HF 61

as introduced - 91st Legislature (2019 - 2020) Posted on 01/14/2019 01:58pm

A bill for an act
relating to state lands; modifying certain tax-forfeited land sale requirements;
amending Minnesota Statutes 2018, sections 85.012, subdivision 1; 282.01,
subdivision 3; 282.011, subdivision 1; 282.018, subdivision 1; 282.02; 459.06,
subdivision 3.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2018, section 85.012, subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

State parks established and confirmed as state parks together with the
counties in which they are situated are listed in this section and shall be named as indicated
in this section.

The lands described in the session laws establishing or changing the boundaries of each
state park are included in the state parks so established or changed. The commissioner of
natural resources is authorized to acquire by gift or purchase the lands as described. deleted text begin Any
land which now is or hereafter becomes tax-forfeited land and is located within the described
park boundaries is hereby withdrawn from sale and is transferred from the custody, control,
and supervision of the county board of the county to the commissioner of natural resources,
free from any trust in favor of the interested taxing districts. The commissioner shall execute
a certificate of acceptance of the lands on behalf of the state for such purposes and transmit
the same to the county auditor of the county for record as provided by law in the case of
tax-forfeited land transferred to the commissioner by resolution of the county board for
conservation purposes. deleted text end Any lands within the described boundaries which may be owned by
the United States and managed by any of its agents may be acquired by land exchange,
direct transfer, or purchase as federal laws may prescribe. The lands acquired pursuant to
any session laws establishing or changing the boundaries of a state park shall be administered
in the manner provided for state parks and shall be perpetually dedicated for such use.

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2018, section 282.01, subdivision 3, is amended to read:

Subd. 3.

Nonconservation lands; appraisal and sale.

(a) All parcels of land classified
as nonconservation, except those which may be reserved, shall be sold as provided, if it is
determined, by the county board of the county in which the parcels lie, that it is advisable
to do so, having in mind their accessibility, their proximity to existing public improvements,
and the effect of their sale and occupancy on the public burdens. Any parcels of land proposed
to be sold shall be first appraised by the county board of the county in which the parcels
lie. The parcels may be reappraised whenever the county board deems it necessary to carry
out the intent of sections 282.01 to 282.13.

(b) In an appraisal new text begin , new text end the value of the land and any standing timber on it deleted text begin shall deleted text end new text begin may new text end be
separately determined. No parcel of land containing any standing timber may be sold until
the appraised value of the timber on it and the sale of the land have been approved by the
deleted text begin commissioner of natural resources deleted text end new text begin county board new text end . deleted text begin The commissioner shall base review of a
proposed sale on the policy and considerations specified in subdivision 1. The decision of
the commissioner shall be in writing and shall state the reasons for it. The commissioner's
decision is exempt from the rulemaking provisions of chapter 14 and section 14.386 does
not apply. The county may appeal the decision of the commissioner in accordance with
chapter 14.
deleted text end

deleted text begin (c) In any county in which a state forest or any part of it is located, the county auditor
shall submit to the commissioner at least 60 days before the first publication of the list of
lands to be offered for sale a list of all lands included on the list which are situated outside
of any incorporated municipality. If, at any time before the opening of the sale, the
commissioner notifies the county auditor in writing that there is standing timber on any
parcel of land, the parcel shall not be sold unless the requirements of this section respecting
the separate appraisal of the timber and the approval of the appraisal by the commissioner
have been complied with. The commissioner may waive the requirement of the 60-day
notice as to any parcel of land which has been examined and the timber value approved as
required by this section.
deleted text end

