1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to housing; streamlining the residential 
  1.3             development process; authorizing the state building 
  1.4             official to have final interpretive authority of the 
  1.5             State Building Code; authorizing the construction 
  1.6             codes advisory council to establish a technical 
  1.7             advisory group; requiring a report; establishing the 
  1.8             State Building Code as the building standard for the 
  1.9             state of Minnesota; authorizing municipalities to 
  1.10            require developers to include affordable housing; 
  1.11            modifying the requirements for adoption or amendment 
  1.12            of zoning ordinances; amending Minnesota Statutes 
  1.13            2000, sections 16B.63, by adding a subdivision; 
  1.14            327A.01, subdivision 2; 327A.02, subdivisions 1 and 3; 
  1.15            462.351; 462.352, by adding a subdivision; and 
  1.16            462.357, subdivisions 1, 2, and by adding a 
  1.17            subdivision; repealing Minnesota Statutes 2000, 
  1.18            section 462.357, subdivision 5. 
  1.19  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.20     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 16B.63, is 
  1.21  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  1.22     Subd. 5.  [FINAL INTERPRETIVE AUTHORITY.] (a) To achieve 
  1.23  uniform and consistent application of the State Building Code, 
  1.24  the state building official has final interpretive authority 
  1.25  relating to all aspects of the State Building Code, except for 
  1.26  the plumbing code and the electrical code. 
  1.27     (b) The state building official shall establish 
  1.28  interpretive committees for each of the respective fields of the 
  1.29  State Building Code, such as building, mechanical, elevators, 
  1.30  accessibility, energy, and manufactured structures.  Each 
  1.31  interpretive committee must have seven members consisting of 
  1.32  code officials and industry representatives who are 
  2.1   knowledgeable in their respective fields.  The state building 
  2.2   official shall establish procedures for membership in the 
  2.3   interpretive committees.  The interpretive committees shall 
  2.4   review requests for final interpretation and make 
  2.5   recommendations to the state building official for the final 
  2.6   interpretation within 30 days of the request.  The state 
  2.7   building official shall issue an interpretation within ten 
  2.8   business days from the recommendation from the review 
  2.9   committee.  A final interpretation may be appealed within 30 
  2.10  days of its issuance to the commissioner under section 16B.67.  
  2.11  The final interpretation must be published within ten business 
  2.12  days of its issuance and made available to the public.  Final 
  2.13  interpretations must be considered for adoption as part of the 
  2.14  State Building Code. 
  2.15     (c) Municipal building officials shall administer all final 
  2.16  interpretations issued by the state building official as part of 
  2.17  the State Building Code. 
  2.18     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 327A.01, 
  2.19  subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
  2.20     Subd. 2.  [BUILDING STANDARDS.] "Building standards" means 
  2.21  the structural, mechanical, electrical, and quality standards of 
  2.22  the home building industry for the geographic area in which the 
  2.23  dwelling is situated State Building Code, adopted by the 
  2.24  commissioner of administration pursuant to sections 16B.59 to 
  2.25  16B.75, that are in effect at the time of the construction or 
  2.26  remodeling. 
  2.27     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 327A.02, 
  2.28  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  2.29     Subdivision 1.  [WARRANTIES BY VENDORS.] In every sale of a 
  2.30  completed dwelling, and in every contract for the sale of a 
  2.31  dwelling to be completed, the vendor shall warrant to the vendee 
  2.32  that: 
  2.33     (a) during the one-year period from and after the warranty 
  2.34  date the dwelling shall be free from defects caused by faulty 
  2.35  workmanship and defective materials due to noncompliance with 
  2.36  building standards; 
  3.1      (b) during the two-year period from and after the warranty 
  3.2   date, the dwelling shall be free from defects caused by faulty 
  3.3   installation of plumbing, electrical, heating, and cooling 
  3.4   systems due to noncompliance with building standards; and 
  3.5      (c) during the ten-year period from and after the warranty 
  3.6   date, the dwelling shall be free from major construction defects 
  3.7   due to noncompliance with building standards. 
