Relating to the organization, operation and financing of state government, appropriating money for agriculture and rural development

ARTICLE 1 - APPROPRIATIONS, GENERALLY: AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT APPROPRIATIONS

Appropriating money to the commissioner of agriculture for the voluntary cleanup program, for increased monitoring of pesticides in ground and surface waters, for Minnesota grown promotion and sustainable agriculture demonstration projects grants, for livestock siting issues training and technical assistance to county and town officials, for a contract with the university of Minnesota for livestock odor and air quality management research and development, for a second harvest heartland milk purchase grant, for ethanol producer payments, for dairy development and profitability enhancement and dairy business planning grant programs continuation, for the northern crops institute, for a grant to the Minnesota livestock breeders association, for family farm security interest payment adjustments, for aid payments to county and district agricultural societies and associations and for grants to the northern Minnesota forage turf seed advisory committee for research on improved seed production, to the board of animal health, to the agricultural utilization research institute and to the Minnesota horticulture society; classifying certain data collected and maintained by the board of animal health; establishing certain goals for minimization of the use of gasoline and petroleum based diesel fuel by vehicles owned by the state, requiring the commissioner of administration to chair a smartfleet committee to assist state departments in implementing the requirements, specifying certain committee evaluation and reporting requirements; modifying the dates for commissioner of agriculture semiannual reports to the legislature on agricultural fund expenditures to coincide with forecast revenues and expenditures; authorizing the commissioner to impose a nonrefundable application fee for agriculture best management practices loans, increasing the loan limits and lengthening the term of loans for conservation tillage and individual sewage treatment system (ISTS) projects; imposing criminal and administrative penalties for certain licensed food handler law violations and modifying the timelines for commissioner initiation of contested case proceedings after appeal of citations or penalty assessments for agriculture law violations; requiring grain scale testing at export locations or upon request at domestic locations, requiring fees charged by the commissioner for testing scales and weighing equipment to be uniform with the fees charged by the division of weights and measures of the department of commerce; increasing certain permit, license or registration application and inspection and increasing or expanding the application of certain penalty fees; changing the soil and manure testing laboratory certification program from a mandatory to a voluntary program, clarifying certain analyses reporting standards and expanding the application of certain fees, requiring deposit of revenues received under the program in the fertilizer account in the agricultural fund; clarifying the authority of the commissioner of agriculture to enter and inspect public or private places and to issue stop sale orders or directives for plant protection purposes; clarifying certain definitions under the nursery law; prohibiting commissioner issuance of certificates to persons not selling certified nursery stock; expanding the content requirement for certificate applications; prohibiting the sale or distribution of certified nursery stock to uncertified nursery stock dealers or growers; modifying the exemptions from nursery stock dealer certificate requirements for not for profit or occasional sales; modifying certain nursery stock inspection and labeling requirements; expanding and clarifying the restrictions on distributing wildflowers; modifying certain certificate or inspection fee, bee colony registration and commercial feed license application and renewal requirements; extending the expiration date of the organic advisory task force; designating the university of Minnesota veterinary diagnostic laboratory as the official laboratory of the board of animal health, requiring laboratory director periodic activity reports to the board and authorizing the board to assume control of the resources of the laboratory in declared emergencies to effectively address animal disease outbreaks; transferring the regulation of farmed and wild cervidae from the department of agriculture to the board of animal health, requiring the board to adopt implementation rules to provide for the control of cervidae diseases; clarifying the exemption of county agricultural society fair property from local zoning ordinances; defining rural economic infrastructure under the ethanol development program as the development activities enhancing the value of agricultural crop or livestock commodities or by-products or waste from farming operations and authorizing commissioner of agriculture direct payments to rural economic infrastructure producers with excesses available after payments to ethanol producers; requiring and providing for the rural finance authority (RFA) to establish and implement a livestock equipment pilot loan program to help finance the first purchase of livestock related equipment and make livestock facilities improvements, specifying certain borrower eligibility requirements; establishing the rural finance authority revolving loan account to replace the value added agricultural product and methane digester revolving loan funds for receipt of loan repayments, authorizing use for the livestock equipment loan program; specifying certain requirements for the performance of equine teeth floating services, authorizing performance under indirect supervision of licensed veterinarians; modifying certain provisions regulating grain buyers and warehouses and requiring household goods warehouse operators to file with the commissioner and keep open for public inspection printed rate and charge schedules; exempting certain farm labor housing from regulation as a manufactured home park, requiring posting of a severe weather conditions sheltering or safe evacuation plan; modifying the notice requirements of persons applying for permits to construct or expand certain large feedlots and specifying certain economic analysis requirements; requiring public hearings for proposed city or town interim ordinances regulating, restricting or prohibiting activities relating to livestock production; extending and codifying the expiration date of the farmer lender mediation act; enacting the "Personal Responsibility in Food Consumption Act", granting immunity from civil liability to producers, growers, manufacturers, packers, distributors, carriers, holders, marketers or sellers of food or nonalcoholic beverages for actions based on weight gain, obesity or health conditions associated with weight gain or obesity and resulting from long term purchase or consumption of the food or nonalcoholic beverage, exceptions; transferring remaining balances in the value added agricultural product and methane digester loan programs revolving accounts or funds to the rural finance authority revolving loan account; creating a temporary agricultural nutrient task force, specifying certain review and recommendations requirements and requiring a report to the legislature by a certain date; requiring the reliability administrator in the department of commerce to perform a comprehensive technical and economic analysis of the benefits of using biodiesel fuel or biodiesel fuel blends as a residential, industrial and commercial heating fuel and report the results to the legislature by a certain date; specifying certain cross reference change instructions to the revisor of statutes; repealing the waste pesticide account, certain definitions under the nursery law, the expiration date of the provision providing for emergency restrictions on the movement of people, livestock, machinery and other personal property during disastrous animal disease outbreaks and certain rules regulating warehouse operators

ARTICLE 2 - STATE BONDS

Appropriating money to the rural finance authority and authorizing the issuance of state bonds for participation in the beginning farmer, loan restructuring, seller sponsored, agricultural improvement and livestock expansion loan programs, requiring the repayment of debt service to the RFA and specifying certain requirements for loan participations
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