Journal of the House - 58th Day - Monday, May 18, 2009 - Top
of Page 7110
Solberg
Sterner
Swails
Thao
Thissen
Tillberry
Torkelson
Urdahl
Wagenius
Ward
Welti
Westrom
Winkler
Zellers
Spk. Kelliher
Those who voted in the negative were:
Buesgens
Masin
The bill
was repassed, as amended by Conference, and its title agreed to.
CALL OF THE HOUSE LIFTED
Morrow moved that the call of the House be lifted. The motion prevailed and it was so ordered.
FISCAL
CALENDAR
Pursuant to rule 1.22, Solberg requested immediate
consideration of S. F. No. 97.
S. F. No. 97 was reported to the House.
Bigham moved to amend S. F.
No. 97, the second unofficial engrossment, as follows:
Page 1, line 17, delete the
colon
Page 1, line 18, delete
"(1)" and delete "; and"
Page 1, delete lines 19 and
20
Page 1, line 21, delete
everything before the period
Page 1, line 23, delete the
colon
Page 1, line 24, delete
"(1)" and delete "; and"
Page 2, delete lines 1 and 2
Page 2, line 3, delete
everything before the period
Page 2, line 6, delete
"six" and insert "ten"
Page 6, line 24, delete
"person or"
Page 6, line 25, delete
everything after the period
Page 6, delete lines 26 and
27
Journal of the House - 58th Day - Monday, May 18, 2009 - Top
of Page 7111
Page 7,
line 22, after the semicolon, insert "and"
Page 7,
line 23, delete "; and"
Page 7,
delete line 24
Page 7, line
25, delete everything before the period
A roll call was requested and properly
seconded.
The question was taken on the Bigham
amendment and the roll was called. There
were 110 yeas and 22 nays as follows:
Those who voted in the affirmative were:
Abeler
Anderson, P.
Anderson, S.
Atkins
Beard
Benson
Bigham
Bly
Brod
Brown
Brynaert
Bunn
Carlson
Champion
Clark
Cornish
Davids
Davnie
Dean
Dill
Dittrich
Doty
Downey
Drazkowski
Eken
Emmer
Faust
Fritz
Gardner
Garofalo
Gottwalt
Greiling
Gunther
Hackbarth
Hansen
Hausman
Haws
Hayden
Hilstrom
Hilty
Holberg
Hoppe
Hornstein
Hortman
Hosch
Howes
Jackson
Johnson
Juhnke
Kalin
Kath
Kiffmeyer
Knuth
Koenen
Kohls
Laine
Lenczewski
Lesch
Liebling
Lieder
Lillie
Loeffler
Loon
Mack
Mariani
Marquart
Masin
McNamara
Morgan
Mullery
Murphy, E.
Murphy, M.
Nelson
Newton
Nornes
Norton
Obermueller
Olin
Otremba
Paymar
Pelowski
Peppin
Persell
Peterson
Poppe
Reinert
Rosenthal
Rukavina
Ruud
Sailer
Sanders
Scalze
Scott
Sertich
Simon
Slawik
Slocum
Solberg
Sterner
Swails
Thao
Thissen
Tillberry
Urdahl
Wagenius
Welti
Westrom
Winkler
Zellers
Spk. Kelliher
Those who voted in the negative were:
Anderson, B.
Anzelc
Buesgens
Demmer
Dettmer
Doepke
Eastlund
Falk
Hamilton
Huntley
Kahn
Lanning
Magnus
Mahoney
McFarlane
Murdock
Seifert
Severson
Shimanski
Smith
Torkelson
Ward
The motion prevailed and the amendment was
adopted.
Emmer moved
to amend S. F. No. 97, the second unofficial engrossment, as amended, as
follows:
Page 1, lines
10, 11, 16, 17, 18, 19, 21, 22, and 24, delete "marijuana" and
insert "pot"
Page 2,
lines 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 20, 23, 25, 26, 34, and 35, delete "marijuana"
and insert "pot"
Journal of the House - 58th
Day - Monday, May 18, 2009 - Top of Page 7112
Page 3, lines 6, 7, 11, 17,
19, 24, 25, 31, 32, and 33, delete "marijuana" and insert
"pot"
Page 4, lines 3, 11, 20, 21,
30, and 33, delete "marijuana" and insert "pot"
Page 5, lines 1, 6, 9, 17,
22, 26, 28, 30, 33, 34, and 36, delete "marijuana" and insert
"pot"
Page 6, lines 1, 3, 18, 23,
25, 26, 31, and 34, delete "marijuana" and insert "pot"
Page 7, lines 1, 2, 25, 33,
and 35, delete "marijuana" and insert "pot"
Page 9, lines 16, 17, 21,
24, 32, 33, and 35, delete "marijuana" and insert "pot"
Page 10, lines 1, 3, 5, 8,
10, 19, 24, 26, 27, and 32, delete "marijuana" and insert
"pot"
Page 11, lines 2, 3, 5, 9,
11, 20, 22, 25, and 32, delete "marijuana" and insert "pot"
Page 12, lines 31 and 32,
delete "marijuana" and insert "pot"
Page 13, lines 4, 6, 8, 9,
12, 13, and 15, delete "marijuana" and insert "pot"
Page 14, lines 3, 10, 11,
21, 28, 31, and 32, delete "marijuana" and insert "pot"
Amend the title accordingly
The motion did not prevail and the amendment was not adopted.
Atkins moved to amend S. F.
No. 97, the second unofficial engrossment, as amended, as follows:
Page 2, line 9, after "means"
insert "a terminal illness accompanied by"
Page 2, delete lines 10 to
12
Page 2, line 13, delete
"produces"
Page 2, line 17, delete the
semicolon and insert a period
Page 2, delete lines 18 to
21
A roll call was requested and properly seconded.
The question was taken on the Atkins amendment and the roll was
called. There were 79 yeas and 54 nays
as follows:
Those who
voted in the affirmative were:
Abeler
Anderson, B.
Anderson, P.
Anderson, S.
Anzelc
Atkins
Beard
Benson
Brod
Brynaert
Bunn
Cornish
Davids
Dean
Demmer
Dettmer
Dill
Dittrich
Doepke
Doty
Downey
Drazkowski
Eastlund
Emmer
Journal of the House - 58th Day - Monday, May 18, 2009 - Top
of Page 7113
Gardner
Gottwalt
Greiling
Hamilton
Holberg
Hoppe
Hortman
Hosch
Howes
Kalin
Kath
Kelly
Kiffmeyer
Knuth
Kohls
Lanning
Lenczewski
Lesch
Lieder
Loon
Mack
Magnus
Marquart
Masin
McFarlane
McNamara
Morgan
Morrow
Murdock
Nelson
Nornes
Norton
Obermueller
Olin
Peppin
Peterson
Rosenthal
Ruud
Sanders
Scalze
Scott
Severson
Shimanski
Slawik
Smith
Sterner
Swails
Tillberry
Torkelson
Urdahl
Ward
Welti
Westrom
Winkler
Zellers
Those who
voted in the negative were:
Bigham
Bly
Brown
Buesgens
Carlson
Champion
Clark
Davnie
Eken
Falk
Faust
Fritz
Garofalo
Gunther
Hackbarth
Hansen
Hausman
Haws
Hayden
Hilstrom
Hilty
Hornstein
Huntley
Jackson
Johnson
Juhnke
Kahn
Koenen
Laine
Liebling
Lillie
Loeffler
Mahoney
Mariani
Mullery
Murphy, E.
Newton
Otremba
Paymar
Pelowski
Persell
Poppe
Reinert
Rukavina
Sailer
Seifert
Sertich
Simon
Slocum
Solberg
Thao
Thissen
Wagenius
Spk. Kelliher
The motion prevailed and the amendment was adopted.
Thissen offered an amendment to S. F. No. 97,
the second unofficial engrossment, as amended.
POINT OF ORDER
Huntley raised a point of order pursuant to rule 3.21 that the Thissen
amendment was not in order. Speaker pro
tempore Liebling ruled the point of order well taken and the Thissen amendment
out of order.
Gottwalt appealed the decision of Speaker pro tempore Liebling.
A roll call was requested and properly seconded.
CALL OF THE HOUSE
On the motion of Gottwalt and on the demand of 10 members, a
call of the House was ordered. The
following members answered to their names:
Anderson, B.
Anderson, P.
Anderson, S.
Anzelc
Atkins
Beard
Benson
Bigham
Bly
Brod
Brown
Brynaert
Buesgens
Bunn
Carlson
Champion
Clark
Cornish
Davids
Davnie
Dean
Demmer
Dettmer
Dill
Dittrich
Doty
Downey
Drazkowski
Eastlund
Eken
Emmer
Falk
Faust
Gardner
Garofalo
Gottwalt
Greiling
Gunther
Hackbarth
Hamilton
Hansen
Hausman
Haws
Hilstrom
Hilty
Holberg
Hoppe
Hornstein
Journal of the House - 58th Day - Monday, May 18, 2009 - Top
of Page 7114
Hortman
Hosch
Howes
Huntley
Jackson
Johnson
Juhnke
Kahn
Kalin
Kath
Kelly
Kiffmeyer
Knuth
Koenen
Kohls
Laine
Lanning
Lenczewski
Lesch
Liebling
Lieder
Lillie
Loeffler
Loon
Mack
Magnus
Mahoney
Marquart
Masin
McFarlane
McNamara
Morgan
Morrow
Mullery
Murdock
Murphy, E.
Murphy, M.
Nelson
Newton
Nornes
Norton
Obermueller
Olin
Otremba
Paymar
Pelowski
Peppin
Persell
Peterson
Poppe
Reinert
Rosenthal
Rukavina
Ruud
Sailer
Sanders
Scalze
Scott
Seifert
Sertich
Severson
Shimanski
Simon
Slawik
Slocum
Smith
Solberg
Sterner
Swails
Thao
Thissen
Tillberry
Torkelson
Urdahl
Wagenius
Ward
Welti
Westrom
Winkler
Zellers
Spk. Kelliher
Morrow moved that further proceedings of
the roll call be suspended and that the Sergeant at Arms be instructed to bring
in the absentees. The motion prevailed
and it was so ordered.
The vote recurred on the question
"Shall the decision of Speaker pro tempore Liebling stand as the judgment
of the House?" and the roll was called.
There were 87 yeas and 47 nays as follows:
Those who voted in the affirmative were:
Anzelc
Atkins
Benson
Bigham
Bly
Brown
Brynaert
Bunn
Carlson
Champion
Clark
Davnie
Dill
Dittrich
Doty
Eken
Falk
Faust
Fritz
Gardner
Greiling
Hansen
Hausman
Haws
Hayden
Hilstrom
Hilty
Hornstein
Hortman
Hosch
Huntley
Jackson
Johnson
Juhnke
Kahn
Kalin
Kath
Knuth
Koenen
Laine
Lenczewski
Lesch
Liebling
Lieder
Lillie
Loeffler
Mahoney
Mariani
Marquart
Masin
Morgan
Morrow
Mullery
Murphy, E.
Murphy, M.
Nelson
Newton
Norton
Obermueller
Olin
Otremba
Paymar
Pelowski
Persell
Peterson
Poppe
Reinert
Rosenthal
Rukavina
Ruud
Sailer
Scalze
Sertich
Simon
Slawik
Slocum
Solberg
Sterner
Swails
Thao
Thissen
Tillberry
Wagenius
Ward
Welti
Winkler
Spk. Kelliher
Those who voted in the negative were:
Abeler
Anderson, B.
Anderson, P.
Anderson, S.
Beard
Brod
Buesgens
Cornish
Davids
Dean
Demmer
Dettmer
Doepke
Downey
Drazkowski
Eastlund
Emmer
Garofalo
Gottwalt
Gunther
Hackbarth
Hamilton
Holberg
Hoppe
Howes
Kelly
Kiffmeyer
Kohls
Lanning
Loon
Mack
Magnus
McFarlane
McNamara
Murdock
Nornes
Peppin
Sanders
Scott
Seifert
Severson
Shimanski
Smith
Torkelson
Urdahl
Westrom
Zellers
So it was the judgment of the House that
the decision of Speaker pro tempore Liebling should stand.
CALL OF THE HOUSE LIFTED
Sertich moved that the call of the House
be lifted. The motion prevailed and it
was so ordered.
Journal of the House - 58th Day - Monday, May 18, 2009 - Top
of Page 7115
Emmer moved
to amend S. F. No. 97, the second unofficial engrossment, as amended, as
follows:
Page 1,
lines 10 and 11, delete "medical" and insert "authorized"
Page 2, line
23, delete "medical" and insert "authorized"
in both places
Page 2,
lines 33 and 35, delete "medical" and insert "authorized"
Page 3,
lines 11, 17, 19, 24, and 31, delete "medical" and insert
"authorized"
Page 4, line
30, delete "medical" and insert "authorized"
Page 5,
lines 6, 17, 22, 28, 33, and 34, delete "medical" and insert
"authorized"
Page 6,
lines 1, 18, 20, 24, 31, and 34, delete "medical" and insert
"authorized"
Page 7,
lines 2, 25, and 36, delete "medical" and insert "authorized"
Page 9, line
16, delete "medical" and insert "authorized"
in both places
Page 10,
lines 4, 5, 8, 23, and 26, delete "medical" and insert "authorized"
Page 11,
lines 5 and 9, delete "medical" and insert "authorized"
Page 12,
line 31, delete "medical" and insert "authorized"
Page 13,
line 5, delete "medical" and insert "authorized"
Page 14,
lines 3 and 28, delete "medical" and insert "authorized"
Page 14,
lines 10 and 21, delete "medical" and insert "authorized"
in both places
Amend the
title accordingly
The motion did not prevail and the
amendment was not adopted.
S. F. No. 97, A bill for an act relating
to health; providing for the medical use of marijuana; providing civil and criminal
penalties; appropriating money; amending Minnesota Statutes 2008, section
13.3806, by adding a subdivision; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota
Statutes, chapter 152.
The bill was read for the third time, as
amended, and placed upon its final passage.
The question was taken on the passage of
the bill and the roll was called. There
were 70 yeas and 64 nays as follows:
Those who voted in the affirmative were:
Atkins
Benson
Bigham
Bly
Buesgens
Carlson
Champion
Clark
Davnie
Demmer
Dittrich
Eken
Falk
Faust
Gardner
Garofalo
Gunther
Hackbarth
Journal of the House - 58th Day - Monday, May 18, 2009 - Top
of Page 7116
Hansen
Hausman
Haws
Hayden
Hilstrom
Hilty
Hornstein
Hortman
Huntley
Jackson
Johnson
Juhnke
Kahn
Kalin
Kelly
Knuth
Koenen
Laine
Liebling
Lillie
Loeffler
Mahoney
Mariani
Masin
McNamara
Morgan
Morrow
Mullery
Murphy, E.
Nelson
Newton
Obermueller
Paymar
Persell
Peterson
Poppe
Reinert
Rosenthal
Rukavina
Sailer
Scalze
Sertich
Simon
Slocum
Solberg
Swails
Thao
Thissen
Tillberry
Wagenius
Winkler
Spk. Kelliher
Those who voted in the negative were:
Abeler
Anderson, B.
Anderson, P.
Anderson, S.
Anzelc
Beard
Brod
Brown
Brynaert
Bunn
Cornish
Davids
Dean
Dettmer
Dill
Doepke
Doty
Downey
Drazkowski
Eastlund
Emmer
Fritz
Gottwalt
Greiling
Hamilton
Holberg
Hoppe
Hosch
Howes
Kath
Kiffmeyer
Kohls
Lanning
Lenczewski
Lesch
Lieder
Loon
Mack
Magnus
Marquart
McFarlane
Murdock
Murphy, M.
Nornes
Norton
Olin
Otremba
Pelowski
Peppin
Ruud
Sanders
Scott
Seifert
Severson
Shimanski
Slawik
Smith
Sterner
Torkelson
Urdahl
Ward
Welti
Westrom
Zellers
The bill was passed, as amended, and its
title agreed to.
The
following Conference Committee report was received:
CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REPORT ON H. F. NO. 1853
A bill for
an act relating to commerce; regulating various licenses, forms, coverages,
disclosures, notices, marketing practices, and records; classifying certain
data; removing certain state regulation of telephone solicitations; regulating
the use of prerecorded or synthesized voice messages; regulating debt
management services providers; permitting a deceased professional's surviving
spouse to retain ownership of a professional firm under certain circumstances;
amending Minnesota Statutes 2008, sections 13.716, by adding a subdivision;
45.011, subdivision 1; 45.0135, subdivision 7; 58.02, subdivision 17; 59B.01;
60A.08, by adding a subdivision; 60A.198, subdivisions 1, 3; 60A.201,
subdivision 3; 60A.205, subdivision 1; 60A.2085, subdivisions 1, 3, 7, 8;
60A.23, subdivision 8; 60A.235; 60A.32; 61B.19, subdivision 4; 61B.28,
subdivisions 4, 8; 62A.011, subdivision 3; 62A.136; 62A.17, by adding a
subdivision; 62A.29, by adding a subdivision; 62A.3099, subdivision 18; 62A.31,
subdivision 1, by adding a subdivision; 62A.315; 62A.316; 62L.02, subdivision
26; 62M.05, subdivision 3a; 65A.27, subdivision 1; 65B.133, subdivisions 2, 3,
4; 67A.191, subdivision 2; 72A.20, subdivisions 15, 26; 79A.04, subdivision 1,
by adding a subdivision; 79A.06, by adding a subdivision; 79A.24, subdivision
1, by adding a subdivision; 82.31, subdivision 4; 82B.08, by adding a
subdivision; 82B.20, subdivision 2; 319B.02, by adding a subdivision; 319B.07,
subdivision 1; 319B.08; 319B.09, subdivision 1; 325E.27; 332A.02, subdivision
13, as amended; 332A.14, as amended; 471.98, subdivision 2; 471.982,
subdivision 3; Laws 2009, chapter 37, article 4, sections 19, subdivision 13;
20; 23; 26, subdivision 2; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes,
chapters 60A; 62A; 62Q; 72A; 80A; 82B; 325E; repealing Minnesota Statutes 2008,
sections 60A.201, subdivision 4; 61B.19, subdivision 6; 70A.07; 79.56,
subdivision 4.
Journal of the House - 58th Day - Monday, May 18, 2009
- Top of Page 7117
May 18, 2009
The
Honorable Margaret Anderson Kelliher
Speaker
of the House of Representatives
The
Honorable James P. Metzen
President
of the Senate
We, the undersigned conferees for H. F.
No. 1853 report that we have agreed upon the items in dispute and recommend as
follows:
That the Senate recede from its amendments
and that H. F. No. 1853 be further amended as follows:
Delete everything after the enacting
clause and insert:
"ARTICLE 1
REGULATION OF COMMERCE
Section 1.
Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 45.011, subdivision 1, is amended to
read:
Subdivision 1. Scope. As used in chapters 45 to 83, 155A, 332,
332A, 345, and 359, and sections 123A.21, subdivision 7, paragraph (a),
clause (23); 123A.25; 325D.30 to 325D.42,; 326B.802 to
326B.885, and; 386.61 to 386.78,; 471.617; and 471.982,
unless the context indicates otherwise, the terms defined in this section
have the meanings given them.
Sec. 2.
Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 45.0135, subdivision 7, is amended to
read:
Subd. 7.
Assessment. Each insurer authorized to sell insurance in
the state of Minnesota, including surplus lines carriers, and having
Minnesota earned premium the previous calendar year shall remit an
assessment to the commissioner for deposit in the insurance fraud prevention
account on or before June 1 of each year.
The amount of the assessment shall be based on the insurer's total
assets and on the insurer's total written Minnesota premium, for the preceding
fiscal year, as reported pursuant to section 60A.13. The assessment is calculated as follows
to be an amount up to the following:
Total Assets Assessment
Less than $100,000,000 $200
$100,000,000 to
$1,000,000,000 $750
Over $1,000,000,000 $2,000
Minnesota Written Premium Assessment
Less than $10,000,000 $200
$10,000,000 to
$100,000,000 $750
Over $100,000,000 $2,000
For purposes of this subdivision, the following entities are not
considered to be insurers authorized to sell insurance in the state of
Minnesota: risk retention groups; or
township mutuals organized under chapter 67A.
EFFECTIVE DATE. This
section is effective January 1, 2010.
Journal of the House - 58th Day - Monday, May 18, 2009
- Top of Page 7118
Sec. 3. Minnesota Statutes 2008,
section 58.02, subdivision 17, is amended to read:
Subd. 17. Person in control.
"Person in control" means any member of senior management,
including owners or officers, and other persons who possess, directly or
indirectly, the power to direct or cause the direction of the management
policies of an applicant or licensee under this chapter, regardless of whether
the person has any ownership interest in the applicant or licensee. Control is presumed to exist if a person,
directly or indirectly, owns, controls, or holds with power to vote ten percent
or more of the voting stock of an applicant or licensee or of a person who
owns, controls, or holds with power to vote ten percent or more of the voting
stock of an applicant or licensee.
Sec. 4. Minnesota Statutes 2008,
section 59B.01, is amended to read:
59B.01 SCOPE AND PURPOSE.
(a) The purpose of this chapter is to create a legal framework within
which service contracts may be sold in this state.
(b) The following are exempt from this chapter:
(1) warranties;
(2) maintenance agreements;
(3) warranties, service contracts, or maintenance agreements offered by
public utilities, as defined in section 216B.02, subdivision 4, or an entity or
operating unit owned by or under common control with a public utility;
(4) service contracts sold or offered for sale to persons other than
consumers;
(5) service contracts on tangible property where the tangible property
for which the service contract is sold has a purchase price of $250 or less,
exclusive of sales tax;
(6) service contracts for home security equipment installed by a
licensed technology systems contractor; and
(7) motor club membership contracts that typically provide roadside
assistance services to motorists stranded for reasons that include, but are not
limited to, mechanical breakdown or adverse road conditions.
(c) The types of agreements referred to in paragraph (b) are not
subject to chapters 60A to 79A, except as otherwise specifically provided by
law.
(d) Service contracts issued by motor vehicle manufacturers covering
private passenger automobiles are only subject to sections 59B.03, subdivision
5, 59B.05, and 59B.07.
(e) All warranty service contracts are deemed to be
made in Minnesota for the purpose of arbitration.
Sec. 5. Minnesota Statutes 2008,
section 60A.08, is amended by adding a subdivision to read:
Subd. 15. Classification
of insurance filings data. (a)
All forms, rates, and related information filed with the commissioner under
section 61A.02 shall be nonpublic data until the filing becomes effective.
(b) All forms, rates, and related information filed
with the commissioner under section 62A.02 shall be nonpublic data until the
filing becomes effective.
Journal of the House - 58th Day - Monday, May 18, 2009
- Top of Page 7119
(c) All forms, rates, and related information filed
with the commissioner under section 62C.14, subdivision 10, shall be nonpublic
data until the filing becomes effective.
(d) All forms, rates, and related information filed
with the commissioner under section 70A.06 shall be nonpublic data until the
filing becomes effective.
(e) All forms, rates, and related information filed
with the commissioner under section 79.56 shall be nonpublic data until the
filing becomes effective.
Sec. 6. [60A.1755] AGENT ERRORS AND OMISSIONS INSURANCE; CHOICE OF SOURCE.
An insurance company shall not require an insurance
agent to maintain insurance coverage for the agent's errors and omissions from
a specific insurance company. This
section does not apply if the insurance producer is a captive producer or
employee of the insurance company imposing the requirement, or if that
insurance company or affiliated broker-dealer pays for or contributes to the
premiums for the errors and omissions coverage.
For purposes of this section, "captive producer" means a
producer that writes 80 percent or more of the producer's gross annual
insurance business for that insurance company or any or all of its
subsidiaries. Nothing in this section
shall prohibit an insurance company from requiring an insurance producer to
maintain errors and omissions coverage or requiring that errors and omissions
coverage meet certain criteria.
Sec. 7. Minnesota Statutes 2008,
section 60A.198, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
Subdivision 1. License required. A person, as defined in section 60A.02,
subdivision 7, shall not act in any other manner as an agent or broker in the
transaction of surplus lines insurance unless licensed under sections 60A.195
to 60A.209. A surplus lines license is
not required for a licensed resident agent who assists in the procurement
placement of surplus lines insurance with a surplus lines licensee
pursuant to sections 60A.195 to 60A.209.