  3.8      Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 327A.02, 
  3.9   subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  3.10     Subd. 3.  [HOME IMPROVEMENT WARRANTIES.] (a) In a sale or 
  3.11  in a contract for the sale of home improvement work involving 
  3.12  major structural changes or additions to a residential building, 
  3.13  the home improvement contractor shall warrant to the owner that: 
  3.14     (1) during the one-year period from and after the warranty 
  3.15  date the home improvement shall be free from defects caused by 
  3.16  faulty workmanship and defective materials due to noncompliance 
  3.17  with building standards; and 
  3.18     (2) during the ten-year period from and after the warranty 
  3.19  date the home improvement shall be free from major construction 
  3.20  defects due to noncompliance with building standards.  
  3.21     (b) In a sale or in a contract for the sale of home 
  3.22  improvement work involving the installation of plumbing, 
  3.23  electrical, heating or cooling systems, the home improvement 
  3.24  contractor shall warrant to the owner that, during the two-year 
  3.25  period from and after the warranty date, the home improvement 
  3.26  shall be free from defects caused by the faulty installation of 
  3.27  the system or systems due to noncompliance with building 
  3.28  standards.  
  3.29     (c) In a sale or in a contract for the sale of any home 
  3.30  improvement work not covered by paragraph (a) or (b), the home 
  3.31  improvement contractor shall warrant to the owner that, during 
  3.32  the one-year period from and after the warranty date, the home 
  3.33  improvement shall be free from defects caused by faulty 
  3.34  workmanship or defective materials due to noncompliance with 
  3.35  building standards.  
  3.36     Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 462.351, is 
  4.1   amended to read: 
  4.2      462.351 [MUNICIPAL PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT; STATEMENT OF 
  4.3   POLICY.] 
  4.4      The legislature finds that municipalities are faced with 
  4.5   mounting problems in providing means of guiding future 
  4.6   development of land so as to insure a safer, more pleasant and 
  4.7   more economical environment for residential, commercial, 
  4.8   industrial and public activities, to preserve agricultural and 
  4.9   other open lands, and to promote the public health, safety, and 
  4.10  general welfare.  Municipalities can prepare for anticipated 
  4.11  changes and by such preparations bring about significant savings 
  4.12  in both private and public expenditures.  Municipal planning, by 
  4.13  providing public guides to future municipal action, enables 
  4.14  other public and private agencies to plan their activities in 
  4.15  harmony with the municipality's plans.  Municipal planning will 
  4.16  assist in developing lands more wisely to serve citizens more 
  4.17  effectively, will make the provision of public services less 
  4.18  costly, and will achieve a more secure tax base, and will 
  4.19  provide for an adequate supply of affordable housing.  It is the 
  4.20  purpose of sections 462.351 to 462.364 to provide 
  4.21  municipalities, in a single body of law, with the necessary 
  4.22  powers and a uniform procedure for adequately conducting and 
  4.23  implementing municipal planning. 
  4.24     Sec. 6.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 462.352, is 
  4.25  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  4.26     Subd. 19.  [AFFORDABLE HOUSING.] "Affordable housing" means 
  4.27  housing that is affordable to persons and families whose income 
  4.28  does not exceed 80 percent of the greater of state median 
  4.29  income, or area or county median income as determined by the 
  4.30  United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, or as 
  4.31  defined by the municipality. 
