HF 3546

1st Engrossment - 84th Legislature (2005 - 2006) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

A bill for an act
relating to agriculture; changing certain compensation requirements; authorizing
certain testing; expanding a camping requirement; providing for personal
responsibility in food consumption; requiring studies; eliminating a reporting
requirement; amending Minnesota Statutes 2004, sections 3.737, subdivision 1;
3.7371, subdivision 3; Minnesota Statutes 2005 Supplement, sections 35.05;
327.201; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 604;
repealing Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 17.10.

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

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 3.737, subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

Compensation required.

(a) Notwithstanding section 3.736,
subdivision 3, paragraph (e), or any other law, a livestock owner shall be compensated
by the commissioner of agriculture for livestock that is destroyed by a gray wolf or is so
crippled by a gray wolf that it must be destroyed. new text begin Except as provided in this section, new text end the
owner is entitled to the fair market value of the destroyed livestock as determined by the
commissioner, upon recommendation of a university extension agent or a conservation
officer. new text begin In any calendar year, a livestock owner may not be compensated for a destroyed
animal claim that is less than $100 in value and may be compensated up to $20,000 per
claim, as determined under this section. In any calendar year, the commissioner may
provide compensation for claims filed pursuant to this section and section 3.7371 to a total
of $100,000 for both programs combined. new text end

(b) Either the agent or the conservation officer must make a personal inspection of
the site. The agent or the conservation officer must take into account factors in addition to
a visual identification of a carcass when making a recommendation to the commissioner.
The commissioner, upon recommendation of the agent or conservation officer, shall
determine whether the livestock was destroyed by a gray wolf and any deficiencies in the
owner's adoption of the best management practices developed in subdivision 5. The
commissioner may authorize payment of claims only if the agent or the conservation
officer has recommended payment. The owner shall file a claim on forms provided by the
commissioner and available at the university extension agent's office.

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 3.7371, subdivision 3, is amended to read:

Subd. 3.

Compensation.

The crop owner is entitled to the target price or the
market price, whichever is greater, of the damaged or destroyed crop plus adjustments
for yield loss determined according to agricultural stabilization and conservation service
programs for individual farms, adjusted annually, as determined by the commissioner,
upon recommendation of the county extension agent for the owner's county. The
commissioner, upon recommendation of the agent, shall determine whether the crop
damage or destruction is caused by elk and, if so, the amount of the crop that is damaged
or destroyed. In any calendar year, a crop owner may not be compensated for a damaged
or destroyed crop that is less than $100 in value and may be compensated up to $20,000,
as determined under this section, if normal harvest procedures for the area are followed. new text begin In
any calendar year, the commissioner may provide compensation for claims filed pursuant
to this section and section 3.737 to a total of $100,000 for both programs combined.
new text end

Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2005 Supplement, section 35.05, is amended to read:

35.05 AUTHORITY OF STATE BOARD.

(a) The state board may quarantine or kill any domestic animal infected with, or
which has been exposed to, a contagious or infectious dangerous disease if it is necessary
to protect the health of the domestic animals of the state.

(b) The board may regulate or prohibit the arrival in and departure from the state of
infected or exposed animals and, in case of violation of any rule or prohibition, may detain
any animal at its owner's expense. The board may regulate or prohibit the importation of
domestic animals which, in its opinion, may injure the health of Minnesota livestock.

(c) When the governor declares an emergency under section 35.0661, the board,
through its executive director, may assume control of such resources within the University
of Minnesota's Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory as necessary to effectively address the
disease outbreak. The director of the laboratory and other laboratory personnel must
cooperate fully in performing necessary functions related to the outbreak or threatened
outbreak.

(d) new text begin The board may test or require tests of any bovine or cervidae in the state when
the board deems it necessary to achieve or maintain bovine tuberculosis accredited free
state or zone status under the regulations and laws administered by the United States
Department of Agriculture.
new text end

new text begin (e) new text end Rules adopted by the board under authority of this chapter must be published in
the State Register.

Sec. 4.