Sec. 8. Minnesota Statutes 2008,
section 60A.198, subdivision 3, is amended to read:
Subd. 3. Procedure for obtaining license.
A person licensed as an agent in this state pursuant to other law may
obtain a surplus lines license by doing the following:
(a) filing an application in the form and with the information the
commissioner may reasonably require to determine the ability of the applicant
to act in accordance with sections 60A.195 to 60A.209;
(b) maintaining an agent's license in this state;
(c) registering with the association created pursuant
to section 60A.2085;
(c) (d) agreeing
to file with the commissioner of revenue all returns required by chapter 297I
and paying to the commissioner of revenue all amounts required under chapter
297I; and
(e) agreeing to file all documents required pursuant
to section 60A.2086 and to pay the stamping fee assessed pursuant to section
60A.2085, subdivision 7; and
(d) (f) paying
a fee as prescribed by section 60K.55.
Sec. 9. Minnesota Statutes 2008,
section 60A.201, subdivision 3, is amended to read:
Subd. 3. Unavailability of other coverage; presumption. There shall be a rebuttable presumption that
the following coverages are unavailable from a licensed insurer:
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(a) coverages on a list of unavailable coverages maintained by the
commissioner pursuant to subdivision 4;
(b)
coverages where one portion of the risk is acceptable to licensed insurers but
another portion of the same risk is not acceptable. The entire coverage may be placed with
eligible surplus lines insurers if it can be shown that the eligible surplus
lines insurer will accept the entire coverage but not the rejected portion
alone; and
(c) (b) any coverage that the licensee is unable to procure
after diligent search among licensed insurers.
Sec. 10. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 60A.205, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
Subdivision 1. Authorization. A surplus lines licensee may be compensated
by an eligible surplus lines insurer and the licensee may compensate a licensed
resident agent in this state for obtaining surplus lines insurance
business. A licensed resident
agent authorized by the licensee may collect a premium on behalf of the
licensee, and as between the insured and the licensee, the licensee shall be
considered to have received the premium if the premium payment has been made to
the agent.
Sec. 11. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 60A.2085, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
Subdivision 1. Association created; duties. There is hereby created a nonprofit association
to be known as the Surplus Lines Association of Minnesota. The association is not a state agency for
purposes of chapter 16A, 16B, 16C, or 43A.
All surplus lines licensees are members of this association. Section 60A.208, subdivision 5, does
not apply to the association created pursuant to the provisions of this
section. The association shall perform
its functions under the plan of operation established under subdivision 3 and
must exercise its powers through a board of directors established under
subdivision 2 as set forth in the plan of operation. The association shall be authorized and have
the duty to:
(1) receive, record, and stamp all surplus lines insurance documents
that surplus lines licensees are required to file with the association;
(2) prepare and deliver monthly to the commissioners of revenue and
commerce a report regarding surplus lines business. The report must include a list of all the
business procured during the preceding month, in the form the commissioners
prescribe;
(3) educate its members regarding the surplus lines law of this state
including insurance tax responsibilities and the rules and regulations of the
commissioners of revenue and commerce relative to surplus lines insurance;
(4) communicate with organizations of agents, brokers, and admitted
insurers with respect to the proper use of the surplus lines market;
(5) employ and retain persons necessary to carry out the duties of the
association;
(6) borrow money necessary to effect the purposes of the association
and grant a security interest or mortgage in its assets, including the stamping
fees charged pursuant to subdivision 7 in order to secure the repayment of any
such borrowed money;
(7) enter contracts necessary to effect the purposes of the association;
(8) provide other services to its members that are incidental or
related to the purposes of the association; and
(9) form and organize itself as a nonprofit
corporation under chapter 317A, with the powers set forth in section 317A.161
that are not otherwise limited by this section or in its articles, bylaws, or
plan of operation;
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(10) file such applications and take such other action
as necessary to establish and maintain the association as tax exempt pursuant
to the federal income tax code;
(11) recommend to the commissioner of commerce
revisions to Minnesota law relating to the regulation of surplus lines
insurance in order to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of that
regulation; and
(9) (12) take
other actions reasonably required to implement the provisions of this section.
Sec. 12. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 60A.2085, subdivision 3, is amended to read:
Subd. 3. Plan of operation. (a) The
plan of operation shall provide for the formation, operation, and governance of
the association as a nonprofit corporation under chapter 317A. The plan of operation must provide for the
election of a board of directors by the members of the association. The board of directors shall elect officers
as provided for in the plan of operation.
The plan of operation shall establish the manner of voting and may weigh
each member's vote to reflect the annual surplus lines insurance premium
written by the member. Members employed
by the same or affiliated employers may consolidate their premiums written and
delegate an individual officer or partner to represent the member in the
exercise of association affairs, including service on the board of directors.
(b) The plan of operation shall provide for an independent audit once
each year of all the books and records of the association and a report of such
independent audit shall be made to the board of directors, the commissioner of
revenue, and the commissioner of commerce, with a copy made available to each
member to review at the association office.
(c) The plan of operation and any amendments to the plan of operation
shall be submitted to the commissioner and shall be effective upon approval in
writing by the commissioner. The
association and all members shall comply with the plan of operation or any
amendments to it. Failure to comply with
the plan of operation or any amendments shall constitute a violation for which
the commissioner may issue an order requiring discontinuance of the violation.
(d) If the interim board of directors fails to submit a suitable plan
of operation within 60 days following the creation of the interim board, or if
at any time thereafter the association fails to submit required amendments to
the plan, the commissioner may submit to the association a plan of operation or
amendments to the plan, which the association must follow. The plan of operation or amendments submitted
by the commissioner shall continue in force until amended by the commissioner
or superseded by a plan of operation or amendment submitted by the association
and approved by the commissioner. A plan
of operation or an amendment submitted by the commissioner constitutes an order
of the commissioner.
Sec. 13. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 60A.2085, subdivision 7, is amended to read:
Subd. 7. Stamping fee. The services
performed by the association shall be funded by a stamping fee assessed for
each premium-bearing document submitted to the association. The stamping fee shall be established by the
board of directors of the association from time to time. The stamping fee shall be paid by the insured
to the surplus lines licensee and remitted electronically to the
association by the surplus lines licensee in the manner established by the
association.
Sec. 14. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 60A.2085, subdivision 8, is amended to read:
Subd. 8. Data classification. Unless
otherwise classified by statute, a temporary classification under section
13.06, or federal law, information obtained by the commissioner from the
association is public, except that any data identifying insureds or the
Social Security number of a licensee or any information derived therefrom is
private data on individuals or nonpublic data as defined in section 13.02,
subdivisions 9 and 12.
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Sec. 15. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 60A.23, subdivision 8, is amended to read:
Subd. 8. Self-insurance or insurance plan administrators who are vendors of risk
management services. (1) Scope.
This subdivision applies to any vendor of risk management services
and to any entity which administers, for compensation, a self-insurance or
insurance plan. This subdivision does
not apply (a) to an insurance company authorized to transact insurance in this
state, as defined by section 60A.06, subdivision 1, clauses (4) and (5); (b) to
a service plan corporation, as defined by section 62C.02, subdivision 6; (c) to
a health maintenance organization, as defined by section 62D.02, subdivision 4;
(d) to an employer directly operating a self-insurance plan for its employees'
benefits; (e) to an entity which administers a program of health benefits
established pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement between an employer,
or group or association of employers, and a union or unions; or (f) to an
entity which administers a self-insurance or insurance plan if a licensed
Minnesota insurer is providing insurance to the plan and if the licensed
insurer has appointed the entity administering the plan as one of its licensed
agents within this state.
(2) Definitions. For purposes of this subdivision the
following terms have the meanings given them.
(a) "Administering a self-insurance or insurance plan" means
(i) processing, reviewing or paying claims, (ii) establishing or operating
funds and accounts, or (iii) otherwise providing necessary administrative
services in connection with the operation of a self-insurance or insurance
plan.
(b) "Employer" means an employer, as defined by section
62E.02, subdivision 2.
(c) "Entity" means any association, corporation, partnership,
sole proprietorship, trust, or other business entity engaged in or transacting
business in this state.
(d) "Self-insurance or insurance plan" means a plan for
the benefit of employees or members of an association providing life,
medical or hospital care, accident, sickness or disability insurance for the
benefit of employees or members of an association, or pharmacy benefits,
or a plan providing liability coverage for any other risk or hazard, which is
or is not directly insured or provided by a licensed insurer, service plan
corporation, or health maintenance organization.
(e) "Vendor of risk management services" means an entity
providing for compensation actuarial, financial management, accounting, legal
or other services for the purpose of designing and establishing a
self-insurance or insurance plan for an employer.
(3) License. No vendor of risk management services or
entity administering a self-insurance or insurance plan may transact this
business in this state unless it is licensed to do so by the commissioner. An applicant for a license shall state in
writing the type of activities it seeks authorization to engage in and the type
of services it seeks authorization to provide.
The license may be granted only when the commissioner is satisfied that
the entity possesses the necessary organization, background, expertise, and
financial integrity to supply the services sought to be offered. The commissioner may issue a license subject
to restrictions or limitations upon the authorization, including the type of
services which may be supplied or the activities which may be engaged in. The license fee is $1,500 for the initial
application and $1,500 for each three-year renewal. All licenses are for a period of three years.
(4) Regulatory restrictions;
powers of the commissioner. To
assure that self-insurance or insurance plans are financially solvent, are
administered in a fair and equitable fashion, and are processing claims and
paying benefits in a prompt, fair, and honest manner, vendors of risk
management services and entities administering insurance or self-insurance
plans are subject to the supervision and examination by the commissioner. Vendors of risk management services, entities
administering insurance or self-insurance plans, and insurance or
self-insurance plans established or operated by them are subject to the trade
practice requirements of sections 72A.19 to 72A.30. In lieu of an unlimited guarantee from a
parent corporation for a vendor of risk management services or an entity
administering insurance or self-insurance plans, the commissioner may accept a
surety bond in a form satisfactory to the
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commissioner in an amount equal to 120 percent of the total amount of
claims handled by the applicant in the prior year. If at any time the total amount of claims
handled during a year exceeds the amount upon which the bond was calculated,
the administrator shall immediately notify the commissioner. The commissioner may require that the bond be
increased accordingly.
No contract entered into after July 1, 2001, between a licensed vendor
of risk management services and a group authorized to self-insure for workers'
compensation liabilities under section 79A.03, subdivision 6, may take effect
until it has been filed with the commissioner, and either (1) the commissioner
has approved it or (2) 60 days have elapsed and the commissioner has not
disapproved it as misleading or violative of public policy.
(5) Rulemaking authority. To carry out the purposes of this
subdivision, the commissioner may adopt rules pursuant to sections 14.001 to
14.69. These rules may:
(a) establish reporting requirements for administrators of insurance or
self-insurance plans;
(b) establish standards and guidelines to assure the adequacy of
financing, reinsuring, and administration of insurance or self-insurance plans;
(c) establish bonding requirements or other provisions assuring the
financial integrity of entities administering insurance or self-insurance
plans; or
(d) establish other reasonable requirements to further the purposes of
this subdivision.
Sec. 16. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 60A.235, is amended to read:
60A.235 STANDARDS FOR DETERMINING
WHETHER CONTRACTS ARE HEALTH PLAN CONTRACTS OR STOP LOSS CONTRACTS.
Subdivision 1. Findings and purpose. The purpose of this section is to establish a
standard for the determination of whether an insurance policy or other evidence
or coverage should be treated as a policy of accident and sickness insurance or
a stop loss policy for the purpose of the regulation of the business of
insurance. The laws regulating the
business of insurance in Minnesota impose distinctly different requirements
upon accident and sickness insurance policies and stop loss policies. In particular, the regulation of accident and
sickness insurance in Minnesota includes measures designed to reform the health
insurance market, to minimize or prohibit selective rating or rejection of
employee groups or individual group members based upon health conditions, and
to provide access to affordable health insurance coverage regardless of
preexisting health conditions. The
health care reform provisions enacted in Minnesota will only be effective if
they are applied to all insurers and health carriers who in substance,
regardless of purported form, engage in the business of issuing health
insurance coverage to employees of an employee group. This section applies to insurance companies
and health carriers and the policies or other evidence of coverage that they
issue. This section does not apply to
employers or the benefit plans they establish for their employees.
Subd. 2. Definitions. For purposes of
this section, the terms defined in this subdivision have the meanings given.
(a) "Attachment point" means the claims amount incurred by
an insured group beyond which the insurance company or health carrier
incurs a liability for payment.
(b) "Direct coverage" means coverage under which an insurance
company or health carrier assumes a direct obligation to an individual, under
the policy or evidence of coverage, with respect to health care expenses
incurred by the individual or a member of the individual's family.
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(c) "Expected claims" means the amount of claims that, in the
absence of a stop loss policy or other insurance or evidence of coverage, are projected
to be incurred under by an employer-sponsored plan covering
health care expenses.
(d) "Expected plan claims" means the expected claims less the
projected claims in excess of the specific attachment point, adjusted to be
consistent with the employer's aggregate contract period.
(e) "Health plan" means a health plan as defined in section
62A.011 and includes group coverage regardless of the size of the group.
(f) "Health carrier" means a health carrier as defined in
section 62A.011.
Subd. 3. Health plan policies issued as stop loss coverage. (a) An insurance company or health carrier
issuing or renewing an insurance policy or other evidence of coverage, that
provides coverage to an employer for health care expenses incurred under an
employer-sponsored plan provided to the employer's employees, retired
employees, or their dependents, shall issue the policy or evidence of coverage
as a health plan if the policy or evidence of coverage:
(1) has a specific attachment point for claims incurred per individual
that is lower than $10,000 $20,000; or
(2) has an aggregate attachment point, for groups of 50 or fewer,
that is lower than the sum greater of:
(i) 140 percent of the first $50,000 of expected plan
claims;
(ii) 120 percent of the next $450,000 of expected plan
claims; and
(iii) 110 percent of the remaining expected plan
claims.
(i) $4,000 times the number of group members;
(ii) 120 percent of expected claims; or
(iii) $20,000; or
(3) has an aggregate attachment point for groups of 51
or more that is lower than 110 percent of expected claims.
(b) An insurer shall determine the number of persons in a group, for
the purposes of this section, on a consistent basis, at least annually. Where the insurance policy or evidence of
coverage applies to a contract period of more than one year, the dollar amounts
set forth in paragraph (a), clauses (1) and (2), must be multiplied by the
length of the contract period expressed in years.
(c) The commissioner may adjust the constant dollar amounts provided in
paragraph (a), clauses (1) and, (2), and (3), on January 1
of any year, based upon changes in the medical component of the Consumer Price
Index (CPI). Adjustments must be in
increments of $100 and must not be made unless at least that amount of
adjustment is required. The commissioner
shall publish any change in these dollar amounts at least three six months
before their effective date.
(d) A policy or evidence of coverage issued by an insurance company or
health carrier that provides direct coverage of health care expenses of an
individual including a policy or evidence of coverage administered on a group
basis is a health plan regardless of whether the policy or evidence of coverage
is denominated as stop loss coverage.
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Subd. 3a. Actuarial
certification. An insurer
shall file with the commissioner annually on or before March 15, an actuarial
certification certifying that the insurer is in compliance with sections
60A.235 and 60A.236. The certification
shall be in a form and manner, and shall contain information, specified by the
commissioner. A copy of the
certification shall be retained by the insurer at its principal place of
business.
Subd. 4. Compliance. (a) An insurance
company or health carrier that is required to issue a policy or evidence of
coverage as a health plan under this section shall, even if the policy or
evidence of coverage is denominated as stop loss coverage, comply with all the
laws of this state that apply to the health plan, including, but not limited
to, chapters 62A, 62C, 62D, 62E, 62L, and 62Q.
(b) With respect to an employer who had been issued a policy or
evidence of coverage denominated as stop loss coverage before June 2, 1995
the effective date of this section, compliance with this section is
required as of the first renewal date occurring on or after June 2, 1995
August 1, 2009, and applies to policies issued or renewed on or after that date.
Sec. 17. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 60A.32, is amended to read:
60A.32 RATE FILING FOR CROP HAIL
INSURANCE.
Subdivision 1. Authority. An insurer issuing policies of insurance
against crop damage by hail in this state shall file its insurance rates with
the commissioner using the expedited filing procedure under subdivision 2. The insurance rates must be filed before
February 1 of the year in which a policy is issued.
Subd. 2. Compliance
certifications. In addition
to the proposed rates, an insurer shall file with the Department of Commerce on
a form prescribed by the commissioner a written certification, signed by an
officer of the insurer, that the rates comply with section 70A.04. Rates filed under this procedure are effective
upon the date of receipt or on a subsequent date requested by the insurer.
Subd. 3. Fee. In order to be effective, the filing must
be accompanied by payment of the applicable filing fee.
Sec. 18. [60A.39] CERTIFICATES OF INSURANCE.
Subdivision 1. Issuance. A licensed insurer or insurance producer
may provide to a third party a certificate of insurance which documents
insurance coverage. The purpose of a
certificate of insurance is to provide evidence of insurance coverage and the
amount of insurance issued.
Subd. 2. Approval. An insurer or licensed producer shall not
issue a certificate of insurance or other document or instrument that either
affirmatively or negatively amends, extends, or alters the coverage provided by
an approved policy, form, or endorsement without the written approval of the
commissioner.
Subd. 3. Required
statement. A certificate or
memorandum of property or casualty insurance when issued to any person other
than the policyholder must contain the following or similar statement: "This
certificate or memorandum of insurance does not affirmatively or negatively
amend, extend, or alter the coverage afforded by the insurance policy."
Subd. 4. Cancellation
notice. A certificate
provided to a third party must not provide for notice of cancellation that
exceeds the statutory notice of cancellation provided to the policyholder.
Subd. 5. Filing. An insurer not using the standard ACORD or
ISO form "Certificate of Insurance" shall file with the commissioner,
prior to its use, the form of certificate or memorandum of insurance coverage
that will be used by the insurer. Filed
forms may not be amended at the request of a third party.
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Subd. 6. Opinion
letters. A licensed insurance
producer may not issue, in lieu of a certificate, an agent's opinion letter or
other correspondence that is inconsistent with this section.
Sec. 19. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 60K.46, is amended by adding a subdivision to read:
Subd. 8. Certificates
of insurance. An insurance
producer shall not issue a certificate of insurance, or other evidence of
insurance coverage that either affirmatively or negatively amends, extends, or
alters the coverage as provided by the policy, or provides notice of
cancellation to a third party that exceeds the statutory notice requirement to
a policyholder.
Sec. 20. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 62A.011, subdivision 3, is amended to read:
Subd. 3. Health plan. "Health
plan" means a policy or certificate of accident and sickness insurance as defined
in section 62A.01 offered by an insurance company licensed under chapter 60A; a
subscriber contract or certificate offered by a nonprofit health service plan
corporation operating under chapter 62C; a health maintenance contract or
certificate offered by a health maintenance organization operating under
chapter 62D; a health benefit certificate offered by a fraternal benefit
society operating under chapter 64B; or health coverage offered by a joint
self-insurance employee health plan operating under chapter 62H. Health plan means individual and group
coverage, unless otherwise specified.
Health plan does not include coverage that is:
(1) limited to disability or income protection coverage;
(2) automobile medical payment coverage;
(3) supplemental to liability insurance;
(4) designed solely to provide payments on a per diem, fixed indemnity,
or non-expense-incurred basis;
(5) credit accident and health insurance as defined in section 62B.02;
(6) designed solely to provide hearing, dental, or vision
care;
(7) blanket accident and sickness insurance as defined in section
62A.11;
(8) accident-only coverage;
(9) a long-term care policy as defined in section 62A.46 or 62S.01;
(10) issued as a supplement to Medicare, as defined in sections
62A.3099 to 62A.44, or policies, contracts, or certificates that supplement
Medicare issued by health maintenance organizations or those policies,
contracts, or certificates governed by section 1833 or 1876 of the federal
Social Security Act, United States Code, title 42, section 1395, et seq., as
amended;
(11) workers' compensation insurance; or
(12) issued solely as a companion to a health maintenance contract as
described in section 62D.12, subdivision 1a, so long as the health
maintenance contract meets the definition of a health plan.
Sec. 21. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 62A.136, is amended to read:
62A.136 HEARING, DENTAL,
AND VISION PLAN COVERAGE.
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The following provisions do not apply to health plans as defined in
section 62A.011, subdivision 3, clause (6), providing hearing, dental,
or vision coverage only: sections
62A.041; 62A.0411; 62A.047; 62A.149; 62A.151; 62A.152; 62A.154; 62A.155;
62A.17, subdivision 6; 62A.21, subdivision 2b; 62A.26; 62A.28; 62A.285; 62A.30;
62A.304; 62A.3093; and 62E.16.
Sec. 22. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 62A.17, is amended by adding a subdivision to read:
Subd. 5b. Notices
required by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). (a) An employer that maintains a group
health plan that is not described in Internal Revenue Code, section 6432(b)(1)
or (2), as added by section 3001(a)(12)(A) of the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), must notify the health carrier of the
termination of, or the layoff from, employment of a covered employee, and the
name and last known address of the employee, within the later of ten days after
the termination or layoff event, or June 8, 2009.
(b) The health carrier for a group health plan that is
not described in Internal Revenue Code, section 6432(b)(1) or (2), as added by
section 3001(a)(12)(A) of the ARRA, must provide the notice of extended
election rights which is required by subdivision 5a, paragraph (a), as well as
any other notice that is required by the ARRA regarding the availability of
premium reduction rights, to the individual within 30 days after the employer
notifies the health carrier as required by paragraph (a).
(c) The notice responsibilities set forth in this
subdivision end when the premium reduction provisions under ARRA expire.
EFFECTIVE DATE. This
section is effective the day following final enactment.
Sec. 23. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 62A.3099, subdivision 18, is amended to read:
Subd. 18. Medicare supplement policy or certificate. "Medicare supplement policy or
certificate" means a group or individual policy of accident and sickness
insurance or a subscriber contract of hospital and medical service associations
or health maintenance organizations, other than those policies or certificates
covered by section 1833 of the federal Social Security Act, United States Code,
title 42, section 1395, et seq., or an issued policy under a demonstration
project specified under amendments to the federal Social Security Act, which is
advertised, marketed, or designed primarily as a supplement to reimbursements
under Medicare for the hospital, medical, or surgical expenses of persons
eligible for Medicare or as a supplement to Medicare Advantage Plans
established under Medicare Part C. "Medicare supplement policy" does
not include Medicare Advantage plans established under Medicare Part C,
outpatient prescription drug plans established under Medicare Part D, or any
health care prepayment plan that provides benefits under an agreement under
section 1833(a)(1)(A) of the Social Security Act.
Sec. 24. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 62A.31, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
Subdivision 1. Policy requirements. No individual or group policy, certificate,
subscriber contract issued by a health service plan corporation regulated under
chapter 62C, or other evidence of accident and health insurance the effect or
purpose of which is to supplement Medicare coverage, including to supplement
coverage under Medicare Advantage Plans established under Medicare Part C,
issued or delivered in this state or offered to a resident of this state shall
be sold or issued to an individual covered by Medicare unless the requirements
in subdivisions 1a to 1u are met.
Sec. 25. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 62A.31, is amended by adding a subdivision to read:
Subd. 8. Prohibition
against use of genetic information and requests for genetic information. This subdivision applies to all policies
with policy years beginning on or after May 21, 2009.
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(a) An issuer of a Medicare supplement
policy or certificate:
(1) shall not deny or condition the
issuance or effectiveness of the policy or certificate, including the
imposition of any exclusion of benefits under the policy based on a preexisting
condition, on the basis of the genetic information with respect to such
individual; and
(2) shall not discriminate in the
pricing of the policy or certificate, including the adjustment of premium
rates, of an individual on the basis of the genetic information with respect to
such individual.
(b) Nothing in paragraph (a) shall be
construed to limit the ability of an issuer, to the extent otherwise permitted
by law, from:
(1) denying or conditioning the
issuance or effectiveness of the policy or certificate or increasing the
premium for a group based on the manifestation of a disease or disorder of an
insured or applicant; or
(2) increasing the premium for any
policy issued to an individual based on the manifestation of a disease or
disorder of an individual who is covered under the policy. In such case, the manifestation of a disease
or disorder in one individual cannot also be used as genetic information about
other group members and to further increase the premium for the group.
