1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to agriculture; expanding emergency authority 
  1.3             of the board of animal health to eradicate any 
  1.4             dangerous, infectious, or communicable disease 
  1.5             affecting domestic animals in the state; amending 
  1.6             Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 35.09, subdivision 3; 
  1.7             proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, 
  1.8             chapter 35. 
  1.9   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.10     Section 1.  [35.0661] [TEMPORARY EMERGENCY RESTRICTIONS ON 
  1.11  MOVEMENT OF PEOPLE, LIVESTOCK, MACHINERY, AND OTHER PERSONAL 
  1.12  PROPERTY.] 
  1.13     Subdivision 1.  [DISASTROUS ANIMAL DISEASE OUTBREAKS; 
  1.14  DECLARATION OF EMERGENCY.] (a) If the board determines that a 
  1.15  confirmed case of a disease in this state presents a substantial 
  1.16  and imminent threat to the state's domestic animal population, 
  1.17  it shall certify the case to the governor.  After receiving 
  1.18  certification from the board, the governor may declare an 
  1.19  emergency under this section for purposes of allowing the board 
  1.20  to establish quarantine zones of control to protect the health 
  1.21  of domestic animals from animal diseases of potentially 
  1.22  disastrous proportions.  The governor may declare an emergency 
  1.23  under this section without declaring a peacetime emergency under 
  1.24  section 12.31.  A declaration under this section may specify 
  1.25  that it applies to all or certain units of state or local 
  1.26  government, must specify the time period for which it applies, 
  1.27  and must be filed with the secretary of state.  This section is 
  2.1   in addition to and does not limit authority granted to the 
  2.2   governor or local government officials by chapter 12 or other 
  2.3   law. 
  2.4      (b) The board may meet by electronic means without 
  2.5   violating state open meeting laws for the purpose of declaring 
  2.6   that a confirmed case of a disease in this state presents a 
  2.7   substantial and imminent threat to the state's domestic animal 
  2.8   population.  If the board meets by electronic means for this 
  2.9   purpose, it shall comply with the emergency meeting notice 
  2.10  provisions of section 13D.04, subdivision 3, and, to the fullest 
  2.11  extent possible, provide public and media access to the meeting. 
  2.12     Subd. 2.  [QUARANTINE ZONES.] Upon an emergency declaration 
  2.13  by the governor under subdivision 1, the board or any licensed 
  2.14  veterinarian designated by the board may establish quarantine 
  2.15  zones of control in any area where a specific animal is deemed 
  2.16  by a licensed veterinarian as likely to be infected with the 
  2.17  disease based on an actual veterinary examination or laboratory 
  2.18  testing.  Quarantine zones of control must be the smallest size 
  2.19  practicable to prevent the spread of disease and must exist for 
  2.20  the shortest duration consistent with effective disease 
  2.21  control.  A quarantine zone of control must not extend beyond a 
  2.22  radius of three miles from an animal deemed as likely to be 
  2.23  infected with the disease, unless the board has adopted a rule 
  2.24  regarding a specific disease requiring a larger quarantine zone 
  2.25  of control. 
  2.26     Subd. 3.  [RESTRICTIONS ON MOVEMENT OUT OF QUARANTINE 
  2.27  ZONES.] (a) The board may issue orders restricting the movement 
  2.28  of persons, livestock, machinery, and personal property out of 
  2.29  zones designated by the board as quarantined under subdivision 
  2.30  2.  The executive director of the board or any licensed 
  2.31  veterinarian designated by the board may issue the orders.  An 
  2.32  order may be issued upon a determination that reasonable cause 
  2.33  exists to believe that the movement of persons or personal 
  2.34  property out of a quarantine zone will reasonably threaten to 
  2.35  transport a dangerous, infectious, or communicable disease 
  2.36  outside of the quarantine zone. 
  3.1      (b) The order must be served upon any person subject to the 
  3.2   order.  The restrictions sought by the board on movement out of 
  3.3   a quarantine zone must be limited to the greatest extent 
  3.4   possible consistent with the paramount disease control 
  3.5   objectives as determined by the board.  An order under this 
  3.6   section may be served on any day at any time.  The order must 
  3.7   include a notice of the person's rights under this section, 
  3.8   including the ability to enter into an agreement to abide by 
  3.9   disease control measures under paragraph (c) and the right to 
  3.10  request a court hearing under paragraph (d). 
  3.11     (c) No person may be restricted by an order under this 
  3.12  subdivision for longer than 72 hours, exclusive of Saturdays, 
  3.13  Sundays, and legal holidays, so long as the person agrees to 
  3.14  abide by the disease control measures established by the board.  
  3.15  The person shall sign an acknowledgment form prepared by the 
  3.16  board evidencing the person's agreement to abide by the disease 
  3.17  control measures established by the board.  
