1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to agriculture; providing disaster relief for 
  1.3             certain tornado victims; amending 1998 House File No. 
  1.4             3862, sections 11; 23; 35; and 37. 
  1.5   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.6      Section 1.  1998 House File No. 3862, section 11, if 
  1.7   enacted, is amended to read: 
  1.8      Sec. 11.  [EARLY PAYMENT OF STATE AIDS.] 
  1.9      Notwithstanding Minnesota Statutes, sections 273.1398, 
  1.10  subdivision 6, and 477A.015, the commissioner of revenue, in 
  1.11  consultation with the division of emergency management, shall 
  1.12  make payments of homestead and agricultural credit aid and local 
  1.13  government aid as provided in this section to all qualified 
  1.14  local units of government that the commissioner determines have 
  1.15  suffered financial hardship.  As used in this section, 
  1.16  "qualified local units of government" means counties, home rule 
  1.17  charter or statutory cities, and towns that suffered damage in 
  1.18  the tornadoes and storms of September 18, 1997, or March 29, 
  1.19  1998. 
  1.20     Payment of the homestead and agricultural credit aid and 
  1.21  local government aid that would otherwise have been payable on 
  1.22  July 20, 1998, shall be made as soon as practicable after the 
  1.23  date of final enactment of this act.  
  1.24     Sec. 2.  1998 House File No. 3862, section 23, if enacted, 
  1.25  is amended to read: 
  2.1      Sec. 23.  [PROPERTY TAX ABATEMENTS; PROPERTY DAMAGED BY 
  2.2   TORNADO.] 
  2.3      Subdivision 1.  [AUTHORIZATION.] Notwithstanding the 
  2.4   requirements of Minnesota Statutes, section 375.192, the county 
  2.5   board of a qualified county may grant abatements of the full 
  2.6   amount of taxes on eligible property for taxes payable in 1998 
  2.7   as provided in this section.  The owner of the property is not 
  2.8   required to apply for the abatement. 
  2.9      Subd. 2.  [DEFINITIONS.] (a) As used in this section, the 
  2.10  terms defined in this subdivision have the meanings given them. 
  2.11     (b) "Qualified county" means any county in the area 
  2.12  designated under Presidential Declaration of Major Disaster, 
  2.13  DR1212, whether included in the original declaration or added 
  2.14  later by federal government action, and Morrison, Crow Wing, 
  2.15  Kanabec, and Mille Lacs counties. 
  2.16     (c) "Eligible property" means a parcel of taxable property 
  2.17  located in a qualified county that contains a structure that has 
  2.18  been determined by the assessor to have lost over 50 percent of 
  2.19  its estimated market value due to wind damage.  In the case of 
  2.20  agricultural property, the abatement is limited to the taxes on 
  2.21  the parcel attributable to the value of the house, garage, and 
  2.22  surrounding one acre, if the house has lost over 50 percent of 
  2.23  its estimated market value, and the tax attributable to the 
  2.24  value of any farm buildings and structures that have lost over 
  2.25  50 percent of their estimated market value. 
  2.26     Subd. 3.  [ASSESSORS' DUTIES.] As soon as practicable, 
  2.27  local and county assessors in qualified counties shall notify 
  2.28  the county board and property owners of parcels of eligible 
  2.29  property. 
  2.30     Sec. 3.  1998 House File No. 3862, section 35, if enacted, 
  2.31  is amended to read: 
  2.32     Sec. 35.  [41B.047] [DISASTER RECOVERY LOAN PROGRAM.] 
  2.33     Subdivision 1.  [ESTABLISHMENT.] The authority shall 
  2.34  establish and implement a disaster recovery loan program to help 
  2.35  farmers clean up, repair, or replace farm structures and septic 
  2.36  and water systems, as well as replacement of seed, other crop 
  3.1   inputs, feed, and livestock. 
  3.2      Subd. 2.  [REVOLVING FUND.] There is established in the 
  3.3   state treasury a disaster recovery revolving fund which is 
  3.4   eligible to receive appropriations.  All repayments of financial 
  3.5   assistance granted under subdivision 1, including principal and 
  3.6   interest, must be deposited into this fund.  Interest earned on 
  3.7   money in the fund accrues to the fund, and money in the fund is 
  3.8   appropriated to the commissioner of agriculture for purposes of 
  3.9   the disaster recovery loan program, including costs incurred by 
  3.10  the authority to establish and administer the program. 