(c) An issuer of a Medicare supplement
policy or certificate shall not request or require an individual or a family
member of such individual to undergo a genetic test.
(d) Paragraph (c) shall not be
construed to preclude an issuer of a Medicare supplement policy or certificate
from obtaining and using the results of a genetic test in making a
determination regarding payment, as defined for the purposes of applying the
regulations promulgated under Part C of title XI and section 264 of the Health
Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 as they may be revised
from time to time, and consistent with paragraph (a).
(e) For purposes of carrying out
paragraph (d), an issuer of a Medicare supplement policy or certificate may
request only the minimum amount of information necessary to accomplish the
intended purpose.
(f) Notwithstanding paragraph (c), an
issuer of a Medicare supplement policy may request, but not require, that an
individual or a family member of such individual undergo a genetic test if each
of the following conditions are met:
(1) the request is made pursuant to
research that complies with Code of Federal Regulations title 45, part 46, or
equivalent federal regulations, and any applicable state or local law or
regulations for the protection of human subjects in research;
(2) the issuer clearly indicates to
each individual, or in the case of a minor child, to the legal guardian of such
child, to whom the request is made that:
(i) compliance with the request is
voluntary; and
(ii) noncompliance will have no effect
on enrollment status or premium or contribution amounts.
(3) no genetic information collected
or acquired under this paragraph shall be used for underwriting, determination
of eligibility to enroll or maintain enrollment status, premium rates, or the
issuance, renewal, or replacement of a policy or certificate;
(4) the issuer notifies the secretary
in writing that the issuer is conducting activities pursuant to the exception
provided for under this paragraph, including a description of the activities
conducted; and
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(5) the issuer complies with such
other conditions as the secretary may by regulation require for activities
under this paragraph.
(g) An issuer of a Medicare supplement
policy or certificate shall not request, require, or purchase genetic
information for underwriting purposes.
(h) An issuer of a Medicare supplement
policy or certificate shall not request, require, or purchase genetic
information with respect to any individual prior to such individual's
enrollment under the policy in connection with such enrollment.
(i) An issuer of a Medicare supplement
policy or certificate that obtains genetic information incidental to the
requesting, requiring, or purchasing of other information concerning any
individual, such request, requirement, or purchase shall not be considered a
violation of paragraph (h) if such request, requirement, or purchase is not in
violation of paragraph (g).
(j) For purposes of this subdivision
only:
(1) "family member" means,
with respect to an individual, any other individual who is a first-degree,
second-degree, third-degree, or fourth-degree relative of such individual;
(2) "genetic information"
means, with respect to any individual, information about such individual's
genetic tests, the genetic test of family members of such individual, and the
manifestation of a disease or disorder in family members of such
individual. Such terms includes, with
respect to any individual, any request for, or receipt of, genetic services, or
participation in clinical research that includes genetic services, by such
individual or any family member of such individual. Any reference to genetic information
concerning an individual or family member of an individual who is a pregnant
woman, includes genetic information of any fetus carried by such pregnant
woman, or with respect to an individual or family member utilizing reproductive
technology, includes genetic information of any embryo legally held by an
individual or family member. The term
genetic information does not include information about the sex or age of any
individual;
(3) "genetic services" means
a genetic test or genetic counseling, including obtaining, interpreting, or
assessing genetic information or genetic education;
(4) "genetic test" means an
analysis of human DNA, RNA, chromosomes, proteins, or metabolites, that detect
genotypes, mutations, or chromosomal changes.
The term genetic test does not mean an analysis of proteins or
metabolites that does not detect genotypes, mutations, or chromosomal changes;
or an analysis of proteins or metabolites that is directly related to a
manifested disease, disorder, or pathological condition that could reasonably
be detected by a health care professional with appropriate training and
expertise in the field of medicine involved;
(5) "issuer of a Medicare
supplement policy or certificate" includes a third-party administrator or
other person acting for or on behalf of such issuer; and
(6) "underwriting purposes"
means:
(i) rules for, or determination of,
eligibility including enrollment and continued eligibility, for benefits under
the policy;
(ii) the computation of premium or
contribution amounts under the policy;
(iii) the application of any
preexisting condition exclusion under the policy; and
(iv) other activities related to the
creation, renewal, or replacement of a contract of health insurance or health
benefits.
Journal of the
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Sec. 26. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 62A.315, is
amended to read:
62A.315 EXTENDED BASIC MEDICARE SUPPLEMENT PLAN; COVERAGE.
The extended basic Medicare supplement
plan must have a level of coverage so that it will be certified as a qualified
plan pursuant to section 62E.07, and will provide:
(1) coverage for all of the Medicare
Part A inpatient hospital deductible and coinsurance amounts, and 100 percent
of all Medicare Part A eligible expenses for hospitalization not covered by
Medicare;
(2) coverage for the daily co-payment
amount of Medicare Part A eligible expenses for the calendar year incurred for
skilled nursing facility care;
(3) coverage for the coinsurance
amount or in the case of hospital outpatient department services paid under a
prospective payment system, the co-payment amount, of Medicare eligible expenses
under Medicare Part B regardless of hospital confinement, and the Medicare Part
B deductible amount;
(4) 80 percent of the usual and
customary hospital and medical expenses and supplies described in section
62E.06, subdivision 1, not to exceed any charge limitation established by the
Medicare program or state law, the usual and customary hospital and medical
expenses and supplies, described in section 62E.06, subdivision 1, while in a
foreign country; and prescription drug expenses, not covered by Medicare. An outpatient prescription drug benefit must
not be included for sale or issuance in a Medicare supplement policy or
certificate issued on or after January 1, 2006;
(5) coverage for the reasonable cost
of the first three pints of blood, or equivalent quantities of packed red blood
cells as defined under federal regulations under Medicare Parts A and B, unless
replaced in accordance with federal regulations;
(6) 100 percent of the cost of
immunizations not otherwise covered under Part D of the Medicare program and
routine screening procedures for cancer, including mammograms and pap smears;
(7) preventive medical care
benefit: coverage for the following
preventive health services not covered by Medicare:
(i) an annual clinical preventive
medical history and physical examination that may include tests and services
from clause (ii) and patient education to address preventive health care
measures;
(ii) preventive screening tests or
preventive services, the selection and frequency of which is determined to be
medically appropriate by the attending physician.
Reimbursement shall be for the actual
charges up to 100 percent of the Medicare-approved amount for each service as
if Medicare were to cover the service as identified in American Medical Association
current procedural terminology (AMA CPT) codes to a maximum of $120 annually
under this benefit. This benefit shall
not include payment for any procedure covered by Medicare;
(8) at-home recovery benefit: coverage for services to provide short-term
at-home assistance with activities of daily living for those recovering from an
illness, injury, or surgery:
(i) for purposes of this benefit, the
following definitions shall apply:
(A) "activities of daily
living" include, but are not limited to, bathing, dressing, personal
hygiene, transferring, eating, ambulating, assistance with drugs that are
normally self-administered, and changing bandages or other dressings;
Journal of
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(B) "care provider" means a
duly qualified or licensed home health aide/homemaker, personal care aide, or
nurse provided through a licensed home health care agency or referred by a
licensed referral agency or licensed nurses registry;
(C) "home" means a place
used by the insured as a place of residence, provided that the place would
qualify as a residence for home health care services covered by Medicare. A hospital or skilled nursing facility shall
not be considered the insured's place of residence;
(D) "at-home recovery
visit" means the period of a visit required to provide at-home recovery
care, without limit on the duration of the visit, except each consecutive four
hours in a 24-hour period of services provided by a care provider is one visit;
(ii) coverage requirements and
limitations:
(A) at-home recovery services
provided must be primarily services that assist in activities of daily living;
(B) the insured's attending physician
must certify that the specific type and frequency of at-home recovery services
are necessary because of a condition for which a home care plan of treatment
was approved by Medicare;
(C) coverage is limited to:
(I) no more than the number and type
of at-home recovery visits certified as medically necessary by the insured's attending
physician. The total number of at-home
recovery visits shall not exceed the number of Medicare-approved home health
care visits under a Medicare-approved home care plan of treatment;
(II) the actual charges for each
visit up to a maximum reimbursement of $100 per visit;
(III) $4,000 per calendar year;
(IV) seven visits in any one week;
(V) care furnished on a visiting
basis in the insured's home;
(VI) services provided by a care
provider as defined in this section;
(VII) at-home recovery visits while
the insured is covered under the policy or certificate and not otherwise
excluded;
(VIII) at-home recovery visits
received during the period the insured is receiving Medicare-approved home care
services or no more than eight weeks after the service date of the last
Medicare-approved home health care visit;
(iii) coverage is excluded for:
(A) home care visits paid for by
Medicare or other government programs; and
(B) care provided by unpaid
volunteers or providers who are not care providers.
(8) coverage of cost sharing for all
Medicare Part A eligible hospice care and respite care expenses; and
(9) coverage for cost sharing for
Medicare Part A or B home health care services and medical supplies.
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Sec. 27. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 62A.316, is amended to read:
62A.316 BASIC MEDICARE SUPPLEMENT PLAN;
COVERAGE.
(a) The basic Medicare supplement plan must have a level of coverage
that will provide:
(1) coverage for all of the Medicare Part A inpatient hospital
coinsurance amounts, and 100 percent of all Medicare part A eligible expenses
for hospitalization not covered by Medicare, after satisfying the Medicare Part
A deductible;
(2) coverage for the daily co-payment amount of Medicare Part A
eligible expenses for the calendar year incurred for skilled nursing facility
care;
(3) coverage for the coinsurance amount, or in the case of outpatient
department services paid under a prospective payment system, the co-payment
amount, of Medicare eligible expenses under Medicare Part B regardless of
hospital confinement, subject to the Medicare Part B deductible amount;
(4) 80 percent of the hospital and medical expenses and supplies
incurred during travel outside the United States as a result of a medical
emergency;
(5) coverage for the reasonable cost of the first three pints of blood,
or equivalent quantities of packed red blood cells as defined under federal
regulations under Medicare Parts A and B, unless replaced in accordance with
federal regulations;
(6) 100 percent of the cost of immunizations not otherwise covered
under Part D of the Medicare program and routine screening procedures for
cancer screening including mammograms and pap smears; and
(7) 80 percent of coverage for all physician prescribed medically
appropriate and necessary equipment and supplies used in the management and
treatment of diabetes not otherwise covered under Part D of the Medicare
program. Coverage must include persons
with gestational, type I, or type II diabetes.
Coverage under this clause is subject to section 62A.3093, subdivision 2.;
(8) coverage of cost sharing for all Medicare Part A
eligible hospice care and respite care expenses; and
(9) coverage for cost sharing for Medicare Part A or B
home health care services and medical supplies subject to the Medicare Part B
deductible amount.
(b) Only The following optional benefit riders may be
added to must be offered with this plan:
(1) coverage for all of the Medicare Part A inpatient hospital
deductible amount;
(2) a minimum of 80 percent of eligible medical expenses and
supplies not covered by Medicare Part B 100 percent of the Medicare Part
B excess charges coverage for all of the difference between the actual Medicare
Part B charges as billed, not to exceed any charge limitation established
by the Medicare program or state law, and the Medicare-approved Part B
charge;
(3) coverage for all of the Medicare Part B annual deductible; and
(4) coverage for at least 50 percent, or the
equivalent of 50 percent, of usual and customary prescription drug
expenses. An outpatient prescription
drug benefit must not be included for sale or issuance in a Medicare policy or
certificate issued on or after January 1, 2006;
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(5) (4) preventive
medical care benefit coverage for the following preventative health services
not covered by Medicare:
(i) an annual clinical preventive medical history and physical
examination that may include tests and services from clause (ii) and patient
education to address preventive health care measures;
(ii) preventive screening tests or preventive services, the selection
and frequency of which is determined to be medically appropriate by the
attending physician.
Reimbursement shall be for the actual charges up to 100 percent of the
Medicare-approved amount for each service, as if Medicare were to cover the
service as identified in American Medical Association current procedural
terminology (AMA CPT) codes, to a maximum of $120 annually under this
benefit. This benefit shall not include
payment for a procedure covered by Medicare;.
(6) coverage for services to provide short-term
at-home assistance with activities of daily living for those recovering from an
illness, injury, or surgery:
(i) For purposes of this benefit, the following
definitions apply:
(A) "activities of daily living" include,
but are not limited to, bathing, dressing, personal hygiene, transferring,
eating, ambulating, assistance with drugs that are normally self-administered,
and changing bandages or other dressings;
(B) "care provider" means a duly qualified
or licensed home health aide/homemaker, personal care aid, or nurse provided through
a licensed home health care agency or referred by a licensed referral agency or
licensed nurses registry;
(C) "home" means a place used by the insured
as a place of residence, provided that the place would qualify as a residence
for home health care services covered by Medicare. A hospital or skilled nursing facility shall
not be considered the insured's place of residence;
(D) "at-home recovery visit" means the
period of a visit required to provide at-home recovery care, without limit on
the duration of the visit, except each consecutive four hours in a 24-hour
period of services provided by a care provider is one visit;
(ii) Coverage requirements and limitations:
(A) at-home recovery services provided must be
primarily services that assist in activities of daily living;
(B) the insured's attending physician must certify
that the specific type and frequency of at-home recovery services are necessary
because of a condition for which a home care plan of treatment was approved by
Medicare;
(C) coverage is limited to:
(I) no more than the number and type of at-home
recovery visits certified as necessary by the insured's attending
physician. The total number of at-home
recovery visits shall not exceed the number of Medicare-approved home care visits
under a Medicare-approved home care plan of treatment;
(II) the actual charges for each visit up to a maximum
reimbursement of $40 per visit;
(III) $1,600 per calendar year;
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(IV) seven visits in any one week;
(V) care furnished on a visiting basis in the
insured's home;
(VI) services provided by a care provider as defined
in this section;
(VII) at-home recovery visits while the insured is
covered under the policy or certificate and not otherwise excluded;
(VIII) at-home recovery visits received during the
period the insured is receiving Medicare-approved home care services or no more
than eight weeks after the service date of the last Medicare-approved home
health care visit;
(iii) Coverage is excluded for:
(A) home care visits paid for by Medicare or other
government programs; and
(B) care provided by family members, unpaid
volunteers, or providers who are not care providers;
(7) coverage for at least 50 percent, or the
equivalent of 50 percent, of usual and customary prescription drug expenses to
a maximum of $1,200 paid by the issuer annually under this benefit. An issuer of Medicare supplement insurance
policies that elects to offer this benefit rider shall also make available
coverage that contains the rider specified in clause (4). An outpatient prescription drug benefit must
not be included for sale or issuance in a Medicare policy or certificate issued
on or after January 1, 2006.
Sec. 28. [62A.3163] MEDICARE SUPPLEMENT PLAN WITH 50 PERCENT PART A
DEDUCTIBLE COVERAGE.
The Medicare supplement plan with 50 percent Part A
deductible coverage must have a level of coverage that will provide:
(1) 100 percent of Medicare Part A hospitalization
coinsurance plus coverage for 365 days after Medicare benefits end;
(2) coverage for 50 percent of the Medicare Part A
inpatient hospital deductible amount per benefit period;
(3) coverage for the coinsurance amount for each day
used from the 21st through the 100th day in a Medicare benefit period for
post-hospital skilled nursing care eligible under Medicare Part A;
(4) coverage for cost sharing for all Medicare Part A
eligible hospice and respite care expenses;
(5) coverage under Medicare Part A or B for the
reasonable cost of the first three pints of blood, or equivalent quantities of
packed red blood cells, as defined under federal regulations;
(6) coverage for 100 percent of the cost sharing
otherwise applicable under Medicare Part B, after the policyholder pays the
Medicare Part B deductible;
(7) coverage of 100 percent of the cost sharing for
Medicare Part B preventive services and diagnostic procedures for cancer
screening described in section 62A.30 after the policyholder pays the Medicare
Part B deductible;
(8) coverage of 80 percent of the hospital and medical
expenses and supplies incurred during travel outside of the United States as a
result of a medical emergency; and
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(9) coverage for 100 percent of the Medicare Part A or
B home health care services and medical supplies after the policyholder pays
the Medicare Part B deductible.
Sec. 29. [62A.3164] MEDICARE SUPPLEMENT PLAN WITH $20 AND $50 CO-PAYMENT
MEDICARE PART B COVERAGE.
The Medicare supplement plan with $20 and $50 co-payment
Medicare Part B coverage must have a level of coverage that will provide:
(1) 100 percent of Medicare Part A hospitalization
coinsurance plus coverage for 365 days after Medicare benefits end;
(2) coverage for the Medicare Part A inpatient hospital
deductible amount per benefit period;
(3) coverage for the coinsurance amount for each day
used from the 21st through the 100th day in a Medicare benefit period for
post-hospital skilled nursing care eligible under Medicare Part A;
(4) coverage for the cost sharing for all Medicare
Part A eligible hospice and respite care expenses;
(5) coverage for Medicare Part A or B of the
reasonable cost of the first three pints of blood, or equivalent quantities of
packed red blood cells, as defined under federal regulations, unless replaced
according to federal regulations;
(6) coverage for 100 percent of the cost sharing
otherwise applicable under Medicare Part B except for the lesser of $20 or the
Medicare Part B coinsurance or co-payment for each covered health care provider
office visit and the lesser of $50 or the Medicare Part B coinsurance or
co-payment for each covered emergency room visit; however, this co-payment
shall be waived if the insured is admitted to any hospital and the emergency
visit is subsequently covered as a Medicare Part A expense;
(7) coverage of 100 percent of the cost sharing for
Medicare Part B preventive services and diagnostic procedures for cancer
screening described in section 62A.30 after the policyholder pays the Medicare
Part B deductible;
(8) coverage of 80 percent of the hospital and medical
expenses and supplies incurred during travel outside of the United States as a
result of a medical emergency; and
(9) coverage for Medicare Part A or B home health care
services and medical supplies after the policyholder pays the Medicare Part B
deductible.
Sec. 30. [62A.3165] MEDICARE SUPPLEMENT PLAN WITH HIGH DEDUCTIBLE COVERAGE.
The Medicare supplement plan will pay 100 percent
coverage upon payment of the annual high deductible. The annual deductible shall consist of
out-of-pocket expenses, other than premiums, for services covered. This plan must have a level of coverage that
will provide:
(1) 100 percent of Medicare Part A hospitalization
coinsurance plus coverage for 365 days after Medicare benefits end;
(2) coverage for 100 percent of the Medicare Part A
inpatient hospital deductible amount per benefit period;
(3) coverage for 100 percent of the coinsurance amount
for each day used from the 21st through the 100th day in a Medicare benefit
period for post-hospital skilled nursing care eligible under Medicare Part A;
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(4) coverage for 100 percent of cost
sharing for all Medicare Part A eligible expenses and respite care;
(5) coverage for 100 percent, under
Medicare Part A or B, of the reasonable cost of the first three pints of blood,
or equivalent quantities of packed red blood cells, as defined under federal
regulations, unless replaced according to federal regulations;
(6) except for coverage provided in
this clause, coverage for 100 percent of the cost sharing otherwise applicable under
Medicare Part B;
(7) coverage of 100 percent of the
cost sharing for Medicare Part B preventive services and diagnostic procedures
for cancer screening described in section 62A.30 after the policyholder pays
the Medicare Part B deductible;
(8) coverage of 100 percent of the
hospital and medical expenses and supplies incurred during travel outside of
the United States as a result of a medical emergency;
(9) coverage for 100 percent of
Medicare Part A and B home health care services and medical supplies; and
(10) the basis for the deductible
shall be $1,860 and shall be adjusted annually from 2010 by the secretary of
the United States Department of Health and Human Services to reflect the change
in the Consumer Price Index for all urban consumers for the 12-month period
ending with August of the preceding year, and rounded to the nearest multiple
of $10.
Sec. 31. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 62L.02,
subdivision 26, is amended to read:
Subd. 26. Small
employer. (a) "Small
employer" means, with respect to a calendar year and a plan year, a
person, firm, corporation, partnership, association, or other entity actively
engaged in business in Minnesota, including a political subdivision of
the state, that employed an average of no fewer than two nor more than 50
current employees on business days during the preceding calendar year and that
employs at least two current employees on the first day of the plan year. If an employer has only one eligible employee
who has not waived coverage, the sale of a health plan to or for that eligible
employee is not a sale to a small employer and is not subject to this chapter
and may be treated as the sale of an individual health plan. A small employer plan may be offered through
a domiciled association to self-employed individuals and small employers who
are members of the association, even if the self-employed individual or small
employer has fewer than two current employees.
Entities that are treated as a single employer under subsection (b),
(c), (m), or (o) of section 414 of the federal Internal Revenue Code are
considered a single employer for purposes of determining the number of current
employees. Small employer status must be
determined on an annual basis as of the renewal date of the health benefit
plan. The provisions of this chapter
continue to apply to an employer who no longer meets the requirements of this
definition until the annual renewal date of the employer's health benefit plan. If an employer was not in existence
throughout the preceding calendar year, the determination of whether the
employer is a small employer is based upon the average number of current
employees that it is reasonably expected that the employer will employ on
business days in the current calendar year.
For purposes of this definition, the term employer includes any
predecessor of the employer. An employer
that has more than 50 current employees but has 50 or fewer employees, as
"employee" is defined under United States Code, title 29, section
1002(6), is a small employer under this subdivision.
(b) Where an association, as defined
in section 62L.045, comprised of employers contracts with a health carrier to
provide coverage to its members who are small employers, the association and
health benefit plans it provides to small employers, are subject to section
62L.045, with respect to small employers in the association, even though the
association also provides coverage to its members that do not qualify as small
employers.
(c) If an employer has employees
covered under a trust specified in a collective bargaining agreement under the
federal Labor-Management Relations Act of 1947, United States Code, title 29,
section 141, et seq., as amended, or employees whose health coverage is
determined by a collective bargaining agreement and, as a result of the
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collective bargaining agreement, is
purchased separately from the health plan provided to other employees, those
employees are excluded in determining whether the employer qualifies as a small
employer. Those employees are considered
to be a separate small employer if they constitute a group that would qualify
as a small employer in the absence of the employees who are not subject to the
collective bargaining agreement.
Sec. 32. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 62M.05, subdivision 3a, is amended to read:
Subd. 3a. Standard review determination.
(a) Notwithstanding subdivision 3b, an initial determination on all
requests for utilization review must be communicated to the provider and
enrollee in accordance with this subdivision within ten business days of the
request, provided that all information reasonably necessary to make a
determination on the request has been made available to the utilization review
organization.
(b) When an initial determination is made to certify, notification must
be provided promptly by telephone to the provider. The utilization review organization shall
send written notification to the provider or shall maintain an audit trail of
the determination and telephone notification.
For purposes of this subdivision, "audit trail" includes
documentation of the telephone notification, including the date; the name of
the person spoken to; the enrollee; the service, procedure, or admission
certified; and the date of the service, procedure, or admission. If the utilization review organization
indicates certification by use of a number, the number must be called the
"certification number." For purposes of this subdivision,
notification may also be made by facsimile to a verified number or by
electronic mail to a secure electronic mailbox.
These electronic forms of notification satisfy the "audit
trail" requirement of this paragraph.
(c) When an initial determination is made not to certify, notification
must be provided by telephone, by facsimile to a verified number, or by
electronic mail to a secure electronic mailbox within one working day after
making the determination to the attending health care professional and hospital
and a written as applicable.
Written notification must also be sent to the hospital,
as applicable and attending health care professional, and enrollee
if notification occurred by telephone.
For purposes of this subdivision, notification may be made by
facsimile to a verified number or by electronic mail to a secure electronic
mailbox. Written notification must be sent
to the enrollee and may be sent by United States mail, facsimile to a verified
number, or by electronic mail to a secure mailbox. The written notification must include the
principal reason or reasons for the determination and the process for initiating
an appeal of the determination. Upon
request, the utilization review organization shall provide the provider or
enrollee with the criteria used to determine the necessity, appropriateness,
and efficacy of the health care service and identify the database, professional
treatment parameter, or other basis for the criteria. Reasons for a determination not to certify
may include, among other things, the lack of adequate information to certify
after a reasonable attempt has been made to contact the provider or enrollee.
(d) When an initial determination is made not to certify, the written
notification must inform the enrollee and the attending health care
professional of the right to submit an appeal to the internal appeal process
described in section 62M.06 and the procedure for initiating the internal
appeal.