deleted text begin (d) deleted text end new text begin (c) new text end If any public improvement is made by a municipality after any parcel of land has
been forfeited to the state for the nonpayment of taxes, and the improvement is assessed in
whole or in part against the property benefited by it, the clerk of the municipality shall
certify to the county auditor, immediately upon the determination of the assessments for
the improvement, the total amount that would have been assessed against the parcel of land
if it had been subject to assessment; or if the public improvement is made, petitioned for,
ordered in or assessed, whether the improvement is completed in whole or in part, at any
time between the appraisal and the sale of the parcel of land, the cost of the improvement
shall be included as a separate item and added to the appraised value of the parcel of land
at the time it is sold. No sale of a parcel of land shall discharge or free the parcel of land
from lien for the special benefit conferred upon it by reason of the public improvement until
the cost of it, including penalties, if any, is paid. The county board shall determine new text begin through
an appraisal new text end the amount, if any, by which the value of the parcel was enhanced by the
improvement and include the amount as a separate item in fixing the appraised value for
the purpose of sale.

Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2018, section 282.011, subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

Classification, sale, procedures and conditions.

Any lands which have
become the absolute property of the state through forfeiture for nonpayment of taxes and
which have been classified by the county board as conservation lands under the provisions
of section 282.01, or have been classified as nonagricultural lands under the provisions of
section 282.14, or any such lands which shall hereafter be so classified, may be designated
by the county board of the county in which such lands lie, by resolution duly adopted, as
appropriate and primarily suitable for either specific conservation purposes or for auxiliary
forest lands. Any resolution so adopted, together with a list of the lands involved shall be
forwarded to the deleted text begin commissioner of natural resources who shall promptly approve or disapprove
the whole or any part thereof. The commissioner shall thereupon make a certificate showing
the lands approved, transmit the same to the deleted text end county auditor who shall record the same.
Lands so designated deleted text begin and so approved deleted text end shall thereupon be appraised and the whole, or any
part thereof, may be offered for sale and sold in the same manner as provided for the sale
of lands classified as nonconservation lands under section 282.01, or as agricultural lands
under section 282.14, as the case may be, according to the status of such lands upon forfeiture.
The right to a deed of conveyance to such property accorded the purchaser at any such sale
deleted text begin shall deleted text end new text begin may new text end be conditioned upon the lands being placed in an auxiliary forest or used for
designated conservation purposes as designated by the resolution of the county board.

Sec. 4.

Minnesota Statutes 2018, section 282.018, subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

Land on or adjacent to public waters.

(a) All land deleted text begin which deleted text end new text begin that new text end is the
property of the state as a result of forfeiture to the state for nonpayment of taxes, regardless
of whether the land is held in trust for taxing districts, and deleted text begin which deleted text end new text begin that new text end borders on or is
adjacent to meandered lakes and other public waters and watercourses deleted text begin , and the live timber
growing or being thereon, is hereby withdrawn from sale deleted text end new text begin may be sold, new text end except as hereinafter
provided new text begin , if the authority having jurisdiction over the land determines that it is in the public
interest to do so new text end . The authority having jurisdiction over the timber on any of these lands
may sell the timber as otherwise provided by law for cutting and removal under the conditions
as the authority may prescribe in accordance with approved, sustained yield forestry practices.
The authority having jurisdiction over the timber deleted text begin shall deleted text end new text begin may new text end reserve the timber and impose
the conditions as the authority deems necessary for the protection of watersheds, wildlife
habitat, shorelines, and scenic features. Within the area in Cook, Lake, and St. Louis counties
described in the Act of Congress approved July 10, 1930 (46 Stat. 1020), the timber on
tax-forfeited lands shall be subject to like restrictions as are now imposed by that act on
federal lands.