Minnesota Statutes 2005 Supplement, section 327.201, is amended to read:

327.201 STATE FAIR CAMPING AREA.

Notwithstanding sections 327.14 to 327.28 or any rule adopted by the commissioner
of health, the State Agricultural Society must operate and maintain a camping area on the
State Fairgrounds during the State Fair new text begin and the Minnesota Street Rod Association's "Back
to the 50s" event new text end , subject to the following conditions:

(1) recreational camping vehicles and tents, including their attachments, must be
separated from each other and from other structures by at least seven feet;

(2) a minimum area of 300 square feet per site must be provided and the total number
of sites must not exceed one site for every 300 square feet of usable land area; and

(3) each site must face a driveway at least 16 feet in width and each driveway must
have unobstructed access to a public roadway.

Sec. 5.

new text begin [604.17] PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY IN FOOD CONSUMPTION
ACT.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Title. new text end

new text begin This section may be cited as the Personal Responsibility in
Food Consumption Act.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Definitions. new text end

new text begin (a) For purposes of this section, the following terms have
the meanings given.
new text end

new text begin (b) "Long-term consumption" means the cumulative effect of the consumption of
food or nonalcoholic beverages, and not the effect of a single instance of consumption.
new text end

new text begin (c) "Party" means an individual, corporation, company, association, firm, partnership,
society, joint stock company, or any other entity, including any governmental entity.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Immunity from civil liability. new text end

new text begin A producer, grower, manufacturer, packer,
distributor, carrier, holder, marketer, or seller of a food or nonalcoholic beverage intended
for human consumption, or an association of one or more of such entities, shall not be
subject to civil liability based on any individual's or group of individuals' purchase or
consumption of food or nonalcoholic beverages in cases where liability arises from weight
gain or obesity resulting from the individual's or group of individuals' long-term purchase
or consumption of a food or nonalcoholic beverage.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin Actions permitted. new text end

new text begin Subdivision 3 does not apply to a claim of weight
gain or obesity that is based on:
new text end

new text begin (1) a material violation of an adulteration or misbranding requirement prescribed
by state or federal statute, rule, or regulation and the claimed injury was proximately
caused by the violation; or
new text end

new text begin (2) any other material violation of federal or state law applicable to the
manufacturing, marketing, distribution, advertising, labeling, or sale of food and the
claimed injury was proximately caused by the violation.
new text end

new text begin EFFECTIVE DATE. new text end

new text begin This section is effective the day following final enactment
and applies to any action brought by any party on or after the effective date.
new text end

Sec. 6. new text begin ENERGY AND CONSERVATION; STUDY.
new text end

new text begin The commissioner of agriculture, in consultation with the Minnesota Resource
Conservation and Development Council, the Board of Water and Soil Resources, and the
commissioner of natural resources, shall study the feasibility of developing energy sources
as they relate to land enrolled under federal farm programs or under state easement
programs in Minnesota. The commissioner shall submit a report, with findings and
recommendations, to the governor and the legislature by February 15, 2007.
new text end

Sec. 7. new text begin UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA LICENSING AND MINNESOTA
MARKET IMPACT STUDY.
new text end

new text begin The University of Minnesota is requested to establish a task force to study the
market impact on Minnesota producers of agricultural products from the University of
Minnesota licensing germplasm and to make recommendations to the legislature and the
Board of Regents on ways to mitigate any negative impacts on Minnesota businesses that
arise from University of Minnesota license agreements. The task force must include a
representative of the University of Minnesota Extension Service serving as the chair, and
representatives of the Minnesota Farm Bureau, the Minnesota Farmers Union, agricultural
commodity organizations, the Minnesota Apple Growers Association, the Minnesota Fruit
and Vegetable Growers Association, the Minnesota Nursery Landscape Association, the
Minnesota Department of Agriculture, and the Minnesota grown program. Members
serve on the task force on a voluntary basis. The chair may also invite participation from
other staff and faculty of the University of Minnesota as necessary to fulfill the purpose
of the task force. The task force must report to the committees of the legislature with
responsibility for higher education no later than January 15, 2007.
new text end

Sec. 8. new text begin REPEALER.
new text end

new text begin Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 17.10, new text end new text begin is repealed.
new text end