Sec. 33. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 65A.27, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
Subdivision 1. Scope.
For purposes of sections 65A.27 to 65A.30 65A.302, the
following terms have the meanings given.
Sec. 34. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 65A.29, is amended by adding a subdivision to read:
Subd. 13. Notice
of possible cancellation. (a)
A written notice must be provided to all applicants for homeowners' insurance,
at the time the application is submitted, containing the following language in
bold print: "THE INSURER MAY ELECT TO CANCEL COVERAGE AT ANY TIME DURING
THE FIRST 60 DAYS FOLLOWING ISSUANCE OF THE COVERAGE FOR ANY REASON WHICH IS
NOT SPECIFICALLY PROHIBITED BY STATUTE."
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(b) If the insurer provides the notice on the
insurer's Web site, the insurer or agent may advise the applicant orally or in
writing of its availability for review on the insurer's Web site in lieu of
providing a written notice, if the insurer advises the applicant of the
availability of a written notice upon the applicant's request. The insurer shall provide the notice in
writing if requested by the applicant.
An oral notice shall be presumed delivered if the agent or insurer makes
a contemporaneous notation in the applicant's record of the notice having been
delivered or if the insurer or agent retains an audio recording of the
notification provided to the applicant.
EFFECTIVE DATE. This
section is effective January 1, 2010.
Sec. 35. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 65B.133, subdivision 2, is amended to read:
Subd. 2. Disclosure to applicants.
Before accepting the initial premium payment, an insurer or its agent
shall provide a surcharge disclosure statement to any person who applies for a
policy which is effective on or after January 1, 1983. If the insurer provides the surcharge
disclosure statement on the insurer's website, the insurer or agent may notify
the applicant orally or in writing of its availability for review on the
insurer's website prior to accepting the initial payment, in lieu of providing
a disclosure statement to the applicant in writing, if the insurer so notifies
the applicant of the availability of a written version of this statement upon
the applicant's request. The insurer
shall provide the surcharge disclosure statement in writing if requested by the
applicant. An oral notice shall be
presumed delivered if the agent or insurer makes a contemporaneous notation in
the applicant's record of the notice having been delivered or if the insurer or
agent retains an audio recording of the notification provided to the applicant.
Sec. 36. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 65B.133, subdivision 3, is amended to read:
Subd. 3. Disclosure to policyholders.
An insurer or its agent shall mail or deliver a surcharge disclosure
statement or written notice of the statement's availability on the insurer's
website to the named insured either before or with the first notice to
renew a policy on or after January 1, 1983.
If a surcharge disclosure statement or written website notice has
been provided pursuant to subdivision 2, no surcharge disclosure statement is
required to be mailed or delivered to the same named insured pursuant to
subdivision 3.
Sec. 37. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 65B.133, subdivision 4, is amended to read:
Subd. 4. Notification of change. No
insurer may change its surcharge plan unless a surcharge disclosure statement
or written website notice is mailed or delivered to the named insured
before the change is made. A surcharge
disclosure statement disclosing a change applicable on the renewal of a policy,
may be mailed with an offer to renew the policy. Surcharges cannot be applied to accidents or
traffic violations that occurred prior to a change in a surcharge plan except
to the extent provided under the prior plan.
Sec. 38. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 65B.54, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
Subdivision 1. Payment of basic economic loss benefits. Basic economic loss benefits are payable
monthly as loss accrues. Loss accrues
not when injury occurs, but as income loss, replacement services loss,
survivor's economic loss, survivor's replacement services loss, or medical or
funeral expense is incurred. Benefits
are overdue if not paid within 30 days after the reparation obligor receives
reasonable proof of the fact and amount of loss realized, unless the reparation
obligor elects to accumulate claims for periods not exceeding 31 days and pays
them within 15 days after the period of accumulation. If reasonable proof is supplied as to only
part of a claim, and the part totals $100 or more, the part is overdue if not
paid within the time provided by this section.
Medical or funeral expense benefits may be paid by the reparation
obligor directly to persons supplying products, services, or accommodations to
the claimant. Claims by a health
provider defined in section 62J.03, subdivision 8, for medical expense benefits
covered by this chapter shall be submitted to the reparation obligor pursuant
to the uniform electronic transaction standards required by section 62J.536 and
the rules promulgated under that section.
Payment of benefits for such claims for medical expense benefits are not
due if the claim is not received by the reparation
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obligor pursuant to those electronic transaction
standards and rules. Notwithstanding any
such submission, a reparation obligor may require additional reasonable proof
regarding the fact and the amount of loss realized regarding such a claim. A health care provider cannot directly bill
an insured for the amount of any such claim not remitted pursuant to the
transaction standards required by section 62J.536 if the reparation obligor is
acting in compliance with these standards in receiving or paying such a claim.
Sec. 39. Minnesota Statutes 2008,
section 67A.191, subdivision 2, is amended to read:
Subd. 2. Homeowner's risks. A
township mutual fire insurance company may issue policies known as
"homeowner's insurance" as defined in section 65A.27, subdivision 4,
only in combination with a policy issued by an insurer authorized to sell
property and casualty insurance in this state.
All portions of the combination policy providing homeowner's insurance,
including those issued by a township mutual insurance company, shall be
are subject to the provisions of chapter 65A and sections 72A.20 and
72A.201.
Sec. 40. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 72A.20, subdivision 15, is amended to read:
Subd. 15. Practices not held to be discrimination or rebates. Nothing in subdivision 8, 9, or 10, or in
section 72A.12, subdivisions 3 and 4, shall be construed as including within
the definition of discrimination or rebates any of the following practices:
(1) in the case of any contract of life insurance or annuity, paying
bonuses to policyholders or otherwise abating their premiums in whole or in
part out of surplus accumulated from nonparticipating insurance, provided that
any bonuses or abatement of premiums shall be fair and equitable to
policyholders and for the best interests of the company and its policyholders;
(2) in the case of life insurance policies issued on the industrial
debit plan, making allowance, to policyholders who have continuously for a
specified period made premium payments directly to an office of the insurer, in
an amount which fairly represents the saving in collection expense;
(3) readjustment of the rate of premium for a group insurance policy
based on the loss or expense experienced thereunder, at the end of the first or
any subsequent policy year of insurance thereunder, which may be made
retroactive only for such policy year;
(4) in the case of an individual or group health insurance policy, the
payment of differing amounts of reimbursement to insureds who elect to receive
health care goods or services from providers designated by the insurer,
provided that each insurer shall on or before August 1 of each year file with
the commissioner summary data regarding the financial reimbursement offered to
providers so designated.; and
Any insurer which proposes to offer an arrangement
authorized under this clause shall disclose prior to its initial offering and
on or before August 1 of each year thereafter as a supplement to its annual
statement submitted to the commissioner pursuant to section 60A.13, subdivision
1, the following information:
(a) the name which the arrangement intends to use and
its business address;
(b) the name, address, and nature of any separate
organization which administers the arrangement on the behalf of the insurers;
and
(c) the names and addresses of all providers
designated by the insurer under this clause and the terms of the agreements
with designated health care providers.
The commissioner shall maintain a record of
arrangements proposed under this clause, including a record of any complaints
submitted relative to the arrangements.
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(5) in the case of an individual or
group health insurance policy, offering incentives to individuals for taking
part in preventive health care services, medical management incentive programs,
or activities designed to improve the health of the individual.
If the commissioner requests copies of
contracts with a provider under this clause (4) and the provider
requests a determination, all information contained in the contracts that the
commissioner determines may place the provider or health care plan at a competitive
disadvantage is nonpublic data.
Sec. 41. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 72A.20,
subdivision 26, is amended to read:
Subd. 26. Loss
experience. An insurer shall without
cost to the insured provide an insured with the loss or claims experience of
that insured for the current policy period and for the two policy periods
preceding the current one for which the insurer has provided coverage, within
30 days of a request for the information by the policyholder. Whenever reporting loss experience data,
actual claims paid on behalf of the insured must be reported separately from
claims incurred but not paid, pooling charges for catastrophic claim
protection, and any other administrative fees or charges that may be charged as
an incurred claim expense. Claims
experience data must be provided to the insured in accordance with state and
federal requirements regarding the confidentiality of medical data. The insurer shall not be responsible for
providing information without cost more often than once in a 12-month
period. The insurer is not required to
provide the information if the policy covers the employee of more than one
employer and the information is not maintained separately for each employer and
not all employers request the data.
An insurer, health maintenance
organization, or a third-party administrator may not request more than three
years of loss or claims experience as a condition of submitting an application
or providing coverage.
This subdivision only applies to group
life policies and group health policies.
EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is
effective for policy renewal proposals delivered on or after
August 1, 2010.
Sec. 42. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 72A.201, is
amended by adding a subdivision to read:
Subd. 14.
Uniform electronic transaction
standards. Claims for medical
expenses under a property and casualty insurance policy subject to the uniform
electronic transaction standards required by section 62J.536 shall be submitted
to an insurer by a health care provider subject to that section pursuant to the
uniform electronic transaction standards and rules promulgated under that
section. The exchange of information
related to such claims pursuant to the electronic transaction standards by an
insurer shall not be the sole basis for a finding that the insurer is not in
compliance with the requirements of this section, section 72A.20, and any rules
promulgated under these sections.
Sec. 43. [72A.204]
PROHIBITED USES OF SENIOR-SPECIFIC CERTIFICATIONS AND PROFESSIONAL DESIGNATIONS.
Subdivision 1.
Purpose and scope. The purpose of this section is to set
forth standards to protect consumers from misleading and fraudulent marketing
practices with respect to the use of senior-specific certifications and
professional designations in:
(1) the solicitation, sale, or
purchase of a life insurance or annuity product; or
(2) the provision of advice in
connection with the solicitation, sale, or purchase of a life insurance or
annuity product.
Subd. 2.
Insurance producer. For purposes of this section,
"insurance producer" means a person required to be licensed under the
laws of this state to sell, solicit, or negotiate insurance, including
annuities.
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Subd. 3.
Prohibited uses of
senior-specific certifications and professional designations. (a) It is an unfair and deceptive act or
practice in the business of insurance for an insurance producer to use a
senior-specific certification or professional designation that indicates or
implies in such a way as to mislead a client or prospective client that the
insurance producer has special certification or training in advising or
servicing seniors in connection with the solicitation, sale, or purchase of a
life insurance or annuity product or in the provision of advice as to the value
of or the advisability of purchasing or selling a life insurance or annuity
product, either directly or indirectly, including the provision of advice
through publications or writings or by issuing or promulgating analyses or
reports related to a life insurance or annuity product.
(b) The prohibited use of
senior-specific certifications or professional designations includes, but is
not limited to, the following:
(1) use of a certification or
professional designation by an insurance producer who has not actually earned
or is otherwise ineligible to use such certification or designation;
(2) use of a nonexistent or
self-conferred certification or professional designation;
(3) use of a certification or
professional designation that indicates or implies a level of occupational
qualifications obtained through education, training, or experience that the
insurance producer using the certification or designation does not have; and
(4) use of a certification or
professional designation that was obtained from a certifying or designating
organization that:
(i) is primarily engaged in the
business of instruction in sales or marketing;
(ii) does not have reasonable
standards or procedures for ensuring the competency of its certificants or
designees;
(iii) does not have reasonable
standards or procedures for monitoring and disciplining its certificants or
designees for improper or unethical conduct; or
(iv) does not have reasonable
continuing education requirements for its certificants or designees in order to
maintain the certificate or designation.
(c) There is a rebuttable presumption
that a certifying or designating organization is not disqualified solely for
the purposes of paragraph (b), clause (4), when the certification or
designation issued from the organization does not primarily apply to sales or
marketing and when the organization or the certification or designation in
question has been accredited by:
(1) the American National Standards
Institute (ANSI);
(2) the National Commission for
Certifying Agencies; or
(3) any organization that is on the
United States Department of Education list entitled "Accrediting Agencies
Recognized for Title IV Purposes."
(d) In determining whether a
combination of words or an acronym standing for a combination of words
constitutes a certification or professional designation indicating or implying
that a person has special certification or training in advising or servicing
seniors, factors to be considered must include:
(1) use of one or more words such as
"senior," "retirement," "elder," or like words
combined with one or more words such as "certified,"
"registered," "chartered," "adviser," "specialist,"
"consultant," "planner," or like words, in the name of the
certification or professional designation; and
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(2) the manner in which those words are combined.
(e) For purposes of this section, a job title within
an organization that is licensed or registered by a state or federal financial
services regulatory agency is not a certification or professional designation,
unless it is used in a manner that would confuse or mislead a reasonable
consumer, when the job title:
(1) indicates seniority or standing within the
organization; or
(2) specifies an individual's area of specialization
within the organization.
(f) For purposes of paragraph (e), "financial
services regulatory agency" includes, but is not limited to, an agency
that regulates insurers, insurance producers, broker-dealers, investment
advisers, or investment companies as defined under the Investment Company Act
of 1940.
Sec. 44. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 79A.04, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
Subdivision 1. Annual securing of liability. Each year every private self-insuring
employer shall secure incurred liabilities for the payment of compensation and
the performance of its obligations and the obligations of all self-insuring
employers imposed under chapter 176 by renewing the prior year's security
deposit or by making a new deposit of security.
If a new deposit is made, it must be posted within 60 days of the
filing of the self-insured employer's annual report with the commissioner, but
in no event later than July 1 in the following manner: within 60 days of the filing of the annual
report, the security posting for all prior years plus one-third of the posting
for the current year; by July 31, one-third of the posting for the current
year; by October 31, the final one-third of the posting for the current year.
Sec. 45. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 79A.04, is amended by adding a subdivision to read:
Subd. 2a. Exceptions. Notwithstanding the requirements of
subdivisions 1 and 2, the commissioner may, until the next annual securing of
liability, adjust this required security deposit for the portion attributable
to the current year only, if, in the commissioner's judgment, the self-insurer
will be able to meet its obligations under this chapter until the next annual
securing of liability.
Sec. 46. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 79A.06, is amended by adding a subdivision to read:
Subd. 7. Insolvency
of a self-insurance group insurer.
In the event of the insolvency of the insurer of a self-insurance
group issued a policy under section 79A.06, subdivision 5, including a policy
covering only a portion of the period of self-insurance, eligibility for
chapter 60C coverage under the policy shall be determined by applying the
requirements of section 60C.09, subdivision 2, clause (3), to each
self-insurance group member, rather than to the net worth of the self-insurance
group entity or the aggregate net worth of all members of the self-insurance
group entity.
Sec. 47. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 79A.24, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
Subdivision 1. Annual securing of liability. Each year every commercial self-insurance
group shall secure its estimated future liability for the payment of
compensation and the performance of the obligations of its membership imposed
under chapter 176. A new deposit must be
posted within 30 days of the filing of the commercial self-insurance group's
annual actuarial report with the commissioner in the following
manner: within 30 days of the filing of
the annual report, the security posting for all prior years plus one-third of
the posting for the current year; by July 31, one-third of the posting for the
current year; by October 31, the final one-third of the posting for the current
year.
Sec. 48. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 79A.24, is amended by adding a subdivision to read:
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Subd. 2a.
Exceptions. Notwithstanding the requirements of
subdivisions 1 and 2, the commissioner may, until the next annual securing of
liability, adjust this required security deposit for the portion attributable
to the current year only, if, in the commissioner's judgment, the self-insurer
will be able to meet its obligations under this chapter until the next annual
securing of liability.
Sec. 49. [80A.91]
AGENT ERRORS AND OMISSIONS INSURANCE; CHOICE OF SOURCE.
A broker-dealer shall not require an agent
to maintain insurance coverage for the agent's errors and omissions from a
specific insurance company. This section
does not apply if the agent is an employee of that broker-dealer, or if the
broker-dealer or affiliated insurance company contributes to the premiums for
the errors and omissions coverage.
Nothing in this section shall prohibit a broker-dealer from requiring an
agent to maintain errors and omissions coverage or requiring that the errors
and omissions coverage meet certain criteria.
Sec. 50. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 82.31,
subdivision 4, is amended to read:
Subd. 4. Corporate
and partnership licenses. (a) A
corporation applying for a license shall have at least one officer individually
licensed to act as broker for the corporation.
The corporation broker's license shall extend no authority to act as
broker to any person other than the corporate entity. Each officer who intends to act as a broker shall
obtain a license.
(b) A partnership applying for a
license shall have at least one partner individually licensed to act as broker
for the partnership. Each partner who
intends to act as a broker shall obtain a license.
(c) Applications for a license made by
a corporation shall be verified by the president and one other officer. Applications made by a partnership shall be
verified by at least two partners.
(d) Any partner or officer who ceases
to act as broker for a partnership or corporation shall notify the commissioner
upon said termination. The individual
licenses of all salespersons acting on behalf of a corporation or partnership,
are automatically ineffective upon the revocation or suspension of the license
of the partnership or corporation. The
commissioner may suspend or revoke the license of an officer or partner without
suspending or revoking the license of the corporation or partnership.
(e) The application of all officers of
a corporation or partners in a partnership who intend to act as a broker on
behalf of a corporation or partnership shall accompany the initial license
application of the corporation or partnership.
Officers or partners intending to act as brokers subsequent to the
licensing of the corporation or partnership shall procure an individual real
estate broker's license prior to acting in the capacity of a broker. No corporate officer, or partner, who
maintains a salesperson's license may exercise any authority over any trust
account administered by the broker nor may they be vested with any supervisory
authority over the broker.
(f) The corporation or partnership
applicant shall make available upon request, such records and data required by
the commissioner for enforcement of this chapter.
(g) The commissioner may require
further information, as the commissioner deems appropriate, to administer the
provisions and further the purposes of this chapter.
Sec. 51. [82B.071]
RECORDS.
Subdivision 1.
Examination of records. The commissioner may make examinations
within or without this state of each real estate appraiser's records at such
reasonable time and in such scope as is necessary to enforce the provisions of
this chapter.
Subd. 2.
Retention. Licensees shall keep a separate work file
for each appraisal assignment, which is to include copies of all contracts
engaging his or her services for the real estate appraisal, appraisal reports,
and all data, information, and documentation assembled and formulated by the
appraiser to support the appraiser's opinions and
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conclusions and to show compliance
with USPAP, for a period of five years after preparation, or at least two years
after final disposition of any judicial proceedings in which the appraiser
provided testimony or was the subject of litigation related to the assignment,
whichever period expires last.
Appropriate work file access and retrieval arrangements must be made
between any trainee and supervising appraiser if only one party maintains
custody of the work file.
Sec. 52. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 82B.08, is amended by adding a subdivision to read:
Subd. 3a. Initial
application. The initial
application for licensing of a trainee real property appraiser must identify
the name and address of the supervisory appraiser or appraisers. Trainee real property appraisers licensed
prior to the effective date of this provision must identify the name and
address of their supervisory appraiser or appraisers at the time of license
renewal. A trainee must notify the
commissioner in writing within ten days of terminating or changing their
relationship with any supervisory appraiser.
The initial application for licensing of a certified
residential real property appraiser and certified general real property
appraiser who intends to act in the capacity of a supervisory appraiser must
identify the name and address of the trainee real property appraiser or
appraisers they intend to supervise. A
certified residential real property appraiser and certified general real
property appraiser licensed and acting in the capacity of a supervisory
appraiser prior to the effective date of this provision must, at the time of
license renewal, identify the name and address of any trainee real property
appraiser or appraisers under their supervision.
Sec. 53. [82B.093] TRAINEE REAL PROPERTY APPRAISER.
(a) A trainee real property appraiser shall be subject
to direct supervision by a certified residential real property appraiser or
certified general real property appraiser in good standing.
(b) A trainee real property appraiser is permitted to
have more than one supervising appraiser.
(c) The scope of practice for the trainee real
property appraiser classification is the appraisal of those properties which
the supervising appraiser is permitted by his or her current credential and
that the supervising appraiser is qualified and competent to appraise.
(d) A trainee real property appraiser must have a
supervisor signature on each appraisal that he or she signs, or must be named
in the appraisal as providing significant real property appraisal assistance to
receive credit for experience hours on his or her experience log.
(e) The trainee real property appraiser must maintain
copies of appraisal reports he or she signed or copies of appraisal reports
where he or she was named as providing significant real property appraisal
assistance.
(f) The trainee real property appraiser must maintain
copies of work files relating to appraisal reports he or she signed.
(g) Separate appraisal logs must be maintained for
each supervising appraiser.
Sec. 54. [82B.094] SUPERVISION OF TRAINEE REAL PROPERTY APPRAISERS.
(a) A certified residential real property appraiser or
a certified general real property appraiser, in good standing, may engage a
trainee real property appraiser to assist in the performance of real estate
appraisals, provided that the certified residential real property appraiser or
a certified general real property appraiser:
(1) has not been the subject of any license or
certificate suspension or revocation or has not been prohibited from supervising
activities in this state or any other state within the previous two years;
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(2) has no more than three trainee
real property appraisers working under supervision at any one time;
(3) actively and personally supervises
the trainee real property appraiser, which includes ensuring that research of
general and specific data has been adequately conducted and properly reported,
application of appraisal principles and methodologies has been properly
applied, that the analysis is sound and adequately reported, and that any
analyses, opinions, or conclusions are adequately developed and reported so
that the appraisal report is not misleading;
(4) discusses with the trainee real
property appraiser any necessary and appropriate changes that are made to a
report, involving any trainee appraiser, before it is transmitted to the
client. Changes not discussed with the
trainee real property appraiser that are made by the supervising appraiser must
be provided in writing to the trainee real property appraiser upon completion
of the appraisal report;
(5) accompanies the trainee real
property appraiser on the inspections of the subject properties and drive-by
inspections of the comparable sales on all appraisal assignments for which the
trainee will perform work until the trainee appraiser is determined to be
competent, in accordance with the competency rule of USPAP for the
property type;
(6) accepts full responsibility for
the appraisal report by signing and certifying that the report complies with
USPAP; and
(7) reviews and signs the trainee real
property appraiser's appraisal report or reports or if the trainee appraiser is
not signing the report, states in the appraisal the name of the trainee and
scope of the trainee's significant contribution to the report.
(b) The supervising appraiser must review
and sign the applicable experience log required to be kept by the trainee real
property appraiser.
(c) The supervising appraiser must
notify the commissioner within ten days when the supervision of a trainee real
property appraiser has terminated or when the trainee appraiser is no longer
under the supervision of the supervising appraiser.
(d) The supervising appraiser must
maintain a separate work file for each appraisal assignment.
(e) The supervising appraiser must
verify that any trainee real property appraiser that is subject to supervision
is properly licensed and in good standing with the commissioner.
Sec. 55. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 82B.20,
subdivision 2, is amended to read:
Subd. 2. Conduct
prohibited. No person may:
(1) obtain or try to obtain a license
under this chapter by knowingly making a false statement, submitting false
information, refusing to provide complete information in response to a question
in an application for license, or through any form of fraud or misrepresentation;
(2) fail to meet the minimum
qualifications established by this chapter;
(3) be convicted, including a
conviction based upon a plea of guilty or nolo contendere, of a crime that is
substantially related to the qualifications, functions, and duties of a person
developing real estate appraisals and communicating real estate appraisals to
others;
(4) engage in an act or omission
involving dishonesty, fraud, or misrepresentation with the intent to
substantially benefit the license holder or another person or with the intent
to substantially injure another person;
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(5) engage in a violation of any of the
standards for the development or communication of real estate appraisals as
provided in this chapter;
(6) fail or refuse without good cause
to exercise reasonable diligence in developing an appraisal, preparing an
appraisal report, or communicating an appraisal;
(7) engage in negligence or
incompetence in developing an appraisal, in preparing an appraisal report, or
in communicating an appraisal;
(8) willfully disregard or violate
any of the provisions of this chapter or the rules of the commissioner for the
administration and enforcement of the provisions of this chapter;
(9) accept an appraisal assignment
when the employment itself is contingent upon the appraiser reporting a
predetermined estimate, analysis, or opinion, or where the fee to be paid is
contingent upon the opinion, conclusion, or valuation reached, or upon the
consequences resulting from the appraisal assignment;
(10) violate the confidential nature
of governmental records to which the person gained access through employment or
engagement as an appraiser by a governmental agency;
(11) offer, pay, or give, and no
person shall accept, any compensation or other thing of value from a real
estate appraiser by way of commission-splitting, rebate, finder's fee, or
otherwise in connection with a real estate appraisal. This prohibition does not apply to
transactions among persons licensed under this chapter if the transactions
involve appraisals for which the license is required;
(12) engage or authorize a person,
except a person licensed under this chapter, to act as a real estate appraiser
on the appraiser's behalf;
(13) violate standards of
professional practice;
(14) make an oral appraisal report
without also making a written report within a reasonable time after the oral
report is made;
(15) represent a market analysis to
be an appraisal report;
(16) give an appraisal in any
circumstances where the appraiser has a conflict of interest, as determined
under rules adopted by the commissioner; or
(17) engage in other acts the
commissioner by rule prohibits.