(b) Of all tax-forfeited land bordering on or adjacent to meandered lakes and other public
waters and watercourses deleted text begin and so withdrawn from sale deleted text end , a strip two rods in width, the ordinary
high-water mark being the waterside boundary thereof, and the land side boundary thereof
being a line drawn parallel to the ordinary high-water mark and two rods distant landward
therefrom, deleted text begin hereby is deleted text end new text begin may be new text end reserved for public travel thereon, and whatever the conformation
of the shore line or conditions require, the authority having jurisdiction over these lands
deleted text begin shall deleted text end new text begin may new text end reserve a wider strip for these purposes.

deleted text begin (c) Any tract or parcel of land which has 150 feet or less of waterfront may be sold by
the authority having jurisdiction over the land, in the manner otherwise provided by law
for the sale of the lands, if the authority determines that it is in the public interest to do so.
Any tract or parcel of land within a plat of record bordering on or adjacent to meandered
lakes and other public waters and watercourses may be sold by the authority having
jurisdiction over the land, in the manner otherwise provided by law for the sale of the lands,
if the authority determines that it is in the public interest to do so. If the authority having
jurisdiction over the land is not the commissioner of natural resources, the land may not be
offered for sale without the prior approval of the commissioner of natural resources.
deleted text end

deleted text begin (d) Where the authority having jurisdiction over lands withdrawn from sale under this
section is not the commissioner of natural resources, the authority may submit proposals
for disposition of the lands to the commissioner. The commissioner of natural resources
shall evaluate the lands and their public benefits and make recommendations on the proposed
dispositions to the committees of the legislature with jurisdiction over natural resources.
The commissioner shall include any recommendations of the commissioner for disposition
of lands withdrawn from sale under this section over which the commissioner has jurisdiction.
The commissioner's recommendations may include a public sale, sale to a private party,
acquisition by the Department of Natural Resources for public purposes, or a cooperative
management agreement with, or transfer to, another unit of government.
deleted text end

deleted text begin (e) Notwithstanding this subdivision, a county may sell property governed by this section
upon written authorization from the commissioner of natural resources. Prior to the sale or
conveyance of lands under this subdivision, the county board must give notice of its intent
to meet for that purpose as provided in section 282.01, subdivision 1.
deleted text end

Sec. 5.

Minnesota Statutes 2018, section 282.02, is amended to read:

282.02 LIST OF LANDS FOR SALE; NOTICE; ONLINE AUCTIONS
PERMITTED.

(a) Immediately after classification and appraisal of the land, deleted text begin and after approval by the
commissioner of natural resources when required pursuant to section 282.01, subdivision
3, deleted text end the county board shall provide and file with the county auditor a list of parcels of land to
be offered for sale. This list shall contain a description of the parcels of land and the appraised
value thereof. The auditor shall publish a notice of the intended public sale of such parcels
of land and a copy of the resolution of the county board fixing the terms of the sale, if other
than for cash only, by publication once a week for two weeks in the official newspaper of
the county, the last publication to be not less than ten days previous to the commencement
of the sale.

(b) The notice shall include the parcel's description and appraised value. The notice shall
also indicate the amount of any special assessments which may be the subject of a
reassessment or new assessment or which may result in the imposition of a fee or charge
pursuant to sections 429.071, subdivision 4, 435.23, and 444.076. The county auditor shall
also mail notice to the owners of land adjoining the parcel to be sold. For purposes of this
section, "owner" means the taxpayer as listed in the records of the county auditor.

(c) If the county board determines that the sale shall take place in a county facility other
than the courthouse, the notice shall specify the facility and its location. If the county board
determines that the sale shall take place as an online auction under section 282.01, subdivision
13, the notice shall specify the auction website and the date of the auction.

new text begin (d) A county board may require one or more of the parcels of land listed for sale to be
subject to taxation by prohibiting an individual or entity with tax-exempt status from
purchasing the property. The notice of intended sale for a parcel with this prohibition must
state that the prohibition applies to the parcel.
new text end

Sec. 6.

Minnesota Statutes 2018, section 459.06, subdivision 3, is amended to read:

Subd. 3.

Withdrawal of tax-forfeited lands.

Any tax-forfeited land which has been
included in a memorial forest established in any county under the provisions of subdivision
2, and which is found more suitable for other purposes may by resolution of the county
board be withdrawn from the forest for disposal as tax-forfeited land deleted text begin if the commissioner
of natural resources approves the sale of such land deleted text end .