1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to energy assistance; establishing a 
  1.3             delivered fuel account; appropriating money; amending 
  1.4             Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 268.371, by adding a 
  1.5             subdivision. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 268.371, is 
  1.8   amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  1.9      Subd. 5.  [DELIVERED FUEL ACCOUNT.] (a) The delivered fuel 
  1.10  account is established as a separate account in the state 
  1.11  treasury.  Money in the account is appropriated to the 
  1.12  commissioner to create a revolving fund to be used for a 
  1.13  prepurchase propane program and summer fill program for fuel 
  1.14  oil.  The fund must be used to increase energy assistance for 
  1.15  households eligible for the federal low-income energy assistance 
  1.16  program through preseason fuel purchases or contracts.  The 
  1.17  commissioner may advance money from the fund to participating 
  1.18  energy assistance delivery agencies to establish a voluntary 
  1.19  preseason fuel purchase program.  Any advances from the 
  1.20  revolving fund must be repaid each year from the federal grant 
  1.21  for the low-income household energy assistance program.  
  1.22     (b) Energy assistance delivery agencies may request 
  1.23  advances from the fund to obtain preseason delivered fuels from 
  1.24  participating fuel vendors.  Participating energy assistance 
  1.25  delivery agencies in the preseason delivered fuels program must 
  2.1   recruit fuel vendors, negotiate fuel price and delivery terms 
  2.2   with each vendor, and coordinate services for low-income 
  2.3   households that are eligible for federal assistance.  Nothing in 
  2.4   this section requires fuel vendors to participate in a preseason 
  2.5   purchase program. 
  2.6      Sec. 2.  [APPROPRIATIONS.] 
  2.7      $....... is appropriated from the general fund to the 
  2.8   commissioner of children, families, and learning for deposit 
  2.9   into the delivered fuel account under section 1.  This is a one 
  2.10  time appropriation and does not cancel.