  3.18     (d) A person whose movements are restricted by an order 
  3.19  under this subdivision may seek a district court hearing on the 
  3.20  order at any time after it is served on the person.  The hearing 
  3.21  may be held by electronic means as soon as possible.  The 
  3.22  subject of the order may: 
  3.23     (1) contest imposition of the order on grounds that it is 
  3.24  an abuse of the board's discretion under this section; or 
  3.25     (2) seek a variance from it to allow movement of a person 
  3.26  inconsistent with the order, upon a showing that the person 
  3.27  would otherwise suffer irreparable harm.  
  3.28     Sec. 2.  [35.0662] [TEMPORARY EMERGENCY RESTRICTIONS 
  3.29  HEARING.] 
  3.30     Subdivision 1.  [GROUNDS.] If the board determines that a 
  3.31  person is not reasonably likely to abide by the disease control 
  3.32  measures established by the board, the board may request a court 
  3.33  hearing to determine if the emergency temporary restrictions 
  3.34  should continue.  The court shall schedule the hearing as 
  3.35  expeditiously as possible.  When the board requests a court 
  3.36  hearing under this section, restrictions under section 1, 
  4.1   subdivision 3, continue to apply to the person until the court 
  4.2   has held the temporary emergency restrictions hearing and issues 
  4.3   an order.  
  4.4      Subd. 2.  [TIME OF NOTICE.] If the board requests a court 
  4.5   hearing pursuant to this section, notice of the hearing must be 
  4.6   served upon the person or persons to be restricted at least 24 
  4.7   hours before the hearing. 
  4.8      Subd. 3.  [CONTENTS OF NOTICE.] The notice must contain the 
  4.9   following information: 
  4.10     (1) the time, date, and place of the hearing; 
  4.11     (2) the grounds and underlying facts upon which continued 
  4.12  restrictions are sought; 
  4.13     (3) the person's right to appear by electronic means at the 
  4.14  hearing and the right to have a representative appear in person 
  4.15  at the hearing; 
  4.16     (4) the person's right to present and cross-examine 
  4.17  witnesses; and 
  4.18     (5) the person's right to counsel, including the right, if 
  4.19  the person is indigent, to representation by counsel designated 
  4.20  by the court or county of venue. 
  4.21     Subd. 4.  [ORDER FOR CONTINUED TEMPORARY RESTRICTIONS.] The 
  4.22  court may order the continued restriction on the movement of the 
  4.23  person if it finds, by a preponderance of the evidence, that 
  4.24  travel outside of the quarantine zone by the person would pose 
  4.25  an imminent threat of transporting a dangerous, infectious, or 
  4.26  communicable disease outside of the boundaries of the quarantine 
  4.27  zone.  If the person agrees to sign and comply with the 
  4.28  acknowledgment form referred to in section 35.0661, subdivision 
  4.29  3, the temporary restrictions must not continue longer than 30 
  4.30  days.  If the person refuses to sign and comply with the 
  4.31  acknowledgment form, the temporary restrictions may continue for 
  4.32  a longer time specified by the court.  Refusal by the person to 
  4.33  sign and comply with the acknowledgment form constitutes a 
  4.34  knowing violation of section 35.0661 and subjects the person to 
  4.35  the penalties specified in section 35.96. 
  4.36     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 35.09, 
  5.1   subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  5.2      Subd. 3.  [EMERGENCIES.] (a) When it is determined by the 
  5.3   board that it is necessary to eradicate any dangerous, 
  5.4   infectious, communicable disease among domestic animals in the 
  5.5   state, the presence of which constitutes an emergency declared 
  5.6   by resolution of the board, order of the governor, or by the 
  5.7   United States Department of Agriculture, the board may take 
  5.8   reasonable and necessary steps to suppress and eradicate the 
  5.9   disease.  If the emergency is declared by the United States 
  5.10  Department of Agriculture, The board may cooperate with the 
  5.11  animal and plant health inspection service of the United States 
  5.12  Department of Agriculture, federally recognized Indian tribes, 
  5.13  state or local government agencies, or any other private or 
  5.14  public entity in the suppression and eradication of the disease. 
  5.15     (b) When an emergency has been declared, the board may 
  5.16  appraise and destroy animals affected with, or which have been 
  5.17  exposed to the disease, and or which are highly susceptible to 
  5.18  exposure to the disease because of proximity to diseased 
  5.19  animals, appraise and destroy personal property in order to 
  5.20  remove the infection and complete the cleaning and disinfection 
  5.21  of the premises, condemn real property for the purpose of 
  5.22  disposing of animals, and do any act and incur any other expense 
  5.23  reasonably necessary to suppress the disease.  
