1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to education; providing for general 
  1.3             obligation debt to prepay special assessments; 
  1.4             amending Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 123B.61. 
  1.5   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.6      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 123B.61, is 
  1.7   amended to read: 
  1.8      123B.61 [PURCHASE OF CERTAIN EQUIPMENT.] 
  1.9      The board of a district may issue general obligation 
  1.10  certificates of indebtedness or capital notes subject to the 
  1.11  district debt limits to purchase:  (a) purchase vehicles, 
  1.12  computers, telephone systems, cable equipment, photocopy and 
  1.13  office equipment, technological equipment for instruction, and 
  1.14  other capital equipment having an expected useful life at least 
  1.15  as long as the terms of the certificates or 
  1.16  notes; and (b) purchase computer hardware and software, without 
  1.17  regard to its expected useful life, whether bundled with 
  1.18  machinery or equipment or unbundled, together with application 
  1.19  development services and training related to the use of the 
  1.20  computer; and (c) prepay special assessments.  The certificates 
  1.21  or notes must be payable in not more than five years and must be 
  1.22  issued on the terms and in the manner determined by the 
  1.23  board.  Except, certificates or notes issued to prepay special 
  1.24  assessments must be payable in not more than 20 years.  The 
  1.25  certificates or notes may be issued by resolution and without 
  2.1   the requirement for an election.  The certificates or notes are 
  2.2   general obligation bonds for purposes of section 126C.55.  A tax 
  2.3   levy must be made for the payment of the principal and interest 
  2.4   on the certificates or notes, in accordance with section 475.61, 
  2.5   as in the case of bonds.  The sum of the tax levies under this 
  2.6   section and section 123B.62 for each year must not exceed the 
  2.7   amount of the district's total operating capital revenue for the 
  2.8   year the initial debt service levies are certified.  The 
  2.9   district's general education levy for each year must be reduced 
  2.10  by the sum of (1) the amount of the tax levies for debt service 
  2.11  certified for each year for payment of the principal and 
  2.12  interest on the certificates or notes as required by section 
  2.13  475.61, and (2) any excess amount in the debt redemption fund 
  2.14  used to retire certificates or notes issued after April 1, 1997, 
  2.15  other than amounts used to pay capitalized interest.  A district 
  2.16  using an excess amount in the debt redemption fund to retire the 
  2.17  certificates or notes shall report the amount used for this 
  2.18  purpose to the commissioner by July 15 of the following fiscal 
  2.19  year.  A district having an outstanding capital loan under 
  2.20  section 126C.69 or an outstanding debt service loan under 
  2.21  section 126C.68 must not use an excess amount in the debt 
  2.22  redemption fund to retire the certificates or notes.