  4.32     Sec. 7.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 462.357, 
  4.33  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  4.34     Subdivision 1.  [AUTHORITY FOR ZONING.] For the purpose of 
  4.35  promoting the public health, safety, morals, and general 
  4.36  welfare, a municipality may by ordinance regulate on the earth's 
  5.1   surface, in the air space above the surface, and in subsurface 
  5.2   areas, the location, height, width, bulk, type of foundation, 
  5.3   number of stories, size of buildings and other structures, the 
  5.4   percentage of lot which may be occupied, the development of 
  5.5   affordable housing, the size of yards and other open spaces, the 
  5.6   density and distribution of population, the uses of buildings 
  5.7   and structures for trade, industry, residence, recreation, 
  5.8   public activities, or other purposes, and the uses of land for 
  5.9   trade, industry, residence, recreation, agriculture, forestry, 
  5.10  soil conservation, water supply conservation, conservation of 
  5.11  shorelands, as defined in sections 103F.201 to 103F.221, access 
  5.12  to direct sunlight for solar energy systems as defined in 
  5.13  section 216C.06, flood control or other purposes, and may 
  5.14  establish standards and procedures regulating such uses.  To 
  5.15  accomplish these purposes, official controls may include 
  5.16  provision for purchase of development rights by the governing 
  5.17  body in the form of conservation easements under chapter 84C in 
  5.18  areas where the governing body considers preservation desirable 
  5.19  and the transfer of development rights from those areas to areas 
  5.20  the governing body considers more appropriate for development.  
  5.21  No regulation may prohibit earth sheltered construction as 
  5.22  defined in section 216C.06, subdivision 2, relocated residential 
  5.23  buildings, or manufactured homes built in conformance with 
  5.24  sections 327.31 to 327.35 that comply with all other zoning 
  5.25  ordinances promulgated pursuant to this section.  The 
  5.26  regulations may divide the surface, above surface, and 
  5.27  subsurface areas of the municipality into districts or zones of 
  5.28  suitable numbers, shape, and area.  The regulations shall be 
  5.29  uniform for each class or kind of buildings, structures, or land 
  5.30  and for each class or kind of use throughout such district, but 
  5.31  the regulations in one district may differ from those in other 
  5.32  districts.  The ordinance embodying these regulations shall be 
  5.33  known as the zoning ordinance and shall consist of text and 
  5.34  maps.  A city may by ordinance extend the application of its 
  5.35  zoning regulations to unincorporated territory located within 
  5.36  two miles of its limits in any direction, but not in a county or 
  6.1   town which has adopted zoning regulations; provided that where 
  6.2   two or more noncontiguous municipalities have boundaries less 
  6.3   than four miles apart, each is authorized to control the zoning 
  6.4   of land on its side of a line equidistant between the two 
  6.5   noncontiguous municipalities unless a town or county in the 
  6.6   affected area has adopted zoning regulations.  Any city may 
  6.7   thereafter enforce such regulations in the area to the same 
  6.8   extent as if such property were situated within its corporate 
  6.9   limits, until the county or town board adopts a comprehensive 
  6.10  zoning regulation which includes the area. 
  6.11     Sec. 8.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 462.357, is 
  6.12  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  6.13     Subd. 1e.  [AFFORDABLE HOUSING.] A municipality may require 
  6.14  a developer to include housing that is affordable, as defined in 
  6.15  section 462.352, subdivision 19. 
  6.16     Sec. 9.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 462.357, 
  6.17  subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
  6.18     Subd. 2.  [GENERAL REQUIREMENTS.] (a) At any time after the 
  6.19  adoption of a land use plan for the municipality, the planning 
  6.20  agency, for the purpose of carrying out the policies and goals 
  6.21  of the land use plan, may prepare a proposed zoning ordinance 
  6.22  and submit it to the governing body with its recommendations for 
  6.23  adoption. 
  6.24     (b) Subject to the requirements of subdivisions 3, and 4, 
  6.25  and 5, the governing body may adopt and amend a zoning ordinance 
  6.26  by a majority vote of all its members.  The adoption or 
  6.27  amendment of any portion of a zoning ordinance which changes all 
  6.28  or part of the existing classification of a zoning district from 
  6.29  residential to either commercial or industrial requires a 
  6.30  two-thirds majority vote of all its members of the governing 
  6.31  body. 
  6.32     (c) The land use plan must provide guidelines for the 
  6.33  timing and sequence of the adoption of official controls to 
  6.34  ensure planned, orderly, and staged development and 
  6.35  redevelopment consistent with the land use plan. 