  5.24     (c) The governor, at the request of the board, may 
  5.25  temporarily commandeer agricultural or other suitable 
  5.26  nonresidential land under the provisions of chapter 12 to be 
  5.27  used for disposal of the destroyed animals when an emergency has 
  5.28  been declared by the governor under section 35.0661 and the 
  5.29  board determines that: 
  5.30     (1) the owner of destroyed animals lacks sufficient land to 
  5.31  properly dispose of the animals; 
  5.32     (2) the animals cannot be transported to other sites; 
  5.33     (3) no landowner within the appropriate area will consent 
  5.34  to voluntarily provide land for animal disposal; 
  5.35     (4) time pressures prevent formal condemnation procedures; 
  5.36  and 
  6.1      (5) other means of animal disposal are either impractical 
  6.2   or contrary to good disease control practices. 
  6.3   After the land has been used for animal disposal, possession 
  6.4   shall return to the owner or occupant.  Damages resulting from 
  6.5   the temporary taking shall be paid in the same amount and manner 
  6.6   as if the land had been temporarily condemned for other public 
  6.7   purposes. 
  6.8      (d) The board may accept, on behalf of the state, the rules 
  6.9   adopted by the animal and plant health inspection service of the 
  6.10  United States Department of Agriculture pertaining to the 
  6.11  disease, authorized under an act of Congress, or the portion of 
  6.12  the regulations deemed necessary, suitable, or applicable, and 
  6.13  cooperate with the animal and plant health inspection service of 
  6.14  the United States Department of Agriculture, in the enforcement 
  6.15  of those rules.  Alternatively, the board may follow the 
  6.16  procedure only as to quarantine, inspection, condemnation, 
  6.17  appraisal, compensation, destruction, burial of animals, 
  6.18  disinfection, or other acts the board considers reasonably 
  6.19  necessary for the suppression of the disease, as agreed upon and 
  6.20  adopted by the board and representatives or authorized agents of 
  6.21  the animal and plant health inspection service of the United 
  6.22  States Department of Agriculture.  If the procedures have been 
  6.23  followed under an emergency declared by the United States 
  6.24  Department of Agriculture, the total expense must be shared 
  6.25  equally between the state and federal governments. 
  6.26     (e) For the purpose of compensation under paragraph (f), 
  6.27  appraisals of animals affected with, or exposed to, the disease, 
  6.28  or contact animals, or personal property destroyed in order to 
  6.29  remove the infection and complete the cleaning and disinfection 
  6.30  of premises where the animals are found, must be made by an 
  6.31  appraisal board consisting of a representative of the board, a 
  6.32  representative of the animal and plant health inspection service 
  6.33  of the United States Department of Agriculture, and the owner of 
  6.34  the animals or the owner's representative.  Notwithstanding any 
  6.35  law to the contrary, when, in the judgment of the board, 
  6.36  physical appraisal of the animals to be killed or personal 
  7.1   property to be destroyed poses a disease threat, appraisals may 
  7.2   be conducted after the animals are killed based on documents, 
  7.3   testimony, or other relevant evidence.  Appraisals must be in 
  7.4   writing and signed by the appraisers, and must be made at the 
  7.5   true market value of all animals and personal property appraised
  7.6   , unless otherwise provided by applicable federal law or 
  7.7   regulation when compensation is paid by federal funds. 
  7.8      (f) Upon destruction of animals or personal property, or 
  7.9   both condemnation of real property, and burial or other 
  7.10  disposition of the carcasses of the animals in accordance with 
  7.11  the law and rules of the board and the animal and plant health 
  7.12  inspection service of the United States Department of 
  7.13  Agriculture, and the completion of the cleaning and disinfection 
  7.14  of the premises, the board shall certify the appraisal or the 
  7.15  condemnation award to the commissioner of finance, who shall 
  7.16  draw a warrant on the state treasurer for the proper amount 
  7.17  payable to the owner, excluding any compensation received by the 
  7.18  owner from other sources, from appropriations made available for 
  7.19  this purpose.  If the appraisal is made in respect to animals or 
  7.20  other property destroyed under an emergency declared by the 
  7.21  United States Department of Agriculture, the commissioner of 
  7.22  finance shall draw a warrant on the state treasurer for one-half 
  7.23  of the amount of the appraisal payable to the owner, and the 
  7.24  remaining one-half of the appraisal must be paid by the federal 
  7.25  government under the cooperative arrangement.  If the disease is 
  7.26  of a nature that any part of the carcasses of the diseased or 
  7.27  exposed animals may be salvaged for human food or other 
  7.28  purposes, the net amount of the salvage paid to the owner must 
  7.29  be deducted from the appraisal, and the remainder must be paid 
  7.30  to the owner by the state or by the state and federal government 
  7.31  pursuant to this section. 
  7.32     Sec. 4.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  7.33     Sections 1 to 3 are effective the day following final 
  7.34  enactment.