No person, including a mortgage
originator, appraisal management company, real estate broker or salesperson,
appraiser, or other licensee, registrant, or certificate holder regulated by the
commissioner may improperly influence or attempt to improperly influence the
development, reporting, result, or review of a real estate appraisal. Prohibited acts include blacklisting,
boycotting, intimidation, coercion, and any other means that impairs or may
impair the independent judgment of the appraiser, including but not limited to
the withholding or threatened withholding of payment for an appraisal fee, or
the conditioning of the payment of any appraisal fee upon the opinion,
conclusion, or valuation to be reached, or a request that the appraiser report
a predetermined opinion, conclusion, or valuation, or the desired valuation of
any person, or withholding or threatening to withhold future work in order to
obtain a desired value on a current or proposed appraisal assignment.
Sec. 56. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 319B.02, is
amended by adding a subdivision to read:
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Subd. 21a.
Surviving spouse. "Surviving spouse" means a
surviving spouse of a deceased professional as an individual, as the personal
representative of the estate of the decedent, as the trustee of an inter vivos
or testamentary trust created by the decedent, or as the sole heir or
beneficiary of an estate or trust of which the personal representative or
trustee is a bank or other institution that has trust powers.
EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is
effective the day following final enactment and applies to surviving spouses of
professionals who die on or after that date.
Sec. 57. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 319B.07,
subdivision 1, is amended to read:
Subdivision 1. Ownership
of interests restricted. Ownership
interests in a professional firm may not be owned or held, either directly or
indirectly, except by any of the following:
(1) professionals who, with respect to
at least one category of the pertinent professional services, are licensed and
not disqualified;
(2) general partnerships, other than
limited liability partnerships, authorized to furnish at least one category of
the professional firm's pertinent professional services;
(3) other professional firms
authorized to furnish at least one category of the professional firm's
pertinent professional services;
(4) a voting trust established with
respect to some or all of the ownership interests in the professional firm, if
(i) the professional firm's generally applicable governing law permits the
establishment of voting trusts, and (ii) all the voting trustees and all the
holders of beneficial interests in the trust are professionals licensed to
furnish at least one category of the pertinent professional services; and
(5) an employee stock ownership plan
as defined in section 4975(e)(7) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as
amended, if (i) all the voting trustees of the plan are professionals licensed to
furnish at least one category of the pertinent professional services, and (ii)
the ownership interests are not directly issued to anyone other than
professionals licensed to furnish at least one category of the pertinent
professional services; and
(6) sole ownership by a surviving
spouse of a deceased professional who was the sole owner of the professional
firm at the time of the professional's death, but only during the period of
time ending one year after the death of the professional.
EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is
effective the day following final enactment and applies to surviving spouses of
professionals who die on or after that date.
Sec. 58. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 319B.08, is
amended to read:
319B.08 EFFECT OF DEATH OR DISQUALIFICATION OF OWNER.
Subdivision 1. Acquisition
of interests or automatic loss of professional firm status. (a) If an owner dies or becomes disqualified
to practice all the pertinent professional services, then either:
(1) within 90 days after the death or
the beginning of the disqualification, all of that owner's ownership interest
must be acquired by the professional firm, by persons permitted by section
319B.07 to own the ownership interest, or by some combination; or
(2) at the end of the 90-day period,
the firm's election under section 319B.03, subdivision 2, or 319B.04,
subdivision 2, is automatically rescinded, the firm loses its status as a
professional firm, and the authority created by that election and status
terminates.
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An acquisition satisfies clause (1) if all right and title to the
deceased or disqualified owner's interest are acquired before the end of the
90-day period, even if some or all of the consideration is paid after the end
of the 90-day period. However, payment
cannot be secured in any way that violates sections 319B.01 to 319B.12.
(b) If automatic rescission does occur under paragraph (a), the firm
must immediately and accordingly update its organizational document,
certificate of authority, or statement of foreign qualification. Even without that updating, however, the
rescission, loss of status, and termination of authority provided by paragraph
(a) occur automatically at the end of the 90-day period.
Subd. 2. Terms of acquisition. (a)
If:
(1) an owner dies or becomes disqualified to practice all the pertinent
professional services;
(2) the professional firm has in effect a mechanism, valid according to
the professional firm's generally applicable governing law, to effect a
purchase of the deceased or disqualified owner's ownership interest so as to
satisfy subdivision 1, paragraph (a), clause (1); and
(3) the professional firm does not agree with the disqualified owner or
the representative of the deceased owner to set aside the mechanism,
then
that mechanism applies.
(b) If:
(1) an owner dies or becomes disqualified to practice all the pertinent
professional services;
(2) the professional firm has in effect no mechanism as described in
paragraph (a), or has agreed as mentioned in paragraph (a), clause (3), to set
aside that mechanism; and
(3) consistent with its generally applicable governing law, the
professional firm agrees with the disqualified owner or the representative of
the deceased owner, before the end of the 90-day period, to an arrangement to
effect a purchase of the deceased or disqualified owner's ownership interest so
as to satisfy subdivision 1, paragraph (a), clause (1),
then
that arrangement applies.
(c) If:
(1) an owner of a Minnesota professional firm dies or becomes
disqualified to practice all the pertinent professional services;
(2) the Minnesota professional firm does not have in effect a mechanism
as described in paragraph (a);
(3) the Minnesota professional firm does not make an arrangement as
described in paragraph (b); and
(4) no provision or tenet of the Minnesota professional firm's
generally applicable governing law and no provision of any document or
agreement authorized by the Minnesota professional firm's generally applicable
governing law expressly precludes an acquisition under this paragraph,
then
the firm may acquire the deceased or disqualified owner's ownership interest as
stated in this paragraph. To act under
this paragraph, the Minnesota professional firm must within 90 days after the
death or beginning of the disqualification tender to the representative of the
deceased owner's estate or to the disqualified owner the fair value
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of the
owner's ownership interest, as determined by the Minnesota professional firm's
governance authority. That price must be
at least the book value, as determined in accordance with the Minnesota
professional firm's regular method of accounting, as of the end of the month
immediately preceding the death or loss of license. The tender must be unconditional and may not
attempt to have the recipient waive any rights provided in this section. If the Minnesota professional firm tenders a
price under this paragraph within the 90-day period, the deceased or
disqualified owner's ownership interest immediately transfers to the Minnesota
professional firm regardless of any dispute as to the fairness of the
price. A disqualified owner or
representative of the deceased owner's estate who disputes the fairness of the
tendered price may take the tendered price and bring suit in district court
seeking additional payment. The suit
must be commenced within one year after the payment is tendered. A Minnesota professional firm may agree with
a disqualified owner or the representative of a deceased owner's estate to
delay all or part of the payment due under this paragraph, but all right and
title to the owner's ownership interests must be acquired before the end of the
90-day period and payment may not be secured in any way that violates sections
319B.01 to 319B.12.
Subd. 3. Expiration of firm-issued option on death or disqualification of
holder. If the holder of an option
issued under section 319B.07, subdivision 3, paragraph (a), clause (1), dies or
becomes disqualified, the option automatically expires.
Subd. 4. One-year
period for surviving spouse of sole owner. For purposes of this section, each mention
of "90 days," "90-day period," or similar term shall be interpreted
as one year after the death of a professional who was the sole owner of the
professional firm if the surviving spouse of the deceased professional owns and
controls the firm after the death.
EFFECTIVE DATE. This
section is effective the day following final enactment and applies to surviving
spouses of professionals who die on or after that date.
Sec. 59. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 319B.09, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
Subdivision 1. Governance authority. (a) Except as stated in paragraph (b), a
professional firm's governance authority must rest with:
(1) one or
more professionals, each of whom is licensed to furnish at least one category
of the pertinent professional services; or
(2) a surviving spouse of a deceased professional who
was the sole owner of the professional firm, while the surviving spouse owns
and controls the firm, but only during the period of time ending one year after
the death of the professional.
(b) In a Minnesota professional firm organized under chapter 317A and
in a foreign professional firm organized under the nonprofit corporation
statute of another state, at least one individual possessing governance
authority must be a professional licensed to furnish at least one category of
the pertinent professional services.
(c) Individuals who possess governance authority within a professional
firm may delegate administrative and operational matters to others. No decision entailing the exercise of
professional judgment may be delegated or assigned to anyone who is not a
professional licensed to practice the professional services involved in the
decision.
(d) An individual whose license to practice any pertinent professional
services is revoked or suspended may not, during the time the revocation or
suspension is in effect, possess or exercise governance authority, hold a
position with governance authority, or take part in any decision or other
action constituting an exercise of governance authority. Nothing in this chapter prevents a board from
further terminating, restricting, limiting, qualifying, or imposing conditions
on an individual's governance role as board disciplinary action.
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(e) A professional firm owned and controlled by a
surviving spouse must comply with all requirements of this chapter, except
those clearly inapplicable to a firm owned and governed by a surviving spouse
who is not a professional of the same type as the surviving spouse's decedent.
EFFECTIVE DATE. This
section is effective the day following final enactment and applies to surviving
spouses of professionals who die on or after that date.
Sec. 60. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 325E.27, is amended to read:
325E.27 USE OF PRERECORDED OR SYNTHESIZED
VOICE MESSAGES.
A caller shall not use or connect to a telephone line an automatic
dialing-announcing device unless: (1) the subscriber has knowingly or
voluntarily requested, consented to, permitted, or authorized receipt of the
message; or (2) the message is immediately preceded by a live operator who
obtains the subscriber's consent before the message is delivered. This section and section 325E.30 do not apply
to (1) messages from school districts to students, parents, or employees, (2)
messages to subscribers with whom the caller has a current business or personal
relationship, or (3) messages advising employees of work schedules. This section does not apply to messages
from a nonprofit tax-exempt charitable organization sent solely for the purpose
of soliciting voluntary donations of clothing to benefit disabled United States
military veterans and containing no request for monetary donations or other
solicitations of any kind.
Sec. 61. [325E.3161] TELEPHONE SOLICITATIONS; EXPIRATION PROVISION.
Sections 325E.311 to 325E.316 expire December 31,
2012.
Sec. 62. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 332A.02, subdivision 13, as amended by Laws 2009, chapter 37,
article 4, section 12, is amended to read:
Subd. 13. Debt settlement services provider.
"Debt settlement services provider" has the meaning given in
section 332B.02, subdivision 11 13.
Sec. 63. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 332A.14, as amended by Laws 2009, chapter 37, article 4, section
17, is amended to read:
332A.14 PROHIBITIONS.
No debt management services provider shall:
(1) purchase from a creditor any obligation of a debtor;
(2) use, threaten to use, seek to have used, or seek to have threatened
the use of any legal process, including but not limited to garnishment and
repossession of personal property, against any debtor while the debt management
services agreement between the registrant and the debtor remains executory;
(3) advise, counsel, or encourage a debtor to stop paying a creditor,
or imply, infer, encourage, or in any other way indicate, that it is advisable
to stop paying a creditor;
(4) sanction or condone the act by a debtor of ceasing payments to a
creditor or imply, infer, or in any manner indicate that the act of ceasing
payments to a creditor is advisable or beneficial to the debtor;
(5) require as a condition of performing debt management services the
purchase of any services, stock, insurance, commodity, or other property or any
interest therein either by the debtor or the registrant;
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(6) compromise any debts unless the
prior written or contractual approval of the debtor has been obtained to such
compromise and unless such compromise inures solely to the benefit of the
debtor;
(7) receive from any debtor as
security or in payment of any fee a promissory note or other promise to pay or
any mortgage or other security, whether as to real or personal property;
(8) lend money or provide credit to
any debtor if any interest or fee is charged, or directly or indirectly collect
any fee for referring, advising, procuring, arranging, or assisting a consumer
in obtaining any extension of credit or other debtor service from a lender or
debt management services provider;
(9) structure a debt management
services agreement that would result in negative amortization of any debt in
the plan;
(10) engage in any unfair, deceptive,
or unconscionable act or practice in connection with any service provided to
any debtor;
(11) offer, pay, or give any material
cash fee, gift, bonus, premium, reward, or other compensation to any person for
referring any prospective customer to the registrant or for enrolling a debtor
in a debt management services plan, or provide any other incentives for
employees or agents of the debt management services provider to induce debtors
to enter into a debt management services plan;
(12) receive any cash, fee, gift,
bonus, premium, reward, or other compensation from any person other than the
debtor or a person on the debtor's behalf in connection with activities as a
registrant, provided that this paragraph does not apply to a registrant which
is a bona fide nonprofit corporation duly organized under chapter 317A or under
the similar laws of another state;
(13) enter into a contract with a
debtor unless a thorough written budget analysis indicates that the debtor can
reasonably meet the requirements of the financial adjustment plan and will be
benefited by the plan;
(14) in any way charge or purport to
charge or provide any debtor credit insurance in conjunction with any contract
or agreement involved in the debt management services plan;
(15) operate or employ a person who is
an employee or owner of a collection agency or process-serving business; or
(16) solicit, demand, collect,
require, or attempt to require payment of a sum that the registrant states,
discloses, or advertises to be a voluntary contribution to a debt management
services provider or designee from the debtor.
Sec. 64. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 332B.02,
subdivision 13, as added by Laws 2009, chapter 37, article 4, section 19, is
amended to read:
Subd. 13. Debt
settlement services provider.
"Debt settlement services provider" means any person offering
or providing debt settlement services to a debtor domiciled in this state,
regardless of whether or not a fee is charged for the services and regardless
of whether the person maintains a physical presence in the state. The term includes any person to whom debt
settlement duties services are delegated. The term shall not include persons listed in
section 332A.02, subdivision 8, clauses (1) to (10), or a debt management
services provider.
Sec. 65. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 332B.03, as
added by Laws 2009, chapter 37, article 4, section 20, is amended to read:
332B.03 REQUIREMENT OF REGISTRATION.
On or after August 1, 2009, it is
unlawful for any person, whether or not located in this state, to operate as a
debt settlement services provider or provide debt settlement services
including, but not limited to, offering, advertising, or executing or causing
to be executed any debt settlement services or debt settlement services
agreement, except as
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authorized by law, without first
becoming registered as provided in this chapter. Debt settlement services providers may continue
to provide debt settlement services without complying with this chapter to
those debtors who entered into a contract to participate in a debt settlement
services plan prior to August 1, 2009, but may not enter into a debt settlement
services agreement with a debt debtor on or after August 1, 2009,
without complying with this chapter.
Sec. 66. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 332B.06, as
added by Laws 2009, chapter 37, article 4, section 23, is amended to read:
332B.06 WRITTEN DEBT SETTLEMENT SERVICES AGREEMENT; DISCLOSURES; TRUST
ACCOUNT.
Subdivision 1. Written
agreement required. (a) A debt
settlement services provider may not perform, or impose any charges or receive
any payment for, any debt settlement services until the provider and the debtor
have executed a debt settlement services agreement that contains all terms of
the agreement between the debt settlement services provider and the debtor,
and the provider complies with all the applicable requirements of this
chapter.
(b) A debt settlement services
agreement must:
(1) be in writing, dated, and signed
by the debt settlement services provider and the debtor;
(2) conspicuously indicate whether or
not the debt settlement services provider is registered with the Minnesota
Department of Commerce and include any registration number; and
(3) be written in the debtor's primary
language if the debt settlement services provider advertises in that language.
(c) The registrant must furnish the debtor
with a copy of the signed contract upon execution.
Subd. 2. Actions
prior to executing a written agreement.
No person may provide debt settlement services for a debtor or execute a
debt settlement services agreement unless the person first has:
(1) informed the debtor, in writing,
that debt settlement is not appropriate for all debtors and that there are
other ways to deal with debt, including using credit counseling or debt
management services, or filing bankruptcy;
(2) prepared in writing and provided
to the debtor, in a form the debtor may keep, an individualized financial
analysis of the debtor's financial circumstances, including income and
liabilities, and made a determination supported by the individualized financial
analysis that:
(i) the debt settlement plan proposed
for addressing the debt is suitable for the individual debtor;
(ii) the debtor can reasonably meet
the requirements of the proposed debt settlement services plan; and
(iii) based on the totality of the
circumstances, there is a net tangible benefit to the debtor of entering into
the proposed debt settlement services plan; and
(3) provided, on a document separate
from any other document, the total amount and an itemization of fees, including
any origination fees, monthly fees, and settlement fees reasonably anticipated
to be paid by the debtor over the term of the agreement.
Subd. 3. Determination
concerning creditor participation.
(a) Before executing a debt settlement services agreement or providing
any services, a debt settlement services provider must make a determination,
supported by sufficient bases, which creditors listed by the debtor are
reasonably likely, and which are not reasonably likely, to participate in the
debt settlement services plan set forth in the debt settlement services
agreement.
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(b) A debt settlement services provider has a defense against a claim
that no sufficient basis existed to make a determination that a creditor was
likely to participate if the debt settlement services provider can produce:
(1) written confirmation from the creditor that, at the time the
determination was made, the creditor and the debt settlement services provider
were engaged in negotiations to settle a debt for another debtor; or
(2) evidence that the provider and the creditor had entered into a
settlement of a debt for another debtor within the six months prior to
the date of the determination.
(c) The debt settlement services provider must notify the debtor as
soon as practicable after the provider has made a determination of the
likelihood of participation or nonparticipation of all the creditors listed for
inclusion in the debt settlement services agreement or debt settlement services
plan. If not all creditors listed in the
debt settlement services agreement are reasonably likely to participate in the
debt settlement services plan, the debt settlement services provider must
obtain the written authorization from the debtor to proceed with the debt
settlement services agreement without the likely participation of all listed
creditors.
Subd. 4. Disclosures. (a) A person
offering to provide or providing debt settlement services must disclose both
orally and in writing whether or not the person is registered with the
Minnesota Department of Commerce and any registration number.
(b) No person may provide debt settlement services unless the person
first has provided, both orally and in writing, on a single sheet of paper,
separate from any other document or writing, the following verbatim notice:
CAUTION
We CANNOT GUARANTEE that you will successfully reduce or eliminate your
debt.
If you stop paying your creditors, there is a strong likelihood some or
all of the following may happen:
YOUR WAGES OR BANK ACCOUNT MAY STILL BE GARNISHED.
YOU MAY STILL BE CONTACTED BY CREDITORS.
YOU MAY STILL BE SUED BY CREDITORS for the money you owe.
FEES, INTEREST, AND OTHER CHARGES WILL CONTINUE TO MOUNT UP DURING
THE (INSERT NUMBER) MONTHS THIS PLAN IS IN EFFECT.
Even if we do settle your debt, YOU MAY STILL HAVE TO PAY TAXES on the
amount forgiven.
Your credit rating may be adversely affected.
(c) The heading, "CAUTION," must be in bold, underlined,
28-point type, and the remaining text must be in 14‑point type, with a
double space between each statement.
(d) The disclosures and notices required under this subdivision must be
provided in the debtor's primary language if the debt settlement services
provider advertises in that language.
Subd. 5. Required terms. (a) Each
debt settlement services agreement must contain on the front page of the
agreement, segregated by bold lines from all other information on the page and
disclosed prominently and clearly in bold print, the total amount and an
itemization of fees, including any origination fees, monthly fees, and
settlement fees reasonably anticipated to be paid by the debtor over the term
of the agreement.
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(b) Each debt settlement services agreement must also contain the
following:
(1) a prominent statement describing the terms upon which the debtor
may cancel the contract as set forth in section 332B.07;
(2) a detailed description of all services to be performed by the debt
settlement services provider for the debtor;
(3) the debt settlement services provider's refund policy;
(4) the debt settlement services provider's principal business address,
which must not be a post office box, and the name and address of its agent in
this state authorized to receive service of process; and
(5) the name of each creditor the debtor has listed and the aggregate
debt owed to each creditor that will be the subject of settlement.
Subd. 6. Prohibited terms. A debt
settlement services agreement may not contain any of the terms prohibited under
section 332A.10, subdivision 4.
Subd. 7. New debt settlement services agreements; modifications of existing
agreements. (a) Separate and
additional debt settlement services agreements that comply with this chapter
may be entered into by the debt settlement services provider and the debtor,
provided that no additional origination fee may be charged by the debt
settlement services provider.
(b) Any modification of an existing debt settlement services agreement,
including any increase in the number or amount of debts included in the debt settlement
services agreement, must be in writing and signed by both parties. No fee may be charged to modify an existing
agreement.
Subd. 8. Funds held in trust. Debtor
funds may be held in trust for the purpose of writing exchange checks for no
longer than 42 days. If the registrant
holds debtor funds, the registrant must maintain a separate trust account,
except that the registrant may commingle debtor funds with the registrant's own
funds, in the form of an imprest fund, to the extent necessary to ensure
maintenance of a minimum balance, if the financial institution at which the
trust account is held requires a minimum balance to avoid the assessment of
fees or penalties for failure to maintain a minimum balance.
Sec. 67. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 332B.09, as added by Laws 2009, chapter 37, article 4, section
26, is amended to read:
332B.09 FEES; WITHDRAWAL OF CREDITORS;
NOTIFICATION TO DEBTOR OF SETTLEMENT OFFER.
Subdivision 1. Choice of fee structure. A debt settlement services provider may
calculate fees on a percentage of debt basis or on a percentage of savings
basis. The fee structure shall be
clearly disclosed and explained in the debt settlement services agreement.
Subd. 2. Fees as a percentage of debt.
(a) The total amount of the fees claimed, demanded, charged, collected,
or received under this subdivision shall be calculated as 15 percent of the
aggregate debt. A debt settlement
services provider that calculates fees as a percentage of debt may:
(1) charge an origination fee, which may be designated by the debt
settlement services provider as nonrefundable, of:
(i) $200 on aggregate debt of less than $20,000; or
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(ii) $400 on aggregate debt of $20,000
or more;
(2) charge a monthly fee of:
(i) no greater than $50 per month on
aggregate debt of less than $40,000; and
(ii) no greater than $60 per month on
aggregate debt of $40,000 or more; and
(3) charge a settlement fee for the
remainder of the allowable fees, which may be demanded and collected no earlier
than upon delivery to the debt settlement services provider by a creditor of a
bona fide written settlement offer consistent with the terms of the debt
settlement services agreement. A
settlement fee may be assessed for each debt settled, but the sum total of the
origination fee, the monthly fee, and the settlement fee may not exceed 15
percent of the aggregate debt.
(b) When a settlement offer is
obtained by a debt settlement services provider from a creditor, the collection
of any monthly fees shall cease beginning the month following the month in which
the settlement offer was obtained by the debt settlement services provider
The collection of monthly fees shall cease under this subdivision when the
total monthly fees and the origination fee equals 40 percent of the total fees
allowable under this subdivision.
(c) In no event may more than 40
percent of the total amount of fees allowable be claimed, demanded, charged,
collected, or received by a debt settlement services provider any earlier than
upon delivery to the debt settlement services provider by a creditor of a bona
fide written settlement offer consistent with the terms of the debt settlement
services agreement.
Subd. 3. Fees
as a percentage of savings. (a) The
total amount of the fees claimed, demanded, charged, collected, or received under
this subdivision shall be calculated as 30 percent of the savings actually
negotiated by the debt settlement services provider. The savings shall be calculated as the
difference between the aggregate debt that is stated in the debt settlement
services agreement at the time of its execution and total amount that the
debtor actually pays to settle all the debts stated in the debt settlement
services agreement, provided that only savings resulting from concessions
actually negotiated by the debt settlement services provider may be
counted. A debt settlement services
provider that calculates fees as a percentage of debt may:
(1) charge an origination fee, which
may be designated by the debt settlement services provider as nonrefundable,
of:
(i) $300 on aggregate debt of less
than $20,000; or
(ii) $500 on aggregate debt of $20,000
or more;
(2) charge a monthly fee of:
(i) no greater than $65 on aggregate
debt of less than $40,000; and
(ii) no greater than $75 on aggregate
debt of $40,000 or more; and
(3) charge a settlement fee for the
remainder of the allowable fees, which may be demanded and collected no earlier
than upon delivery to the debt settlement services provider by a creditor of a
bona fide, final written settlement offer consistent with the terms of the debt
settlement services agreement. A
settlement fee may be assessed for each debt settled, but the sum total of the
origination fee, the monthly fee, and the settlement fee may not exceed 30
percent of the savings, as calculated under paragraph (a).
