1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to counties; Swift; authorizing the county to 
  1.3             establish a rural development finance authority. 
  1.4   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.5      Section 1.  [SWIFT COUNTY RURAL DEVELOPMENT FINANCE 
  1.6   AUTHORITY.] 
  1.7      Subdivision 1.  [ESTABLISHMENT.] The Swift county board 
  1.8   may, by adopting a written enabling resolution, establish a 
  1.9   county rural development finance authority that, subject to 
  1.10  subdivision 2, has the following powers:  powers of an economic 
  1.11  development authority under Minnesota Statutes, sections 469.090 
  1.12  to 469.107, except for the authority to issue general obligation 
  1.13  bonds under Minnesota Statutes, section 469.102; and powers of a 
  1.14  rural development financing authority under sections 469.142 to 
  1.15  469.151. 
  1.16     Subd. 2.  [ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY POWERS.] If the 
  1.17  county rural development finance authority exercises the powers 
  1.18  of an economic development authority, the county may exercise 
  1.19  all of the powers relating to an economic development authority 
  1.20  granted to a city under Minnesota Statutes, sections 469.090 to 
  1.21  469.108.  The levy imposed by the county board under Minnesota 
  1.22  Statutes, section 469.107, may be levied in addition to levies 
  1.23  otherwise authorized by law.  The county rural development 
  1.24  finance authority may create and define the boundaries of 
  2.1   economic development districts at any place or places within the 
  2.2   county.  Minnesota Statutes, section 469.174, subdivision 10, 
  2.3   and the contiguity requirement specified under Minnesota 
  2.4   Statutes, section 469.101, subdivision 1, do not apply to limit 
  2.5   the areas that may be designated as county economic development 
  2.6   districts. 
  2.7      Subd. 3.  [LIMIT OF POWERS.] (a) The enabling resolution 
  2.8   may impose the following limits on the actions of the authority: 
  2.9      (1) that the authority may not exercise any of the powers 
  2.10  contained in subdivision 1 unless those powers are specifically 
  2.11  authorized in the enabling resolution; and 
  2.12     (2) any other limitation or control established by the 
  2.13  county board by the enabling resolution. 
  2.14     (b) The enabling resolution may be modified at any time, 
  2.15  but may not be applied in a manner that impairs contracts 
  2.16  executed before the modification is made.  All modifications to 
  2.17  the enabling resolution must be by written resolution. 
  2.18     (c) Before the commencement of a project by the authority, 
  2.19  the governing body of the municipality in which the project is 
  2.20  to be located or the Swift county board, if the project is 
  2.21  outside municipal corporate limits, shall by majority vote 
  2.22  approve the project as recommended by the authority. 
  2.23     Subd. 4.  [BOARD OF DIRECTORS.] (a) The authority consists 
  2.24  of a board of seven directors.  The directors shall be appointed 
  2.25  by the Swift county board.  Each director shall be appointed to 
  2.26  serve for three years or until a successor is appointed and 
  2.27  qualified.  No director may serve more than two consecutive 
  2.28  terms.  The initial appointment of directors must be made so 
  2.29  that no more than one-third of the directors' positions will 
  2.30  require appointment in any one year due to fulfillment of their 
  2.31  three-year appointment.  The appointment of directors must be 
  2.32  made to reflect representation of the entire county by 
  2.33  population, appointing one director to represent each of the 
  2.34  five county commissioner districts.  The other two directors 
  2.35  must be representatives of various county-based economic 
  2.36  development organizations or be directors at-large.  No more 
  3.1   than two directors may reside in any one county commissioner 
  3.2   district. 
  3.3      (b) Two of the directors initially appointed shall serve 
  3.4   for terms of one year, two for two years, and three for three 
  3.5   years.  Each vacancy must be filled for the unexpired term in 
  3.6   the manner in which the original appointment was made.  A 
  3.7   vacancy occurs if a director no longer resides in the county.  
  3.8   No director shall be an officer, employee, director, 
  3.9   shareholder, or member of any corporation, firm, or association 
  3.10  with which the authority has entered into any operating lease, 
  3.11  or other agreement.  The directors may be removed by the county 
  3.12  for the reasons and in the manner provided under Minnesota 
  3.13  Statutes, section 469.010, and shall receive no compensation 
  3.14  other than reimbursement for expenses incurred in the 
  3.15  performance of their duties.  Directors shall have no personal 
  3.16  liability for obligations of the authority or the methods of 
  3.17  enforcement and collection of the obligations. 
  3.18     Sec. 2.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  3.19     Section 1 is effective the day after the Swift county board 
  3.20  complies with Minnesota Statutes, section 645.021, subdivision 3.