 1, and not for 
  3.5   administrative expenses.