(b) The collection of monthly fees
shall cease under this subdivision when the total of monthly fees and the
origination fee equals 50 percent of the total fees allowable under this
subdivision. For the purposes of this
subdivision, 50 percent of the total fees allowable shall assume a settlement
of 50 cents on the dollar.
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(c) In no event may more than 50 percent of the total amount of fees
allowable be claimed, demanded, charged, collected, or received by a debt
settlement services provider any earlier than upon delivery to the debt
settlement services provider by a creditor of a bona fide, final written
settlement offer consistent with the terms of the debt settlement services
agreement.
Subd. 4. Fees exclusive. No fees,
charges, assessments, or any other compensation may be claimed, demanded,
charged, collected, or received other than the fees allowed under this
section. Any fees collected in excess of
those allowed under this section must be immediately returned to the debtor.
Subd. 5. Withdrawal of creditor.
Whenever a creditor withdraws from a debt settlement services plan, the
debt settlement services provider must promptly notify the debtor of the
withdrawal, identify the creditor, and inform the debtor of the right to modify
the debt settlement services agreement, unless at least 50 percent of the
listed creditors withdraw, in which case the debt settlement services provider
must notify the debtor of the debtor's right to cancel. In no case may this notice be provided more
than 15 days after the debt settlement services provider learns of the
creditor's decision to withdraw from a plan.
Subd. 6. Timely notification of settlement offer. A debt settlement services provider must make
all reasonable efforts to notify the debtor within 24 hours of a settlement
offer made by a creditor.
Sec. 68. Laws 2008, chapter 315,
section 19, the effective date, is amended to read:
EFFECTIVE DATE. This section
is effective July 1, 2009 2010.
EFFECTIVE DATE. This
section is effective July 1, 2009.
Sec. 69. REPEALER.
Minnesota Statutes 2008, sections 60A.201, subdivision
4; 70A.07; and 79.56, subdivision 4, are repealed.
Sec. 70. EFFECTIVE DATE.
(a) Section 25 is effective for all policies with
policy years beginning on or after May 21, 2009.
(b) Sections 26 to 30 apply to plans and certificates
with an effective date for coverage on or after June 1, 2010.
(c) Sections 44 to 48 are effective the day following
final enactment.
ARTICLE
2
DATA
PRACTICES PROVISIONS RELATING TO COMMERCE
Section 1. Minnesota Statutes
2008, section 13.3215, is amended to read:
13.3215 UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA DATA.
Subdivision 1. Definitions. (a) For purposes of this section, the
terms in this subdivision have the meanings given them.
(b) "Business data" is data described in
section 13.591, subdivision 1, and includes the funded amount of the University
of Minnesota's commitment to the investment to date, if any; the market value
of the investment by the University of Minnesota; and the age of the investment
in years.
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(c) "Financial, business, or
proprietary data" means data, as determined by the responsible authority
for the University of Minnesota, that is of a financial, business, or
proprietary nature, the release of which could cause competitive harm to the
University of Minnesota, the legal entity in which the University of Minnesota
has invested or has considered an investment, the managing entity of an
investment, or a portfolio company in which the legal entity holds an interest.
(d) "Investment" means the
investments by the University of Minnesota in the following private capital:
(1) venture capital and other private
equity investment businesses through participation in limited partnerships,
trusts, limited liability corporations, limited liability companies, limited
liability partnerships, and corporations;
(2) real estate ownership interests or
loans secured by mortgages or deeds of trust or shares of real estate
investment trusts through investment in limited partnerships; and
(3) natural resource investments
through limited partnerships, trusts, limited liability corporations, limited
liability companies, limited liability partnerships, and corporations.
Subd. 2.
Claims experience data. Claims experience and all related information
received from carriers and claims administrators participating in a University
of Minnesota group health, dental, life, or disability insurance plan or the
University of Minnesota workers' compensation program, and survey information
collected from employees or students participating in these plans and programs,
except when the university determines that release of the data will not be
detrimental to the plan or program, are classified as nonpublic data not on
individuals pursuant to under section 13.02, subdivision 9.
Subd. 3.
Private equity investment
data. (a) Financial,
business, or proprietary data collected, created, received, or maintained by
the University of Minnesota in connection with investments are nonpublic data.
(b) The following data shall be
public:
(1) the name of the general partners
and the legal entity in which the University of Minnesota has invested;
(2) the amount of the University's
initial commitment, and any subsequent commitments;
(3) quarterly reports which outline
the aggregate investment performance achieved and the market value, and the
fees and expenses paid in aggregate to general partner investment managers in
each of the following specific asset classes:
venture capital, private equity, distressed debt, private real estate,
and natural resources;
(4) a description of all of the types
of industry sectors the University of Minnesota is or has invested in, in each
specific private equity asset class;
(5) the portfolio performance of University
of Minnesota investments overall, including the number of investments, the
total amount of the University of Minnesota commitments, the total current
market value, and the return on the total investment portfolio; and
(6) the University's percentage
ownership interest in a fund or investment entity in which the University is
invested.
EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is
effective the day following final enactment.
Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 13.716, is
amended by adding a subdivision to read:
Subd. 8.
Insurance filings data. Insurance filings data received by the
commissioner of commerce are classified under section 60A.08, subdivision 15."
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Delete the title and insert:
"A bill for an act relating to commerce; regulating various
licenses, forms, certificates, coverages, claims practices, disclosures,
notices, marketing practices, and records; classifying certain data; regulating
real estate brokers and appraisers; regulating various insurance entities and
products, including health, homeowners, motor vehicle insurance, and workers'
compensation self-insurance; regulating security broker-dealers; regulating
warranty contracts; regulating mortgage originators; sunsetting certain state
regulation of telephone solicitations; regulating the use of prerecorded or
synthesized voice messages; regulating debt management and debt settlement
services providers; delaying regulating business screening services; permitting
a deceased professional's surviving spouse to retain ownership of a
professional firm under certain circumstances; amending Minnesota Statutes
2008, sections 13.3215; 13.716, by adding a subdivision; 45.011, subdivision 1;
45.0135, subdivision 7; 58.02, subdivision 17; 59B.01; 60A.08, by adding a
subdivision; 60A.198, subdivisions 1, 3; 60A.201, subdivision 3; 60A.205,
subdivision 1; 60A.2085, subdivisions 1, 3, 7, 8; 60A.23, subdivision 8;
60A.235; 60A.32; 60K.46, by adding a subdivision; 62A.011, subdivision 3;
62A.136; 62A.17, by adding a subdivision; 62A.3099, subdivision 18; 62A.31,
subdivision 1, by adding a subdivision; 62A.315; 62A.316; 62L.02, subdivision
26; 62M.05, subdivision 3a; 65A.27, subdivision 1; 65A.29, by adding a
subdivision; 65B.133, subdivisions 2, 3, 4; 65B.54, subdivision 1; 67A.191,
subdivision 2; 72A.20, subdivisions 15, 26; 72A.201, by adding a subdivision;
79A.04, subdivision 1, by adding a subdivision; 79A.06, by adding a
subdivision; 79A.24, subdivision 1, by adding a subdivision; 82.31, subdivision
4; 82B.08, by adding a subdivision; 82B.20, subdivision 2; 319B.02, by adding a
subdivision; 319B.07, subdivision 1; 319B.08; 319B.09, subdivision 1; 325E.27;
332A.02, subdivision 13, as amended; 332A.14, as amended; 332B.02, subdivision
13, as added; 332B.03, as added; 332B.06, as added; 332B.09, as added; Laws
2008, chapter 315, section 19; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota
Statutes, chapters 60A; 62A; 72A; 80A; 82B; 325E; repealing Minnesota Statutes
2008, sections 60A.201, subdivision 4; 70A.07; 79.56, subdivision 4."
We request the adoption of
this report and repassage of the bill.
House
Conferees: Joe Atkins, Kurt Zellers and Sheldon Johnson.
Senate
Conferees: Dan Sparks and Mee
Moua.
Atkins
moved that the report of the Conference Committee on
H. F. No. 1853 be adopted and that the bill be repassed as
amended by the Conference Committee. The
motion prevailed.
Speaker
pro tempore Liebling called Hortman to the Chair.
H. F. No. 1853, A bill for an act relating
to commerce; regulating various licenses, forms, coverages, disclosures,
notices, marketing practices, and records; classifying certain data; removing
certain state regulation of telephone solicitations; regulating the use of
prerecorded or synthesized voice messages; regulating debt management services
providers; permitting a deceased professional's surviving spouse to retain
ownership of a professional firm under certain circumstances; amending
Minnesota Statutes 2008, sections 13.716, by adding a subdivision; 45.011,
subdivision 1; 45.0135, subdivision 7; 58.02, subdivision 17; 59B.01; 60A.08,
by adding a subdivision; 60A.198, subdivisions 1, 3; 60A.201, subdivision 3;
60A.205, subdivision 1; 60A.2085, subdivisions 1, 3, 7, 8; 60A.23, subdivision
8; 60A.235; 60A.32; 61B.19, subdivision 4; 61B.28, subdivisions 4, 8; 62A.011,
subdivision 3; 62A.136; 62A.17, by adding a subdivision; 62A.29, by adding a
subdivision; 62A.3099, subdivision 18; 62A.31, subdivision 1, by adding a
subdivision; 62A.315; 62A.316; 62L.02, subdivision 26; 62M.05, subdivision 3a;
65A.27, subdivision 1; 65B.133, subdivisions 2, 3, 4; 67A.191, subdivision 2;
72A.20, subdivisions 15, 26; 79A.04, subdivision 1, by adding a subdivision;
79A.06, by adding a subdivision; 79A.24, subdivision 1, by adding a
subdivision; 82.31, subdivision 4; 82B.08, by adding a subdivision; 82B.20,
subdivision 2; 319B.02, by adding a
Journal of the House - 58th Day - Monday, May 18, 2009
- Top of Page 7159
subdivision; 319B.07, subdivision 1;
319B.08; 319B.09, subdivision 1; 325E.27; 332A.02, subdivision 13, as amended;
332A.14, as amended; 471.98, subdivision 2; 471.982, subdivision 3; Laws 2009,
chapter 37, article 4, sections 19, subdivision 13; 20; 23; 26, subdivision 2;
proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapters 60A; 62A; 62Q;
72A; 80A; 82B; 325E; repealing Minnesota Statutes 2008, sections 60A.201,
subdivision 4; 61B.19, subdivision 6; 70A.07; 79.56, subdivision 4.
The bill was read for the third time, as
amended by Conference, and placed upon its repassage.
The
question was taken on the repassage of the bill and the roll was called. There were 122 yeas and 12 nays as follows:
Those
who voted in the affirmative were:
Abeler
Anderson, B.
Anderson, P.
Anderson, S.
Anzelc
Atkins
Beard
Benson
Bigham
Brod
Brown
Brynaert
Bunn
Carlson
Champion
Clark
Cornish
Davids
Davnie
Dean
Demmer
Dettmer
Dill
Dittrich
Doepke
Doty
Downey
Eastlund
Eken
Falk
Faust
Fritz
Gardner
Garofalo
Gottwalt
Gunther
Hackbarth
Hamilton
Hansen
Haws
Hayden
Hilstrom
Hilty
Holberg
Hoppe
Hornstein
Hortman
Hosch
Howes
Huntley
Jackson
Johnson
Juhnke
Kalin
Kath
Kelly
Kiffmeyer
Knuth
Koenen
Kohls
Laine
Lanning
Lenczewski
Lesch
Liebling
Lieder
Lillie
Loeffler
Loon
Mack
Magnus
Mahoney
Marquart
Masin
McFarlane
McNamara
Morrow
Mullery
Murdock
Murphy, E.
Murphy, M.
Nelson
Newton
Nornes
Norton
Obermueller
Olin
Otremba
Pelowski
Peppin
Persell
Peterson
Poppe
Reinert
Rosenthal
Ruud
Sailer
Sanders
Scalze
Scott
Seifert
Sertich
Severson
Shimanski
Simon
Slawik
Slocum
Smith
Solberg
Sterner
Swails
Thao
Thissen
Tillberry
Torkelson
Urdahl
Wagenius
Ward
Welti
Westrom
Zellers
Spk. Kelliher
Those
who voted in the negative were:
Bly
Buesgens
Drazkowski
Emmer
Greiling
Hausman
Kahn
Mariani
Morgan
Paymar
Rukavina
Winkler
The bill was repassed, as amended by
Conference, and its title agreed to.
There being no objection, the order of
business reverted to Messages from the Senate.
MESSAGES FROM THE SENATE
The following messages were received from
the Senate:
Journal of the House - 58th
Day - Monday, May 18, 2009 - Top of Page 7160
Madam Speaker:
I hereby announce that the Senate accedes
to the request of the house for the appointment of a Conference Committee on
the amendments adopted by the Senate to the following House File:
H. F. No. 1237, A bill for an act relating
to natural resources; modifying wild rice season and harvest authority;
modifying certain definitions; modifying state park permit requirements;
modifying authority to establish secondary units; eliminating liquor service at
John A. Latsch State Park; providing for establishment of boater waysides;
modifying watercraft and off-highway motorcycle operation requirements;
expanding snowmobile grant-in-aid program; modifying state trails; modifying
Water Law; providing for appeals and enforcement of certain civil penalties;
providing for taking wild animals to protect public safety; modifying Board of
Water and Soil Resources membership; modifying local water program; modifying
Reinvest in Minnesota Resources Law; modifying certain easement authority;
providing for notice of changes to public waters inventory; modifying critical
habitat plate eligibility; modifying cost-share program; amending Minnesota
Statutes 2008, sections 84.105; 84.66, subdivision 2; 84.793, subdivision 1;
84.83, subdivision 3; 84.92, subdivision 8; 85.015, subdivisions 13, 14;
85.053, subdivision 3; 85.054, by adding subdivisions; 86A.05, by adding a
subdivision; 86A.08, subdivision 1; 86A.09, subdivision 1; 86B.311, by adding a
subdivision; 97A.321; 103B.101, subdivisions 1, 2; 103B.3355; 103B.3369,
subdivision 5; 103C.501, subdivisions 2, 4, 5, 6; 103F.505; 103F.511,
subdivisions 5, 8a, by adding a subdivision; 103F.515, subdivisions 1, 2, 4, 5,
6; 103F.521, subdivision 1; 103F.525; 103F.526; 103F.531; 103F.535, subdivision
5; 103G.201; 168.1296, subdivision 1; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota
Statutes, chapter 97B; repealing Minnesota Statutes 2008, sections 85.0505,
subdivision 2; 103B.101, subdivision 11; 103F.511, subdivision 4; 103F.521,
subdivision 2; Minnesota Rules, parts 8400.3130; 8400.3160; 8400.3200;
8400.3230; 8400.3330; 8400.3360; 8400.3390; 8400.3500; 8400.3530, subparts 1,
2, 2a; 8400.3560.
The Senate has
appointed as such committee:
Senators
Chaudhary, Skogen, Fobbe, Ingebrigtsen and Moua.
Said House File
is herewith returned to the House.
Colleen J. Pacheco, First Assistant Secretary of the Senate
Madam Speaker:
I hereby announce that the Senate accedes
to the request of the house for the appointment of a Conference Committee on
the amendments adopted by the Senate to the following House File:
H. F. No. 1880, A bill for
an act relating to veterans; requiring an interview for veterans listed as
meeting minimum qualifications and claiming veterans preference for positions
of state government employment; applying to state civil service certain removal
provisions in current local government law; requiring a report of certain state
employment statistics pertaining to veterans; amending Minnesota Statutes 2008,
sections 43A.11, subdivision 7; 197.455, subdivision 1.
The Senate has appointed as
such committee:
Senators Gerlach, Sieben and
Vickerman.
Said House File is herewith
returned to the House.
Colleen J. Pacheco, First Assistant Secretary of the Senate
Journal of the House - 58th
Day - Monday, May 18, 2009 - Top of Page 7161
Madam Speaker:
I hereby announce the passage by the Senate of the following
House File, herewith returned, as amended by the Senate, in which amendments
the concurrence of the House is respectfully requested:
H. F. No. 927, A bill for an act relating to labor and
industry; modifying construction codes and licensing; exempting certain
municipal building ordinances; requiring rulemaking; amending Minnesota
Statutes 2008, sections 326B.082, subdivision 12; 326B.084; 326B.121, by adding
a subdivision; 326B.43, subdivision 1, by adding a subdivision; 326B.435,
subdivisions 2, 6; 326B.475, subdivisions 1, 6; 326B.52; 326B.53; 326B.55;
326B.57; 326B.58; 326B.59; 326B.801; 326B.84; 326B.921, subdivision 1;
326B.974; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 326B;
repealing Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 326B.43, subdivision 5.
Colleen
J. Pacheco,
First Assistant Secretary of the Senate
Mahoney moved that the House refuse to concur in the Senate
amendments to H. F. No. 927, that the Speaker appoint a
Conference Committee of 3 members of the House, and that the House requests
that a like committee be appointed by the Senate to confer on the disagreeing
votes of the two houses. The motion
prevailed.
Madam Speaker:
I hereby announce that the Senate has
concurred in and adopted the report of the Conference Committee on:
S. F. No. 1504.
The Senate has repassed said
bill in accordance with the recommendation and report of the Conference
Committee. Said Senate File is herewith
transmitted to the House.
Colleen
J. Pacheco,
First Assistant Secretary of the Senate
CONFERENCE
COMMITTEE REPORT ON S. F. NO. 1504
A bill for an act relating
to human services; amending mental health provisions; changing medical
assistance reimbursement and eligibility; changing provider qualification and
training requirements; amending mental health behavioral aide services; adding
an excluded service; changing special contracts with bordering states; amending
Minnesota Statutes 2008, sections 148C.11, subdivision 1; 245.4835,
subdivisions 1, 2; 245.4885, subdivision 1; 245.50, subdivision 5; 256B.0615,
subdivisions 1, 3; 256B.0622, subdivision 8, by adding a subdivision;
256B.0623, subdivision 5; 256B.0624, subdivision 8; 256B.0625, subdivision 49;
256B.0943, subdivisions 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9; 256B.0944, subdivision 5.
May 17, 2009
The Honorable James P. Metzen
President of the Senate
The Honorable Margaret Anderson Kelliher
Speaker of the House of Representatives
We, the undersigned
conferees for S. F. No. 1504 report that we have agreed upon the items in
dispute and recommend as follows:
Journal of the House - 58th
Day - Monday, May 18, 2009 - Top of Page 7162
That the House recede from
its amendment and that S. F. No. 1504 be further amended as follows:
Page 3, after line 34,
insert:
"Sec. 4. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 245.4871,
subdivision 26, is amended to read:
Subd. 26. Mental
health practitioner. "Mental
health practitioner" means a person providing services to children with
emotional disturbances. A mental health
practitioner must have training and experience in working with children. A mental health practitioner must be
qualified in at least one of the following ways:
(1) holds a bachelor's
degree in one of the behavioral sciences or related fields from an accredited
college or university and:
(i) has at least 2,000 hours
of supervised experience in the delivery of mental health services to children
with emotional disturbances; or
(ii) is fluent in the
non-English language of the ethnic group to which at least 50 percent of the
practitioner's clients belong, completes 40 hours of training in the delivery
of services to children with emotional disturbances, and receives clinical
supervision from a mental health professional at least once a week until the
requirement of 2,000 hours of supervised experience is met;
(2) has at least 6,000 hours
of supervised experience in the delivery of mental health services to children
with emotional disturbances; hours worked as a mental health behavioral aide
I or II under section 256B.0943, subdivision 7, may be included in the 6,000
hours of experience;
(3) is a graduate student in
one of the behavioral sciences or related fields and is formally assigned by an
accredited college or university to an agency or facility for clinical
training; or
(4) holds a master's or
other graduate degree in one of the behavioral sciences or related fields from
an accredited college or university and has less than 4,000 hours post-master's
experience in the treatment of emotional disturbance."
Page 8, after line 9,
insert:
"(h) Paragraph (c),
clause (2), is effective for services provided on or after January 1, 2010, to
December 31, 2011, and does not change contracts or agreements relating to
services provided before January 1, 2010."
Page 8, after line 33,
insert:
"(f) This
subdivision is effective for services provided on or after January 1, 2010, to
December 31, 2011, and does not change contracts or agreements relating to
services provided before January 1, 2010."
Page 11, delete section 13
and insert:
"Sec. 14. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 256B.0943,
subdivision 1, is amended to read:
Subdivision 1. Definitions. For purposes of this section, the following
terms have the meanings given them.
(a) "Children's
therapeutic services and supports" means the flexible package of mental
health services for children who require varying therapeutic and rehabilitative
levels of intervention. The services are
time-limited interventions that are delivered using various treatment
modalities and combinations of services designed to reach treatment outcomes
identified in the individual treatment plan.
Journal of the House - 58th
Day - Monday, May 18, 2009 - Top of Page 7163
(b) "Clinical
supervision" means the overall responsibility of the mental health
professional for the control and direction of individualized treatment
planning, service delivery, and treatment review for each client. A mental health professional who is an
enrolled Minnesota health care program provider accepts full professional
responsibility for a supervisee's actions and decisions, instructs the supervisee
in the supervisee's work, and oversees or directs the supervisee's work.
(c) "County board"
means the county board of commissioners or board established under sections
402.01 to 402.10 or 471.59.
(d) "Crisis
assistance" has the meaning given in section 245.4871, subdivision
9a.
(e) "Culturally
competent provider" means a provider who understands and can utilize to a
client's benefit the client's culture when providing services to the
client. A provider may be culturally
competent because the provider is of the same cultural or ethnic group as the
client or the provider has developed the knowledge and skills through training
and experience to provide services to culturally diverse clients.
(f) "Day treatment
program" for children means a site-based structured program consisting of
group psychotherapy for more than three individuals and other intensive
therapeutic services provided by a multidisciplinary team, under the clinical
supervision of a mental health professional.
(g) "Diagnostic
assessment" has the meaning given in section 245.4871, subdivision
11.
(h) "Direct service
time" means the time that a mental health professional, mental health
practitioner, or mental health behavioral aide spends face-to-face with a
client and the client's family. Direct
service time includes time in which the provider obtains a client's history or
provides service components of children's therapeutic services and supports. Direct service time does not include time
doing work before and after providing direct services, including scheduling,
maintaining clinical records, consulting with others about the client's mental
health status, preparing reports, receiving clinical supervision directly
related to the client's psychotherapy session, and revising the client's
individual treatment plan.
(i) "Direction of
mental health behavioral aide" means the activities of a mental health
professional or mental health practitioner in guiding the mental health
behavioral aide in providing services to a client. The direction of a mental health behavioral
aide must be based on the client's individualized treatment plan and meet the
requirements in subdivision 6, paragraph (b), clause (5).
(j) "Emotional
disturbance" has the meaning given in section 245.4871, subdivision
15. For persons at least age 18 but
under age 21, mental illness has the meaning given in section 245.462,
subdivision 20, paragraph (a).
(k) "Individual
behavioral plan" means a plan of intervention, treatment, and services for
a child written by a mental health professional or mental health practitioner,
under the clinical supervision of a mental health professional, to guide the
work of the mental health behavioral aide.
(l) "Individual
treatment plan" has the meaning given in section 245.4871, subdivision
21.
(m) "Mental health
behavioral aide services" means medically necessary one-on-one activities
performed by a trained paraprofessional to assist a child retain or generalize
psychosocial skills as taught by a mental health professional or mental health
practitioner and as described in the child's individual treatment plan and
individual behavior plan. Activities
involve working directly with the child or child's family as provided in
subdivision 9, paragraph (b), clause (4).
(m) (n) "Mental
health professional" means an individual as defined in section 245.4871,
subdivision 27, clauses (1) to (5), or tribal vendor as defined in section
256B.02, subdivision 7, paragraph (b).