  3.11     Subd. 3.  [ELIGIBILITY.] To be eligible for this program, a 
  3.12  borrower must: 
  3.13     (1) be a resident of Minnesota or a domestic family farm 
  3.14  corporation or family farm partnership as defined in section 
  3.15  500.24, subdivision 2; 
  3.16     (2) certify that the damage or loss was sustained within a 
  3.17  county that was the subject of a state or federal disaster 
  3.18  declaration or within Morrison, Crow Wing, Kanabec, or Mille 
  3.19  Lacs county for damage or loss caused by the tornado that 
  3.20  occurred September 18, 1997; 
  3.21     (3) demonstrate an ability to repay the loan; 
  3.22     (4) have a total net worth, including assets and 
  3.23  liabilities of the borrower's spouse and dependents, of less 
  3.24  than $400,000; and 
  3.25     (5) have received at least 50 percent of average annual 
  3.26  gross income from farming for the past three years. 
  3.27     Subd. 4.  [LOANS.] (a) The authority may participate in a 
  3.28  disaster recovery loan with an eligible lender to a farmer who 
  3.29  is eligible under subdivision 3.  Participation is limited to 45 
  3.30  percent of the principal amount of the loan or $50,000, 
  3.31  whichever is less.  The interest rates and repayment terms of 
  3.32  the authority's participation interest may differ from the 
  3.33  interest rates and repayment terms of the lender's retained 
  3.34  portion of the loan, but the authority's interest rate must not 
  3.35  exceed four percent. 
  3.36     (b) Standards for loan amortization shall be set by the 
  4.1   rural finance authority not to exceed ten years. 
  4.2      (c) Loans under this program must not be included in the 
  4.3   lifetime limitation calculated under section 41B.03, subdivision 
  4.4   1. 
  4.5      (d) Security for the disaster recovery loans must be a 
  4.6   personal note executed by the borrower and whatever other 
  4.7   security is required by the eligible lender or the authority. 
  4.8      (e) The authority may impose a reasonable nonrefundable 
  4.9   application fee for a disaster recovery loan.  The authority may 
  4.10  review the fee annually and make adjustments as necessary.  The 
  4.11  application fee is initially $50.  Application fees received by 
  4.12  the authority must be deposited in the disaster recovery 
  4.13  revolving fund. 
  4.14     (f) Disaster recovery loans under this program will be made 
  4.15  using money in the disaster recovery revolving fund established 
  4.16  under subdivision 2. 
  4.17     Sec. 4.  1998 House File No. 3862, section 37, if enacted, 
  4.18  is amended to read: 
  4.19     Sec. 37.  Minnesota Statutes 1997 Supplement, section 
  4.20  273.124, subdivision 14, is amended to read: 
  4.21     Subd. 14.  [AGRICULTURAL HOMESTEADS; SPECIAL PROVISIONS.] 
  4.22  (a) Real estate of less than ten acres that is the homestead of 
  4.23  its owner must be classified as class 2a under section 273.13, 
  4.24  subdivision 23, paragraph (a), if:  
  4.25     (1) the parcel on which the house is located is contiguous 
  4.26  on at least two sides to (i) agricultural land, (ii) land owned 
  4.27  or administered by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, 
  4.28  or (iii) land administered by the department of natural 
  4.29  resources on which in lieu taxes are paid under sections 477A.11 
  4.30  to 477A.14; 
  4.31     (2) its owner also owns a noncontiguous parcel of 
  4.32  agricultural land that is at least 20 acres; 
  4.33     (3) the noncontiguous land is located not farther than two 
  4.34  townships or cities, or a combination of townships or cities 
  4.35  from the homestead; and 
  4.36     (4) the agricultural use value of the noncontiguous land 
  5.1   and farm buildings is equal to at least 50 percent of the market 
  5.2   value of the house, garage, and one acre of land. 
