1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to the legislature; changing provisions
1.3 	governing the Legislative Coordinating Commission and
1.4 	subordinate agencies; eliminating a commission;
1.5 	changing membership and operation of the Compensation
1.6 	Council; appropriating money; amending Minnesota
1.7 	Statutes 2004, sections 3.303, subdivision 3, by
1.8 	adding a subdivision; 3.85, subdivisions 8, 9;
1.9 	15A.082, subdivisions 1, 2, 3; 216C.051, subdivision
1.10 	6; repealing Minnesota Statutes 2004, sections 3.304,
1.11 	subdivisions 1, 5; 3.884.
1.12 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.13 	Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 3.303,
1.14 	subdivision 3, is amended to read:
1.15 		Subd. 3.Chair.  The president of the senate and the
1.16 	speaker of the house shall alternate annually as chair of the
1.17 	commission. The chair may designate another member of the
1.18 	commission to serve as chair for the reminder of the year during
1.19 	which the designating member would otherwise be chair.  The
1.20 	designee must be a member of the same legislative body as the
1.21 	chair making the designation.

1.22 	Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 3.303, is amended
1.23 	by adding a subdivision to read:
1.24 		Subd. 7.Acceptance of grants and gifts. The commission
1.25 	may accept gifts and grants for purposes related to the duties
1.26 	of the commission.  Money received by the commission from a gift
1.27 	or grant is appropriated to the commission for purposes
1.28 	specified in the gift or grant.

2.1 	Sec. 3. Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 3.85, subdivision
2.2 	8, is amended to read:
2.3 		Subd. 8.Expenses, reimbursement.  The members of the
2.4 	commission and its assistants shall staff must be reimbursed for
2.5 	all expenses actually and necessarily incurred in the
2.6 	performance of their duties.  Reimbursement for expenses
2.7 	incurred shall must be made under the rules governing state
2.8 	employees in accordance with policies adopted by the commission.

2.9 	Sec. 4. Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 3.85, subdivision
2.10 	9, is amended to read:
2.11 		Subd. 9.Expenses and reports.  Expenses of the
2.12 	commission shall be approved by the chair or another member as
2.13 	the rules of the commission provide. The expenses shall then be
2.14 	paid like other state expenses.  A general summary or statement
2.15 	of expenses incurred by the commission and paid shall be made to
2.16 	the legislature by November 15 of each even-numbered year.

2.17 	Sec. 5. Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 15A.082,
2.18 	subdivision 1, is amended to read:
2.19 		Subdivision 1.Creation.  A Compensation Council is
2.20 	created each even-numbered odd-numbered year to assist the
2.21 	legislature in establishing the compensation of constitutional
2.22 	officers, members of the legislature, justices of the Supreme
2.23 	Court, judges of the Court of Appeals and district court, and
2.24 	the heads of state and metropolitan agencies included in section
2.25 	15A.0815.

2.26 	Sec. 6. Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 15A.082,
2.27 	subdivision 2, is amended to read:
2.28 		Subd. 2.Membership.  The Compensation Council consists
2.29 	of 16 members:  two members, who are not members of the house of
2.30 	representatives,appointed by the speaker of the house of
2.31 	representatives; two members, who are not members of the senate,
2.32 	appointed by the majority leader of the senate; one member, who
2.33 	is not a member of the house of representatives,appointed by
2.34 	the minority leader of the house of representatives; one member,
2.35 	who is not a member of the senate,appointed by the minority
2.36 	leader of the senate; two nonjudges appointed by the chief
3.1 	justice of the Supreme Court; and one member from each
3.2 	congressional district appointed by the governor, of whom no
3.3 	more than four may belong to the same political party.
3.4 	Appointments must be made by October 1 after the first Monday in
3.5 	January and before January 15.  The compensation and removal of
3.6 	members appointed by the governor or the chief justice shall be
3.7 	as provided in section 15.059, subdivisions 3 and 4.  The
3.8 	Legislative Coordinating Commission shall provide the council
3.9 	with administrative and support services.

3.10 	Sec. 7. Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 15A.082,
3.11 	subdivision 3, is amended to read:
3.12 		Subd. 3.Submission of recommendations.  (a) By May April 
3.13 	1 in each odd-numbered year, the Compensation Council shall
3.14 	submit to the speaker of the house of representatives and the
3.15 	president of the senate salary recommendations for
3.16 	constitutional officers, legislators, justices of the Supreme
3.17 	Court, and judges of the Court of Appeals and district court.
3.18 	The recommended salary for each office must take effect on the
3.19 	first Monday in January of the next odd-numbered year, with no
3.20 	more than one adjustment, to take effect on January 1 of the
3.21 	year after that.  The salary recommendations for legislators,
3.22 	judges, and constitutional officers take effect if an
3.23 	appropriation of money to pay the recommended salaries is
3.24 	enacted after the recommendations are submitted and before their
3.25 	effective date.  Recommendations may be expressly modified or
3.26 	rejected.  The salary recommendations for legislators are
3.27 	subject to additional terms that may be adopted according to
3.28 	section 3.099, subdivisions 1 and 3.
3.29 	(b) The council shall also submit to the speaker of the
3.30 	house of representatives and the president of the senate
3.31 	recommendations for the salary ranges of the heads of state and
3.32 	metropolitan agencies, to be effective retroactively from
3.33 	January 1 of that year if enacted into law.  The recommendations
3.34 	shall include the appropriate group in section 15A.0815 to which
3.35 	each agency head should be assigned and the appropriate
3.36 	limitation on the maximum range of the salaries of the agency
4.1 	heads in each group, expressed as a percentage of the salary of
4.2 	the governor.

4.3 	Sec. 8. Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 216C.051,
4.4 	subdivision 6, is amended to read:
4.5 		Subd. 6.Assessment; appropriation.  On request by the
4.6 	cochairs of the Legislative Task Force and after approval of the
4.7 	chair of the Legislative Coordinating Commission, the
4.8 	commissioner of commerce shall assess from all public utilities,
4.9 	generation and transmission cooperative electric associations,
4.10 	and municipal power agencies providing electric or natural gas
4.11 	services in Minnesota, in addition to assessments made under
4.12 	section 216B.62, the amount requested for the operation of the
4.13 	task force not to exceed $250,000 in a fiscal year.  The amount
4.14 	assessed under this section is appropriated to the director of
4.15 	the Legislative Coordinating Commission for those purposes, and
4.16 	is available until expended.  The department shall apportion
4.17 	those costs among all energy utilities in proportion to their
4.18 	respective gross operating revenues from the sale of gas or
4.19 	electric service within the state during the last calendar
4.20 	year.  For the purposes of administrative efficiency, the
4.21 	department shall assess energy utilities and issue bills in
4.22 	accordance with the billing and assessment procedures provided
4.23 	in section 216B.62, to the extent that these procedures do not
4.24 	conflict with this subdivision.

4.25 	Sec. 9. REPEALER.
 4.26 	Minnesota Statutes 2004, sections 3.304, subdivisions 1 and
4.27 	5; and 3.884, are repealed.