Journal of the House - 58th Day - Monday, May 18, 2009 - Top
of Page 7164
(n) (o) "Preschool program" means a day
program licensed under Minnesota Rules, parts 9503.0005 to 9503.0175, and
enrolled as a children's therapeutic services and supports provider to provide
a structured treatment program to a child who is at least 33 months old but who
has not yet attended the first day of kindergarten.
(o) (p) "Skills training" means
individual, family, or group training, delivered by or under the direction
of a mental health professional, designed to improve the basic
functioning of the child with emotional disturbance and the child's family in
the activities of daily living and community living, and to improve the social
functioning of the child and the child's family in areas important to the
child's maintaining or reestablishing residency in the community. Individual, family, and group skills training
must:
(1) consist of activities designed to promote skill
development of the child and the child's family in the use of age-appropriate
daily living skills, interpersonal and family relationships, and leisure and
recreational services;
(2) consist of activities that will assist the family's
understanding of normal child development and to use parenting skills that will
help the child with emotional disturbance achieve the goals outlined in the
child's individual treatment plan; and
(3) promote family preservation and unification, promote the
family's integration with the community, and reduce the use of unnecessary
out-of-home placement or institutionalization of children with emotional
disturbance. facilitate the acquisition of psychosocial skills that
are medically necessary to rehabilitate the child to an age-appropriate
developmental trajectory heretofore disrupted by a psychiatric illness or to
self-monitor, compensate for, cope with, counteract, or replace skills deficits
or maladaptive skills acquired over the course of a psychiatric illness. Skills training is subject to the following
requirements:
(1) a mental health professional or a mental health
practitioner must provide skills training;
(2) the child must always be present during skills training; however,
a brief absence of the child for no more than ten percent of the session unit
may be allowed to redirect or instruct family members;
(3) skills training delivered to children or their families
must be targeted to the specific deficits or maladaptations of the child's
mental health disorder and must be prescribed in the child's individual
treatment plan;
(4) skills training delivered to the child's family must teach
skills needed by parents to enhance the child's skill development and to help
the child use in daily life the skills previously taught by a mental health
professional or mental health practitioner and to develop or maintain a home
environment that supports the child's progressive use skills;
(5) group skills training may be provided to multiple
recipients who, because of the nature of their emotional, behavioral, or social
dysfunction, can derive mutual benefit from interaction in a group setting,
which must be staffed as follows:
(i) one mental health professional or one mental health
practitioner under supervision of a licensed mental health professional must
work with a group of four to eight clients; or
(ii) two mental health professionals or two mental health
practitioners under supervision of a licensed mental health professional, or
one professional plus one practitioner must work with a group of nine to 12
clients."
Renumber the sections in sequence and correct the internal
references
Amend the title as follows:
Page 1, line 5, delete everything before "changing"
Correct the title numbers
Journal of the House - 58th
Day - Monday, May 18, 2009 - Top of Page 7165
We request the adoption of this report and repassage of the
bill.
Senate Conferees:
Linda Berglin, Ann Lynch and Michelle Fischbach.
House Conferees:
Larry Hosch, Jeff Hayden and Carol McFarlane.
Hosch moved that the report of the
Conference Committee on S. F. No. 1504 be adopted and that the
bill be repassed as amended by the Conference Committee. The motion prevailed.
S. F. No. 1504, A bill for an act relating to human services;
amending mental health provisions; changing medical assistance reimbursement
and eligibility; changing provider qualification and training requirements;
amending mental health behavioral aide services; adding an excluded service;
changing special contracts with bordering states; amending Minnesota Statutes
2008, sections 148C.11, subdivision 1; 245.4835, subdivisions 1, 2; 245.4885,
subdivision 1; 245.50, subdivision 5; 256B.0615, subdivisions 1, 3; 256B.0622,
subdivision 8, by adding a subdivision; 256B.0623, subdivision 5; 256B.0624,
subdivision 8; 256B.0625, subdivision 49; 256B.0943, subdivisions 1, 2, 4, 5,
6, 7, 9; 256B.0944, subdivision 5.
The bill was read for the third time, as
amended by Conference, and placed upon its repassage.
The question was taken on the repassage of
the bill and the roll was called. There
were 134 yeas and 0 nays as follows:
Those who voted in the affirmative were:
Abeler
Anderson, B.
Anderson, P.
Anderson, S.
Anzelc
Atkins
Beard
Benson
Bigham
Bly
Brod
Brown
Brynaert
Buesgens
Bunn
Carlson
Champion
Clark
Cornish
Davids
Davnie
Dean
Demmer
Dettmer
Dill
Dittrich
Doepke
Doty
Downey
Drazkowski
Eastlund
Eken
Emmer
Falk
Faust
Fritz
Gardner
Garofalo
Gottwalt
Greiling
Gunther
Hackbarth
Hamilton
Hansen
Hausman
Haws
Hayden
Hilstrom
Hilty
Holberg
Hoppe
Hornstein
Hortman
Hosch
Howes
Huntley
Jackson
Johnson
Juhnke
Kahn
Kalin
Kath
Kelly
Kiffmeyer
Knuth
Koenen
Kohls
Laine
Lanning
Lenczewski
Lesch
Liebling
Lieder
Lillie
Loeffler
Loon
Mack
Magnus
Mahoney
Mariani
Marquart
Masin
McFarlane
McNamara
Morgan
Morrow
Mullery
Murdock
Murphy, E.
Murphy, M.
Nelson
Newton
Nornes
Norton
Obermueller
Olin
Otremba
Paymar
Pelowski
Peppin
Persell
Peterson
Poppe
Reinert
Rosenthal
Rukavina
Ruud
Sailer
Sanders
Scalze
Scott
Seifert
Sertich
Severson
Shimanski
Simon
Slawik
Slocum
Smith
Solberg
Sterner
Swails
Thao
Thissen
Tillberry
Torkelson
Urdahl
Wagenius
Ward
Welti
Westrom
Winkler
Zellers
Spk. Kelliher
The bill was repassed, as amended by
Conference, and its title agreed to.
Journal of the House - 58th Day - Monday, May 18, 2009 - Top
of Page 7166
ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE SPEAKER
The Speaker announced the appointment of
the following members of the House to a Conference Committee on
H. F. No. 927:
Mahoney, Nelson and Gunther.
Sertich moved that the House recess to the
call of the Chair.
A roll call was requested and properly
seconded.
The question was taken on the Sertich
motion and the roll was called. There
were 86 yeas and 47 nays as follows:
Those who voted in the affirmative were:
Anzelc
Atkins
Benson
Bigham
Bly
Brown
Brynaert
Bunn
Carlson
Champion
Clark
Davnie
Dill
Dittrich
Doty
Eken
Falk
Faust
Fritz
Gardner
Greiling
Hansen
Hausman
Haws
Hayden
Hilstrom
Hilty
Hornstein
Hortman
Hosch
Huntley
Jackson
Johnson
Juhnke
Kahn
Kalin
Kath
Knuth
Koenen
Laine
Lenczewski
Lesch
Liebling
Lieder
Lillie
Loeffler
Mahoney
Mariani
Marquart
Masin
Morgan
Morrow
Mullery
Murphy, E.
Murphy, M.
Nelson
Newton
Norton
Obermueller
Olin
Otremba
Paymar
Pelowski
Persell
Peterson
Poppe
Reinert
Rosenthal
Rukavina
Ruud
Sailer
Scalze
Sertich
Simon
Slawik
Slocum
Solberg
Swails
Thao
Thissen
Tillberry
Wagenius
Ward
Welti
Winkler
Spk. Kelliher
Those who voted in the negative were:
Abeler
Anderson, B.
Anderson, P.
Anderson, S.
Beard
Brod
Buesgens
Cornish
Davids
Dean
Demmer
Dettmer
Doepke
Downey
Drazkowski
Eastlund
Emmer
Garofalo
Gottwalt
Gunther
Hackbarth
Hamilton
Holberg
Hoppe
Howes
Kelly
Kiffmeyer
Kohls
Lanning
Loon
Mack
Magnus
McFarlane
McNamara
Murdock
Nornes
Peppin
Sanders
Scott
Seifert
Severson
Shimanski
Smith
Torkelson
Urdahl
Westrom
Zellers
The motion prevailed and the House was in
recess subject to the call of the Chair.
RECESS
RECONVENED
The House reconvened and was called to
order by Speaker pro tempore Sertich.
Journal of the House - 58th
Day - Monday, May 18, 2009 - Top of Page 7167
The following Conference Committee reports were received:
CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REPORT
ON H. F. NO. 878
A bill for an act relating
to transportation; adding provision governing relocation of highway centerline;
modifying provisions relating to county state-aid highways and municipal
state-aid streets; regulating placement of advertising devices; providing
procedures for plats of lands abutting state rail bank property; amending
Minnesota Statutes 2008, sections 161.16, by adding a subdivision; 162.06, subdivision
5; 162.07, subdivision 2; 162.09, subdivision 4; 162.13, subdivision 2; 173.02,
by adding subdivisions; 173.16, subdivision 4; 505.03, subdivision 2.
May 18, 2009
The
Honorable Margaret Anderson Kelliher
Speaker
of the House of Representatives
The
Honorable James P. Metzen
President
of the Senate
We, the undersigned
conferees for H. F. No. 878 report that we have agreed upon the items in
dispute and recommend as follows:
That the Senate recede from its
amendment and that H. F. No. 878 be further amended as follows:
Delete everything after the
enacting clause and insert:
"Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 161.16, is
amended by adding a subdivision to read:
Subd. 7. Survey
of trunk highway centerline. (a)
When the physical location of a trunk highway centerline will be changed by
order of the commissioner and the commissioner is aware that a property
description has been written to the centerline, the commissioner shall file
with the recorder in the county where the highway is located a survey of the
existing centerline prior to changing or removing the trunk highway.
(b) The survey of the trunk
highway centerline must be prepared on four-mil transparent reproducible film
or its equivalent. Sheet size must be 22
inches by 34 inches. A border line must
be placed one-half inch inside the outer edge of the sheet on the top and
bottom 34-inch sides; and the right 22-inch side; and two inches inside the
outer edge of the sheet on the left 22-inch side. If a survey of the trunk highway centerline
consists of more than one sheet, the sheets must be numbered
consecutively. The survey of the trunk
highway centerline must include:
(1) a graphic depiction of
the existing trunk highway centerline;
(2) distances along the
centerline, and ties to the corners of the public land survey, expressed in
feet and hundredths of a foot. All
straight line segments of the plat must be labeled with the length of the line
and bearing or azimuth. All curved line
segments of the plat must be labeled with the central angle, arc length, and
radius length. If any curve is
nontangential, the dimensions must include a long chord bearing or azimuth, and
must be labeled nontangential;
(3) a north arrow and
directional orientation note;
(4) a graphics scale along
with the label "Scale In Feet";
Journal of the House - 58th Day - Monday, May 18, 2009 - Top
of Page 7168
(5) the
position, description, and ties from the trunk highway centerline to corners of
the public land survey;
(6)
identification of the public land survey quarter section or sections,
government lot or lots, and the county through which the depicted trunk highway
centerline runs; and
(7) the
date of the survey.
(c) The
survey of the trunk highway centerline must be certified by the commissioner of
transportation or the commissioner's designated assistant and by a licensed
land surveyor.
(d) Upon
submission to the recorder in the county where the depicted trunk highway
centerline is located, and upon payment of appropriate fees, the survey of the
trunk highway centerline must be filed of record.
Sec.
2. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section
162.06, subdivision 5, is amended to read:
Subd.
5. State
park road account. After deducting
for administrative costs and for the disaster account and research account from
the amount available as provided in this section, the commissioner shall deduct
a sum equal to the three-quarters of one percent of the remainder. The sum so deducted shall be set aside in a
separate account and shall be used for (1) the establishment, location,
relocation, construction, reconstruction, and improvement of those roads
included in the county state-aid highway system under Minnesota Statutes 1961,
section 162.02, subdivision 6, which border and provide substantial access to
an outdoor recreation unit as defined in section 86A.04 or which provide access
to the headquarters of or the principal parking lot located within such a unit,
and (2) the reconstruction, improvement, repair, and maintenance of county
roads, city streets, and town roads that provide access to public lakes, rivers,
state parks, and state campgrounds.
Roads described in clause (2) are not required to meet county state-aid
highway standards. At the request of the
commissioner of natural resources the counties wherein such roads are located
shall do such work as requested in the same manner as on any county state-aid
highway and shall be reimbursed for such construction, reconstruction, or
improvements from the amount set aside by this subdivision. Before requesting a county to do work on a
county state-aid highway as provided in this subdivision, the commissioner of
natural resources must obtain approval for the project from the County
State-Aid Screening Board. The screening
board, before giving its approval, must obtain a written comment on the project
from the county engineer of the county requested to undertake the project. Before requesting a county to do work on a
county road, city street, or a town road that provides access to a public lake,
a river, a state park, or a state campground, the commissioner of natural
resources shall obtain a written comment on the project from the county
engineer of the county requested to undertake the project. Any sums paid to counties or cities in
accordance with this subdivision shall reduce the money needs of said counties
or cities in the amounts necessary to equalize their status with those counties
or cities not receiving such payments. Any
balance of the amount so set aside, at the end of each year shall
must be transferred to the county state-aid highway fund.
Sec.
3. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section
162.07, subdivision 2, is amended to read:
Subd.
2. Money
needs defined. For the purpose of
this section, money needs of each county are defined as the estimated total
annual costs of constructing, over a period of 25 years, the county state-aid
highway system in that county. Costs
incidental to construction, or a specified portion thereof as set forth in the
commissioner's rules may be included in determining money needs. To avoid variances in costs due to differences
in construction policy, construction costs shall be estimated on the basis of
the engineering standards developed cooperatively by the commissioner and the
county engineers of the several counties.
Any variance granted pursuant to section 162.02, subdivision 3a shall
be reflected in the estimated construction costs in determining money needs.
Sec.
4. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section
162.09, subdivision 4, is amended to read:
Journal of the House - 58th
Day - Monday, May 18, 2009 - Top of Page 7169
Subd. 4. Federal
census is conclusive. (a) In
determining whether any city has a population of 5,000 or more, the last
federal census shall be conclusive, except as otherwise provided in this
subdivision.
(b) A city that has
previously been classified as having a population of 5,000 or more for the
purposes of chapter 162 and whose population decreases by less than 15 percent
from the census figure that last qualified the city for inclusion shall receive
the following percentages of its 1981 apportionment for the years indicated:
1982, 66 percent and 1983, 33 percent.
Thereafter the city shall not receive any apportionment from the
municipal state-aid street fund unless its population is determined to be 5,000
or over by a federal census. The
governing body of the a city may contract with the United States
Bureau of the Census to take one a special census before
January 1, 1986. A certified copy of
the results of the census shall be filed with the appropriate state authorities
by the city. The result of the census
shall be the population of the city for the purposes of any law providing that
population is a required qualification for distribution of highway aids under
chapter 162. The special census shall
remain in effect until the 1990 next federal census is completed
and filed. The expense of taking the
special census shall be paid by the city.
(c) If an entire area not
heretofore incorporated as a city is incorporated as such during the interval
between federal censuses, its population shall be determined by its
incorporation census. The incorporation
census shall be determinative of the population of the city only until the next
federal census.
(d) The population of a city
created by the consolidation of two or more previously incorporated cities
shall be determined by the most recent population estimate of the Metropolitan
Council or state demographer, until the first federal decennial census or
special census taken after the consolidation.
(e) The population of a city
that is not receiving a municipal state-aid street fund apportionment shall be
determined, upon request of the city, by the most recent population estimate of
the Metropolitan Council or state demographer.
A municipal state-aid street fund apportionment received by the city
must be based on this population estimate until the next federal decennial
census or special census.
Sec. 5. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 162.13,
subdivision 2, is amended to read:
Subd. 2. Money
needs defined. For the purpose of
this section money needs of each city having a population of 5,000 or more are
defined as the estimated cost of constructing and maintaining over a period of
25 years the municipal state-aid street system in such city. Right-of-way costs and drainage shall be
included in money needs. Lighting costs
and other costs incidental to construction and maintenance, or a specified
portion of such costs, as set forth in the commissioner's rules, may be
included in determining money needs.
When a county locates a county state-aid highway over a portion of a street
in any such city and the remaining portion is designated as a municipal
state-aid street only the construction and maintenance costs of the portion of
the street other than the portions taken over by the county shall be included
in the money needs of the city. To avoid
variances in costs due to differences in construction and maintenance policy,
construction and maintenance costs shall be estimated on the basis of the
engineering standards developed cooperatively by the commissioner and the
engineers, or a committee thereof, of the cities. Any variance granted pursuant to section
162.09, subdivision 3a shall be reflected in the estimated construction and
maintenance costs in determining money needs.
Sec. 6. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 169.686,
subdivision 1, is amended to read:
Subdivision 1. Seat
belt requirement. (a) Except as
provided in section 169.685, a properly adjusted and fastened seat belt,
including both the shoulder and lap belt when the vehicle is so equipped, shall
be worn by:
(1) the driver and
passengers of a passenger vehicle or, commercial motor
vehicle, type III vehicle, and type III Head Start vehicle;
(2) a passenger riding in
the front seat of a passenger vehicle or commercial motor vehicle; and
Journal of the House - 58th
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(3) a passenger riding in
any seat of a passenger vehicle who is older than three but younger than 11
years of age.
(b) a person who is 15 years
of age or older and who violates paragraph (a), clause (1) or (2), is
subject to a fine of $25. The driver of
the passenger vehicle or commercial motor vehicle in which the
violation occurred a violation occurs is subject to a $25 fine for a
each violation of paragraph (a), clause (2) or (3), by the
driver or by a child of the driver passenger under the age of
15 or any child under the age of 11.
A peace officer may not issue a citation for a violation of this section
unless the officer lawfully stopped or detained the driver of the motor vehicle
for a moving violation other than a violation involving motor vehicle equipment,
but the court may not impose more than one surcharge under section 357.021,
subdivision 6, on the driver. The
Department of Public Safety shall not record a violation of this subdivision on
a person's driving record.
EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective June 9, 2009,
and applies to acts committed on or after that date.
Sec. 7. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 169.686,
subdivision 2, is amended to read:
Subd. 2. Seat
belt exemptions. This section shall
not apply to:
(1) a person driving a
passenger vehicle in reverse;
(2) a person riding in a seat
vehicle in which all the seating positions equipped with safety belts are
occupied by other persons in safety belts;
(3) a person who is in
possession of a written certificate from a licensed physician verifying that
because of medical unfitness or physical disability the person is unable to
wear a seat belt;
(4) a person who is actually
engaged in work that requires the person to alight from and reenter a motor
vehicle at frequent intervals and who, while engaged in that work, does not
drive or travel in that vehicle at a speed exceeding 25 miles per hour;
(5) a rural mail carrier of
the United States Postal Service or a newspaper delivery person while in
the performance of duties;
(6) a person driving or
riding in a passenger vehicle manufactured before January 1, 1965; and
(7) a person driving or
riding in a pickup truck, as defined in section 168.002, subdivision 26,
while engaged in normal farming work or activity.
Sec. 8. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 173.02, is
amended by adding a subdivision to read:
Subd. 19a. Expressway. "Expressway" has the meaning
given it in section 160.02, subdivision 18b.
Sec. 9. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 173.02, is
amended by adding a subdivision to read:
Subd. 19b. Freeway. "Freeway" has the meaning given
it in section 160.02, subdivision 19.
Sec. 10. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 173.16,
subdivision 4, is amended to read:
Subd. 4. Spacing. (a) Advertising devices shall not be erected
or maintained in such a place or manner as to obscure or otherwise physically
interfere with an official traffic control device or a railroad safety signal
or sign, or to obstruct or physically interfere with the drivers' view of
approaching, merging, or intersecting traffic for a distance of 500 feet.
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(b) No advertising device
shall be erected closer to any other such advertising device on the same side
of the same highway facing traffic proceeding in the same direction than (1)
500 feet on any interstate highway or fully controlled freeway in a
zoned or unzoned commercial or industrial area within or outside an
incorporated city, (2) 300 feet on a primary highway in a zoned commercial or
industrial area outside an incorporated city, (3) 400 feet on a primary highway
in an unzoned commercial or industrial area outside an incorporated city, (4)
100 feet on a primary highway inside an incorporated city; provided, however,
that this provision shall not prevent the erection of double-faced,
back-to-back, or V-type advertising devices with a maximum of two signs per
facing; provided further, however, that such spacing requirements shall not
apply as between any off-premise advertising device permitted under the
provisions of Laws 1971, chapter 883.
(c) The above spacing
between advertising devices does not apply to structures separated by buildings
or other obstructions in such a manner that only one sign facing located within
the above spacing distances is visible from the highway at any one time.
(d) On interstate highways or
fully controlled-access freeways outside of incorporated cities, no
advertising device may be located adjacent to or within 500 feet of an
interchange, intersection at grade, or safety rest area. On freeways and expressways where there
are grade-separated interchanges outside incorporated cities, no advertising
device may be located adjacent to or within 500 feet of an interchange,
intersection at grade, or safety rest area.
Said 500 feet shall be measured along such highway from the
beginning or ending of pavement widening at the exit from or entrance to the
main-traveled way.
(e) On primary highways
outside of incorporated cities, no advertising device may be located closer
than 300 feet from the intersection of any primary highway at grade with
another highway, or with a railroad; provided that advertising may be affixed
to or located adjacent to a building at such intersection in such a manner as
not to cause any greater obstruction of vision than that caused by the building
itself.
Sec. 11. Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 505.03,
subdivision 2, is amended to read:
Subd. 2. Plat
approval; road review. (a) Any
proposed preliminary plat in a city, town, or county, which includes lands
abutting upon state rail bank property or upon any existing or
established trunk highway or proposed highway which has been designated by a
centerline order filed in the office of the county recorder shall first be
presented by the city, town, or county to the commissioner of transportation
for written comments and recommendations.
Preliminary plats in a city or town involving state rail bank
property or both a trunk highway and a highway under county jurisdiction
shall be submitted by the city or town to the county highway engineer as
provided in paragraphs (b) and (c) and to the commissioner of
transportation. Plats shall be submitted
by the city, town, or county to the commissioner of transportation for review
at least 30 days prior to the home rule charter or statutory city, town or
county taking final action on the preliminary plat. The commissioner of transportation shall
submit the written comments and recommendations to the city, town, or county
within 30 days after receipt by the commissioner of such a plat. Final action on such plat by the city, town,
or county shall not be taken until after these required comments and
recommendations have been received or until the 30-day period has elapsed.
(b) If any proposed
preliminary plat or initial plat filing that includes land located in a
city or town bordering either state rail bank property or an existing or
proposed county road, highway, or county state-aid highway that, and
the property, road, or highway is designated on a map or county highway
plan filed in the office of the county recorder or registrar of titles, then
the plat or plat filing must be submitted by the city or town to the county
engineer within five business days after receipt by the city or town of the
preliminary plat or initial plat filing for written comments and
recommendations. The county engineer's
review shall be limited to factors of county significance in conformance with
adopted county guidelines developed through a public hearing or a comprehensive
planning process with comment by the cities and towns. The guidelines must provide for development
and redevelopment scenarios, allow for variances, and reflect consideration of
city or town adopted guidelines.
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(c) Within 30 days after
county receipt from the city or town of the preliminary plat or initial plat
filing, the county engineer shall provide to the city or town written comments
stating whether the plat meets county guidelines and describing any
modifications necessary to bring the plat into conformity with the county
guidelines. No city or town may approve
a preliminary plat until it has received the county engineer's written comments
and recommendations or until the county engineer's comment period has expired,
whichever occurs first. Within ten
business days following a city's or town's approval of a preliminary plat, the
city or town shall submit to the county board notice of its approval, along
with a statement addressing the disposition of any written comments or
recommendations made by the county engineer.
In the event the city or town does not amend the plat to conform to the
recommendations made by the county engineer, representatives from the county
and city or town shall meet to discuss the differences and determine whether
changes to the plat are appropriate prior to final approval. This requirement shall not extend the time
deadlines for preliminary or final approval as required under this section,
section 15.99 or 462.358, or any other law, nor shall this requirement prohibit
final approval as required by this section.