  5.3      Homesteads initially classified as class 2a under the 
  5.4   provisions of this paragraph shall remain classified as class 
  5.5   2a, irrespective of subsequent changes in the use of adjoining 
  5.6   properties, as long as the homestead remains under the same 
  5.7   ownership, the owner owns a noncontiguous parcel of agricultural 
  5.8   land that is at least 20 acres, and the agricultural use value 
  5.9   qualifies under clause (4). 
  5.10     (b) Except as provided in paragraph (d), noncontiguous land 
  5.11  shall be included as part of a homestead under section 273.13, 
  5.12  subdivision 23, paragraph (a), only if the homestead is 
  5.13  classified as class 2a and the detached land is located in the 
  5.14  same township or city, or not farther than two townships or 
  5.15  cities or combination thereof from the homestead.  
  5.16     (c) Agricultural land used for purposes of a homestead and 
  5.17  actively farmed by a person holding a vested remainder interest 
  5.18  in it must be classified as a homestead under section 273.13, 
  5.19  subdivision 23, paragraph (a).  If agricultural land is 
  5.20  classified class 2a, any other dwellings on the land used for 
  5.21  purposes of a homestead by persons holding vested remainder 
  5.22  interests who are actively engaged in farming the property, and 
  5.23  up to one acre of the land surrounding each homestead and 
  5.24  reasonably necessary for the use of the dwelling as a home, must 
  5.25  also be assessed class 2a. 
  5.26     (d) Agricultural land and buildings that were class 2a 
  5.27  homestead property under section 273.13, subdivision 23, 
  5.28  paragraph (a), for the 1997 assessment shall remain classified 
  5.29  as agricultural homesteads for subsequent assessments if:  
  5.30     (1) the property owner abandoned the homestead dwelling 
  5.31  located on the agricultural homestead as a result of the April 
  5.32  1997 floods; 
  5.33     (2) the property is located in the county of Polk, Clay, 
  5.34  Kittson, Marshall, Norman, or Wilkin; 
  5.35     (3) the agricultural land and buildings remain under the 
  5.36  same ownership for the current assessment year as existed for 
  6.1   the 1997 assessment year; 
  6.2      (4) the dwelling occupied by the owner is located in 
  6.3   Minnesota and is within 30 miles of one of the parcels of 
  6.4   agricultural land that is owned by the taxpayer; and 
  6.5      (5) the owner notifies the county assessor that the 
  6.6   relocation was due to the 1997 floods, and the owner furnishes 
  6.7   the assessor any information deemed necessary by the assessor in 
  6.8   verifying the change in homestead dwelling.  For taxes payable 
  6.9   in 1998, the owner must notify the assessor by December 1, 1997. 
  6.10     (e) Agricultural land and buildings that were class 2a 
  6.11  homestead property under section 273.13, subdivision 23, 
  6.12  paragraph (a), for the 1998 assessment shall remain classified 
  6.13  as agricultural homesteads for subsequent assessments if: 
  6.14     (1) the property owner abandoned the homestead dwelling 
  6.15  located on the agricultural homestead as a result of 
  6.16  the September 18, 1997, or March 29, 1998, tornado; 
  6.17     (2) the property is located in the county of Blue Earth, 
  6.18  Brown, Cottonwood, Crow Wing, Kanabec, LeSueur, Mille Lacs, 
  6.19  Morrison, Nicollet, Nobles, or Rice; 
  6.20     (3) the agricultural land and buildings remain under the 
  6.21  same ownership for the current assessment year as existed for 
  6.22  the 1998 assessment year; 
  6.23     (4) the dwelling occupied by the owner is located in 
  6.24  Minnesota and is within 50 miles of one of the parcels of 
  6.25  agricultural land that is owned by the taxpayer; and 
  6.26     (5) the owner notifies the county assessor that the 
  6.27  relocation was due to the September 18, 1997, or March 29, 1998, 
  6.28  tornado and the owner furnishes the assessor any information 
  6.29  deemed necessary by the assessor in verifying the change in 
  6.30  homestead dwelling.  For taxes payable in 1999, the owner must 
  6.31  notify the assessor by December 1, 1998. 
  6.32     Further notification to the assessor is not required if the 
  6.33  property continues to meet all the requirements in this 
  6.34  paragraph and any dwelling on the agricultural land remain 
  6.35  uninhabited. 
  6.36     Sec. 5.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  7.1      This act is effective the day following final enactment.