  6.36     Sec. 10.  [CONSTRUCTION CODES ADVISORY COUNCIL; TECHNICAL 
  7.1   ADVISORY GROUP.] 
  7.2      Subdivision 1.  [ESTABLISHMENT; PURPOSE.] The construction 
  7.3   codes advisory council created under Minnesota Statutes, section 
  7.4   16B.76, shall establish a technical advisory group to study and 
  7.5   make recommendations on model development and redevelopment 
  7.6   ordinances for adoption by local jurisdictions.  The purpose of 
  7.7   the advisory group is to recommend ways that local governments 
  7.8   may simplify and reduce the cost of redevelopment in fully 
  7.9   developed areas and mixed-use and compact new development.  The 
  7.10  advisory group shall: 
  7.11     (1) examine current laws, codes, rules, and standards 
  7.12  relating to redevelopment and mixed-use new development; 
  7.13     (2) review development codes implemented in other states 
  7.14  and evaluate the feasibility of implementing such provisions in 
  7.15  Minnesota; 
  7.16     (3) recommend steps that state agencies may take to 
  7.17  encourage adoption and implementation of these model development 
  7.18  ordinances; and 
  7.19     (4) draft model ordinances that include, but are not 
  7.20  limited to, standards relating to building height, building 
  7.21  setbacks, lot size, density, bulk and scale, street widths, 
  7.22  sustainable streets, parking requirements, and open space and 
  7.23  landscaping. 
  7.24     Subd. 2.  [MEMBERSHIP.] In addition to the members of the 
  7.25  construction codes advisory council, the council may appoint the 
  7.26  following persons to serve on the advisory group established 
  7.27  under subdivision 1: 
  7.28     (1) the director of the strategic and long-range planning 
  7.29  office or the director's designee; 
  7.30     (2) the commissioner of the housing finance agency or the 
  7.31  commissioner's designee; 
  7.32     (3) the chair of the metropolitan council or the chair's 
  7.33  designee; 
  7.34     (4) a local planning official; 
  7.35     (5) in consultation with the association of metropolitan 
  7.36  municipalities, league of cities, Minnesota association of 
  8.1   townships, and league of small cities, four representatives of 
  8.2   local units of government, which may include mayors, city 
  8.3   council members, directors of economic or housing development 
  8.4   authorities, and local planning officials; 
  8.5      (6) one member appointed by the speaker of the house of 
  8.6   representatives, one member appointed by the minority leader of 
  8.7   the house of representatives, one member of the majority caucus 
  8.8   of the senate, and one member of a minority caucus of the 
  8.9   senate, appointed by the subcommittee on committees of the 
  8.10  senate committee on rules and administration; and 
  8.11     (7) other interested persons, not to exceed 15 persons, as 
  8.12  deemed appropriate and necessary by the commissioner of the 
  8.13  housing finance agency. 
  8.14     Subd. 3.  [REPORT.] By December 1, 2002, the advisory group 
  8.15  shall report its findings and recommendations to the governor 
  8.16  and the legislature.  The advisory group may recommend changes 
  8.17  in laws or rules to promote adoption of the model development 
  8.18  ordinances.  The advisory group may establish subcommittees to 
  8.19  facilitate its work.  If the advisory group establishes 
  8.20  subcommittees it shall include in their membership 
  8.21  representation from entities and organizations expressing an 
  8.22  interest in membership.  The council shall maintain a list of 
  8.23  interested entities and organizations. 
  8.24     Subd. 4.  [STAFF.] The housing finance agency, metropolitan 
  8.25  council, and the strategic and long-range planning office, shall 
  8.26  provide necessary staff and administrative support to the 
  8.27  advisory group. 
  8.28     Sec. 11.  [EXPIRATION.] 
  8.29     Section 10 expires December 1, 2002. 
  8.30     Sec. 12.  [REPEALER.] 
  8.31     Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 462.357, subdivision 5, is 
  8.32  repealed.