(d) A legible preliminary
drawing or print of a proposed preliminary plat shall be acceptable for purposes
of review by the commissioner of transportation or the county highway
engineer. To such drawing or print there
shall be attached a written statement describing;:
(1) the outlet for and means
of disposal of surface waters from the proposed platted area,;
(2) the land use designation
or zoning category of the proposed platted area,;
(3) the locations of ingress
and egress to the proposed platted area,; and
(4) a preliminary site plan
for the proposed platted area, with dimensions to scale, authenticated by a
registered engineer or land surveyor, showing:
(i) the state rail bank
property;
(ii) the existing or proposed state
highway, county road, or county highway; and
(iii) all existing and proposed
rights-of-way, easements, general lot layouts, and lot dimensions.
(e) Failure to obtain the
written comments and recommendations of the commissioner of transportation or
the county highway engineer shall in no manner affect the title to the lands
included in the plat or the platting of said lands. A city, town, or county shall file with the
plat, in the office of the county recorder or registrar of titles, a
certificate or other evidence showing submission of the preliminary plat to the
commissioner or county highway engineer in compliance with this subdivision.
Sec. 12. KATHRYN
SWANSON SEAT BELT SAFETY ACT.
If 2009 H. F. No. 108 is
enacted, it may be cited as the Kathryn Swanson Seat Belt Safety Act.
Sec. 13. STUDY
OF MANDATORY 24-HOUR VEHICLE LIGHTING.
(a) The commissioner of
public safety, in cooperation with the commissioner of transportation, shall
study the mandatory 24-hour use of vehicle lighting by vehicles on public
highways. The study must examine the experience
of jurisdictions in this country, Canada, and the European Union, that require
24-hour display of vehicle lighting, including but not limited to:
(1) environmental
consequences;
Journal of the House - 58th Day - Monday, May 18, 2009 - Top
of Page 7173
(2) crash
prevention;
(3)
motorcycle, bicycle, and pedestrian safety;
(4) cost to
drivers; and
(5) application
to motorcycles.
(b) By
January 15, 2011, the commissioners of transportation and public safety shall
report their findings and recommendations to the chairs and ranking minority
members of the legislative committees with jurisdiction over transportation
policy. The report must be made
electronically and available in print only upon request.
(c) The
commissioners of public safety and transportation shall study and report under
this section within current appropriations.
Sec.
14. SUPERSEDING
PROVISIONS.
The
provisions amending Minnesota Statutes, section 169.686, in this act supersede
any inconsistent or conflicting provisions in 2009 H. F. No. 108, if enacted,
regardless of the order of enactment or effective date of the provisions
contained in this act and in 2009 H. F. No. 108."
Delete the
title and insert:
"A
bill for an act relating to transportation; adding provision governing
relocation of highway centerline; modifying provisions relating to county
state-aid highways and municipal state-aid streets; modifying provisions
relating to seat belts; regulating placement of advertising devices; providing
procedures for plats of lands abutting state rail bank property; requiring a
study and report; amending Minnesota Statutes 2008, sections 161.16, by adding
a subdivision; 162.06, subdivision 5; 162.07, subdivision 2; 162.09,
subdivision 4; 162.13, subdivision 2; 169.686, subdivisions 1, 2; 173.02, by
adding subdivisions; 173.16, subdivision 4; 505.03, subdivision 2."
We request the
adoption of this report and repassage of the bill.
House
Conferees: Melissa Hortman, Will Morgan and Steve Smith.
Senate
Conferees: Ann H. Rest, Jim Carlson and Michael Jungbauer.
Hortman
moved that the report of the Conference Committee on
H. F. No. 878 be adopted and that the bill be repassed as
amended by the Conference Committee.
Buesgens
moved that the House refuse to adopt the Conference Committee report on H. F.
No. 878 and that the bill be returned to the Conference Committee.
A
roll call was requested and properly seconded.
Journal of the
House - 58th Day - Monday, May 18, 2009 - Top of Page 7174
The
question was taken on the Buesgens motion and the roll was called. There were 46 yeas and 85 nays as follows:
Those
who voted in the affirmative were:
Abeler
Anderson, B.
Anderson, P.
Anderson, S.
Beard
Brod
Buesgens
Davids
Demmer
Dettmer
Doepke
Downey
Drazkowski
Eastlund
Emmer
Falk
Garofalo
Gottwalt
Hackbarth
Hamilton
Holberg
Hoppe
Howes
Kelly
Kiffmeyer
Kohls
Lanning
Loon
Mack
Magnus
McFarlane
McNamara
Mullery
Murdock
Nornes
Peppin
Sanders
Scott
Seifert
Severson
Shimanski
Smith
Torkelson
Urdahl
Westrom
Zellers
Those
who voted in the negative were:
Anzelc
Atkins
Benson
Bigham
Bly
Brown
Brynaert
Bunn
Carlson
Champion
Clark
Cornish
Davnie
Dill
Dittrich
Doty
Eken
Faust
Fritz
Gardner
Greiling
Hansen
Hausman
Haws
Hayden
Hilstrom
Hilty
Hornstein
Hortman
Hosch
Huntley
Jackson
Johnson
Juhnke
Kahn
Kalin
Kath
Knuth
Koenen
Laine
Lenczewski
Lesch
Liebling
Lieder
Lillie
Mahoney
Mariani
Marquart
Masin
Morgan
Morrow
Murphy, E.
Murphy, M.
Nelson
Newton
Norton
Obermueller
Olin
Otremba
Paymar
Pelowski
Persell
Peterson
Poppe
Reinert
Rosenthal
Rukavina
Ruud
Sailer
Scalze
Sertich
Simon
Slawik
Slocum
Solberg
Sterner
Swails
Thao
Thissen
Tillberry
Wagenius
Ward
Welti
Winkler
Spk. Kelliher
The
motion did not prevail.
The
question recurred on the Hortman motion that the report of the Conference
Committee on H. F. No. 878 be adopted and that the bill be
repassed as amended by the Conference Committee. The motion prevailed.
H. F. No. 878, A bill for
an act relating to transportation; adding provision governing relocation of
highway centerline; modifying provisions relating to county state-aid highways and
municipal state-aid streets; regulating placement of advertising devices;
providing procedures for plats of lands abutting state rail bank property;
amending Minnesota Statutes 2008, sections 161.16, by adding a subdivision;
162.06, subdivision 5; 162.07, subdivision 2; 162.09, subdivision 4; 162.13,
subdivision 2; 173.02, by adding subdivisions; 173.16, subdivision 4; 505.03,
subdivision 2.
The
bill was read for the third time, as amended by Conference, and placed upon its
repassage.
The
question was taken on the repassage of the bill and the roll was called. There were 89 yeas and 44 nays as follows:
Those
who voted in the affirmative were:
Abeler
Anzelc
Atkins
Benson
Bigham
Bly
Brown
Brynaert
Bunn
Carlson
Champion
Clark
Cornish
Davnie
Dittrich
Doty
Downey
Eken
Journal of the House - 58th Day - Monday, May 18, 2009 - Top
of Page 7175
Faust
Fritz
Gardner
Greiling
Hansen
Hausman
Haws
Hayden
Hilstrom
Hilty
Hornstein
Hortman
Hosch
Huntley
Jackson
Johnson
Juhnke
Kahn
Kalin
Kath
Knuth
Koenen
Laine
Lenczewski
Lesch
Liebling
Lieder
Lillie
Loeffler
Loon
Mahoney
Mariani
Marquart
Masin
McNamara
Morgan
Morrow
Murphy, E.
Murphy, M.
Nelson
Newton
Norton
Obermueller
Olin
Otremba
Paymar
Pelowski
Persell
Peterson
Poppe
Reinert
Rosenthal
Rukavina
Ruud
Sailer
Scalze
Sertich
Simon
Slawik
Slocum
Solberg
Sterner
Swails
Thao
Thissen
Tillberry
Wagenius
Ward
Welti
Winkler
Spk. Kelliher
Those
who voted in the negative were:
Anderson, B.
Anderson, P.
Anderson, S.
Beard
Brod
Buesgens
Davids
Demmer
Dettmer
Dill
Doepke
Drazkowski
Eastlund
Emmer
Falk
Garofalo
Gottwalt
Gunther
Hackbarth
Hamilton
Holberg
Hoppe
Howes
Kelly
Kiffmeyer
Kohls
Lanning
Mack
Magnus
McFarlane
Mullery
Murdock
Nornes
Peppin
Sanders
Scott
Seifert
Severson
Shimanski
Smith
Torkelson
Urdahl
Westrom
Zellers
The
bill was repassed, as amended by Conference, and its title agreed to.
The Speaker resumed the Chair.
CONFERENCE
COMMITTEE REPORT ON H. F. NO. 1231
A bill for an act relating to state
government; appropriating money from constitutionally dedicated funds and
providing for policy and governance of outdoor heritage, clean water, parks and
trails, and arts and cultural heritage purposes; establishing and modifying
grants and funding programs; providing for advisory groups; providing
appointments; requiring reports; requiring rulemaking; amending Minnesota
Statutes 2008, sections 3.303, by adding a subdivision; 3.971, by adding a
subdivision; 17.117, subdivision 11a; 18G.11, by adding a subdivision; 84.02,
by adding subdivisions; 85.53; 97A.056, subdivisions 2, 3, 6, 7, by adding
subdivisions; 103F.515, subdivisions 2, 4; 114D.50; 116G.15; 116P.05,
subdivision 2; 129D.17; 477A.12, subdivision 2; proposing coding for new law in
Minnesota Statutes, chapters 3; 84; 84C; 85; 116; 129D; 138; 477A.
May 18, 2009
The Honorable Margaret Anderson Kelliher
Speaker of the House of Representatives
The Honorable James P. Metzen
President of the Senate
We, the undersigned conferees for H.
F. No. 1231 report that we have agreed upon the items in dispute and recommend
as follows:
Journal of the
House - 58th Day - Monday, May 18, 2009 - Top of Page 7176
That the Senate recede from its
amendment and that H. F. No. 1231 be further amended as follows:
Delete everything after the enacting
clause and insert:
"ARTICLE 1
OUTDOOR HERITAGE FUND
Section
1. OUTDOOR
HERITAGE APPROPRIATION.
The sums
shown in the columns marked "Appropriations" are appropriated to the
agencies and for the purposes specified in this article. The appropriations are from the outdoor
heritage fund and are available for the fiscal years indicated for each
purpose. The figures "2010"
and "2011" used in this article mean that the appropriations listed
under them are available for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2010, or June 30,
2011, respectively. "The first year" is fiscal year 2010. "The
second year" is fiscal year 2011. "The biennium" is fiscal years
2010 and 2011. The appropriations in
this article are onetime.
APPROPRIATIONS
Available for the Year
Ending June 30
2010 2011
Sec. 2. OUTDOOR
HERITAGE
Subdivision
1. Total Appropriation $69,532,000 $18,000,000
This appropriation is from the outdoor
heritage fund.
The amounts that may be spent for each
purpose are specified in the following subdivisions.
Subd.
2. Prairies 14,213,000 -0-
(a) Accelerated
Prairie and Grassland Management
$1,700,000 in fiscal year 2010 is to
the commissioner of natural resources to accelerate the restoration and
enhancement of native prairie vegetation on public lands, including
roadsides. A list of proposed projects,
describing the types and locations of restorations and enhancements, must be
provided as part of the required accomplishment plan. To the extent possible, prairie restorations
conducted with money appropriated in this section must plant vegetation or sow
seed only of ecotypes native to Minnesota, and preferably of the local ecotype,
using a high diversity of species originating from as close to the restoration
site as possible, and protect existing native prairies from genetic
contamination.
(b) Green
Corridor Legacy Program
$1,617,000 in fiscal year 2010 is to
the commissioner of natural resources for an agreement with the Southwest
Initiative Foundation or successor to acquire land for purposes allowed
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under the Minnesota Constitution,
article XI, section 15, in Redwood County to be added to the state outdoor
recreation system as defined in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 86A. A list of proposed fee title acquisitions
must be provided as part of the required accomplishment plan. The commissioner of natural resources must
agree to each proposed acquisition. No
more than five percent of this appropriation may be spent on professional
services directly related to this appropriation's purposes.
(c) Prairie Heritage Fund ─
Acquisition and Restoration
$3,000,000 in fiscal year 2010 is to
the commissioner of natural resources for an agreement with Pheasants Forever
or successor to acquire and restore land to be added to the state wildlife
management area system. A list of
proposed fee title acquisitions and a list of proposed restoration projects,
describing the types and locations of restorations, must be provided as part of
the required accomplishment plan. The
commissioner of natural resources must agree to each proposed acquisition. To the extent possible, prairie restorations
conducted with money appropriated in this section must plant vegetation or sow
seed only of ecotypes native to Minnesota, and preferably of the local ecotype,
using a high diversity of species originating from as close to the restoration
site as possible, and protect existing native prairies from genetic
contamination.
(d) Accelerated
Prairie Grassland Wildlife Management Area Acquisition
$3,913,000 in fiscal year 2010 is to
the commissioner of natural resources to acquire land for wildlife management
areas with native prairie or grassland habitats. A list of proposed fee title acquisitions
must be provided as part of the required accomplishment plan.
(e) Northern Tall Grass
Prairie National Wildlife Refuge Protection
$1,583,000 in fiscal year 2010 is to the
commissioner of natural resources for an agreement with the United States Fish
and Wildlife Service to acquire land or permanent easements within the Northern
Tall Grass Prairie Habitat Preservation Area in western Minnesota. The commissioner may advance funds to the
United States Fish and Wildlife Service.
A list of proposed fee title and permanent easement acquisitions must be
provided as part of the required accomplishment plan. Land removed from this program shall transfer
to the state.
(f) Bluffland
Prairie Protection Initiative
$500,000 in fiscal year 2010 is to the
commissioner of natural resources for an agreement with the Minnesota Land
Trust or successor to acquire permanent easements protecting critical
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prairie and grassland habitats in the
blufflands in southeastern Minnesota. A
list of proposed fee title and permanent easement acquisitions must be provided
as part of the required accomplishment plan.
(g) Rum River ─ Cedar Creek Initiative
$1,900,000
in fiscal year 2010 is to the commissioner of natural resources for an
agreement with Anoka County to acquire land at the confluence of the Rum River
and Cedar Creek in Anoka County.
Acquired land must remain open to hunting and fishing, consistent with the
capacity of the land, during the open season, as determined by the commissioner
of natural resources. This is the first
of two planned appropriations for this acquisition.
Subd. 3. Forests
18,000,000 18,000,000
$18,000,000
in fiscal year 2010 and $18,000,000 in fiscal year 2011 are to the commissioner
of natural resources to acquire land or permanent working forest easements on
private forests in areas identified through the Minnesota forests for the
future program under Minnesota Statutes, section 84.66. Priority must be given to acquiring land or
interests in private lands within existing Minnesota state forest
boundaries. Any easements acquired must
have a forest management plan as defined in Minnesota Statutes, section
290C.02, subdivision 7. A list of
proposed fee title and easement acquisitions must be provided as part of the
required accomplishment plan. The fiscal
year 2011 appropriation is available only for acquisitions that, by August 15,
2009, are:
(1)
subject to a binding agreement with the commissioner; and
(2)
matched by at least $9,000,000 in private donations.
Subd. 4. Wetlands
20,536,000 -0-
(a) Accelerated Wildlife Management Area
Acquisition
$2,900,000
in fiscal year 2010 is to the commissioner of natural resources to acquire land
for wildlife management areas. A list of
proposed fee title acquisitions must be provided as part of the required
accomplishment plan.
(b) Accelerated Shallow Lake Restorations
and Enhancements
$2,528,000
in fiscal year 2010 is to the commissioner of natural resources for an
agreement with Ducks Unlimited, Inc. or successor to restore and enhance
shallow lake habitats. Up to $400,000 of
this appropriation may be used for permanent easements related to shallow lake
restorations and enhancements. A list of
proposed easements and projects, describing the types and
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locations
of easements, restorations, and enhancements, must be provided as part of the
required accomplishment plan. The
commissioner of natural resources must agree to each easement, restoration, and
enhancement.
(c) Accelerate
the Waterfowl Production Area Program in Minnesota
$5,600,000
in fiscal year 2010 is to the commissioner of natural resources for an
agreement with Pheasants Forever or successor to acquire and restore wetland
and related upland habitats, in cooperation with the United States Fish and
Wildlife Service and Ducks Unlimited, Inc. or successor to be managed as
waterfowl production areas. A list of
proposed acquisitions and a list of proposed projects, describing the types and
locations of restorations, must be provided as part of the required
accomplishment plan.
(d) Reinvest in
Minnesota Wetlands Reserve Program Acquisition and Restoration
$9,058,000
in fiscal year 2010 is to the Board of Water and Soil Resources to acquire
permanent easements and restore wetlands and associated uplands in cooperation
with the United States Department of Agriculture Wetlands Reserve Program. A list of proposed acquisitions and a list of
proposed projects, describing the types and locations of restorations, must be
provided as part of the required accomplishment plan.
(e) Shallow Lake Critical Shoreland
$450,000
in fiscal year 2010 is to the commissioner of natural resources for an
agreement with Ducks Unlimited, Inc. or successor to protect habitat by
acquiring land associated with shallow lakes.
A list of proposed acquisitions must be provided as part of the required
accomplishment plan. The commissioner of
natural resources must agree to each proposed acquisition.
Subd. 5. Fish,
Game, and Wildlife Habitat 13,903,000 -0-
(a) Outdoor Heritage Conservation Partners
Grant Program
$4,000,000
in fiscal year 2010 is to the commissioner of natural resources for a pilot
program to provide competitive, matching grants of up to $400,000 to local,
regional, state, and national organizations, including government, for
enhancement, restoration, or protection of forests, wetlands, prairies, and
habitat for fish, game, or wildlife in Minnesota. Up to 6-1/2 percent of this appropriation may
be used for administering the grant. The
funds may be advanced in three equal sums, on or after November 1, 2009,
February 1, 2010, and April 1, 2010.
Grantees may protect
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land
through acquisition of land or interests in land. Easements must be permanent. Land acquired in fee must be open to hunting
and fishing during the open season unless otherwise provided by state law. The commissioner of natural resources must
agree to each proposed acquisition of land or interest in land. The program shall require a match of at least
$1 nonstate funds to $10 state funds.
The nonstate dollars match may be in-kind. The criteria for evaluating grant
applications must include amount of habitat restored, enhanced, or protected;
local support; degree of collaboration; urgency; multiple benefits; habitat
benefits provided; consistency with sound conservation science; adjacency to
protected lands; full funding of the project; supplementing existing funding;
public access for hunting and fishing during the open season; sustainability;
and use of native plant materials. All
projects must conform to the Minnesota statewide conservation and preservation
plan. Wildlife habitat projects must
also conform to the state wildlife action plan.
Priority may be given to projects acquiring land or easements associated
with existing wildlife management areas.
All restoration or enhancement projects must be on land permanently
protected by conservation easement or public ownership. To the extent possible, a person conducting
prairie restorations with money appropriated in this section must plant
vegetation or sow seed only of ecotypes native to Minnesota, and preferably of
the local ecotype, using a high diversity of species originating from as close
to the restoration site as possible, and protect existing native prairies from
genetic contamination. Subdivision 10
applies to grants awarded under this paragraph.
This appropriation is available until June 30, 2013, at which time all
grant projects must be completed and final products delivered, unless an
earlier date is specified in the grant agreement. No less than 15 percent of the amount of each
grant must be held back from reimbursement until the grant recipient has
completed a grant accomplishment report in the form prescribed by and
satisfactory to the Lessard Outdoor Heritage Council.
As a condition of proceeding with this
appropriation, the commissioner shall report on the feasibility, process, and timeline
for creation of a Minnesota fish and wildlife foundation, to be modeled after
the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, and on the possibility of allowing
for the administration by this entity of the conservation partners grant
program.
The legislative guide created in this
act shall consider whether this program should be administered by the National
Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the commissioner of natural resources, or some
neutral third party.
(b) Aquatic
Management Area Acquisition
$5,748,000 in fiscal year 2010 is to
the commissioner of natural resources to acquire land in fee title and easement
to be added to the state aquatic management area system. Acquired land must
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remain open to hunting and fishing,
consistent with the capacity of the land, during the open season, as determined
by the commissioner of natural resources.
A list of proposed fee title and easement acquisitions must be provided
as part of the required accomplishment plan.
(c) Cold Water
River and Stream Restoration, Protection, and Enhancement
$2,050,000 in fiscal year 2010 is to
the commissioner of natural resources for an agreement with Trout Unlimited or
successor to restore, enhance, and protect cold water river and stream habitats
in Minnesota. A list of proposed
acquisitions and a list of proposed projects, describing the types and
locations of restorations and enhancements, must be provided as part of the
required accomplishment plan. The
commissioner of natural resources must agree to each proposed acquisition,
restoration, and enhancement.
(d) Dakota
County Habitat Protection
$1,000,000 in fiscal year 2010 is to
the commissioner of natural resources for an agreement with Dakota County for
acquisition of permanent easements. A
list of proposed acquisitions must be provided as part of the required
accomplishment plan.
(e) Lake Rebecca
Water Quality Improvement Project
$450,000 in fiscal year 2010 is to the
commissioner of natural resources for an agreement with the Three Rivers Park
District to improve the water quality in Lake Rebecca in Lake Rebecca Park
Reserve in Hennepin County. A
description of the activities to enhance fish habitat in Lake Rebecca must be
provided as part of the required accomplishment plan.
(f) Fountain
Lake Fish Barriers
$655,000 in fiscal year 2010 is to the
commissioner of natural resources for an agreement with the Shell Rock River
Watershed District to construct fish barriers at three locations on Fountain
Lake. Land acquisition necessary for
fish barrier construction is permitted.
A list of proposed projects, describing the types and locations of
barriers, must be provided as part of the required accomplishment plan. The commissioner of natural resources must
agree to each proposed barrier.
Subd.
6. Administration and Other 880,000 -0-
(a) Contract
Management
$175,000 in fiscal year 2010 is to the
commissioner of natural resources for contract management, in fiscal years 2010
and 2011, for duties assigned in this section.
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(b) Legislative Coordinating Commission
$705,000
in fiscal year 2010 is to the Legislative Coordinating Commission for
administrative expenses of the Lessard Outdoor Heritage Council and for
compensation and expense reimbursement of council members. Up to $100,000 may be transferred to the game
and fish fund as reimbursement for advances to the Lessard Outdoor Heritage
Council made in fiscal year 2009. Of
this amount, $10,000 is for the costs of developing and implementing a Web site
to contain information on projects receiving appropriations.
(c) Lessard Outdoor Heritage Council Site
Visit Exception
Travel
to and from site visits by council members paid for under paragraph (b) are not
meetings of the council for the purpose of receiving information under
Minnesota Statutes, section 97A.056, subdivision 5.
Subd. 7. Availability
of Appropriation
Unless
otherwise provided, the amounts in this section are available until June 30,
2011, when projects must be completed and final accomplishments reported. For acquisition of an interest in real
property, the amounts in this section are available until June 30,
2012. If a project receives federal
funds, the time period of the appropriation is extended to equal the
availability of federal funding.
Subd. 8. Cash
Advances
When
the operations of the outdoor heritage fund would be impeded by projected cash
deficiencies resulting from delays in the receipt of dedicated income, and when
the deficiencies would be corrected within fiscal year 2010, the commissioner
of finance may use fund-level cash reserves to meet cash demands of the outdoor
heritage fund. If funds are transferred
from the general fund to meet cash flow needs, the cash flow transfers must be
returned to the general fund as soon as sufficient cash balances are available
in the outdoor heritage fund. Any
interest earned on general fund cash flow transfers accrues to the general fund
and not to the outdoor heritage fund.
Subd. 9. Accomplishment
Plans
It
is a condition of acceptance of the appropriations made by this section that
the agency or entity using the appropriation shall submit to the council an
accomplishment plan and periodic accomplishment reports in the form determined
by the Lessard Outdoor Heritage Council.
The accomplishment plan must account for the use of the appropriation
and outcomes of the
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expenditure
in measures of wetlands, prairies, forests, and fish, game, and wildlife
habitat restored, protected, and enhanced.
The plan must include evaluation of results. None of the money provided in this section
may be expended unless the council has approved the pertinent accomplishment
plan.
Subd.
10. Project Requirements
As
a condition of accepting an appropriation in this section, any agency or entity
receiving an appropriation must, for any project funded in whole or in part
with funds from the appropriation: