Relating to the organization, operation and financing of state government, appropriating money for transportation and public safety purposes

ARTICLE 1 - APPROPRIATIONS, TRANSPORTATION AND OTHER AGENCIES

Appropriating money to the commissioner of transportation (DOT) for aeronautics, for airport development and assistance, for aviation support and services, for transit and freight, for state and local roads and for general support and services, to the metropolitan council for bus transit and for Hiawatha light rail transit line operations, to the commissioner of public safety for public safety officer survivor benefits, for soft body armor and certain fund reimbursements, for the state patrol, for driver and vehicle services and for traffic and pipeline safety; providing for the payment of tort claims and for certain general contingent accounts; authorizing or requiring certain fund transfers and providing for the continued availability of certain appropriations; requiring certain transportation studies and reports; requiring and providing for the commissioner of public safety to contract with a private consultant to conduct an audit of the web site permitting persons to register motor vehicles online for personal information security breach examination purposes, requiring a report to the legislature by a certain date; expanding authorized uses of the livable communities fund for metropolitan revenue distribution (fiscal disparities) purposes to transportation operations; imposing a surcharge on persons riding or attempting to ride an LRT vehicle without paying, restricting use of the surcharge by the metropolitan council to LRT operations

ARTICLE 2 - PUBLIC SAFETY ACTIVITIES, FEES, ACCOUNTS

Authorizing the commissioner of administration to approve the performance of mail related functions by outside agencies under the central mail handling unit under certain conditions; modifying certain vehicle registration tax and fee provisions and certain fee or tax deposit requirements of the commissioner of public safety; increasing fees for motor vehicle transfers and for certain driver and vehicle services; expanding the traffic regulation provision relating to passing parked emergency vehicles displaying emergency lighting to the passing of tow trucks; increasing drivers license and identification (ID) card fees and imposing certain repeat examination fees; modifying or clarifying certain special license plate and motor vehicle dealer license provisions; providing for expedited driver and vehicle services and for record copies, fees; modifying certain procedures for the appointment of deputy registrars; expanding the definition of essential employee under the public employment labor relations act (PELRA) to public safety radio communications operators and providing for assignment of the operators to the appropriate state bargaining unit; creating the driver and vehicle services operating accounts in the special revenue fund for the deposit of certain fees and providing for annual transfers from the general fund to the accounts for use by the commissioner for driver and vehicle services administration purposes; making certain technical and clarifying amendments; specifying certain reference change or correction and renumbering instructions to the revisor of statutes; repealing the bicycle registration program

ARTICLE 3 - TRANSPORTATION FUNDING

Expanding the county wheelage tax statewide, increasing the limit, providing for applicability and requiring crediting to the road and bridge fund of the county levying the tax; modifying the imposition of the motor vehicle registration tax on passenger automobiles in subsequent years; increasing the gasoline and special fuels tax rates; increasing the percentage of revenues from the in lieu tax on lottery tickets required to be deposited in the heritage enhancement account and the natural resources fund; requiring the deposit of certain percentages of sales tax revenues from sales in the metropolitan area to the metropolitan area and greater Minnesota transit funds; modifying the percentage of motor vehicle sales tax revenues required to be deposited in the highway user tax distribution and the metropolitan area and greater Minnesota transit funds; appropriating money to the commissioner of transportation (DOT) and authorizing the issuance of state bonds for trunk highway improvements; proposing an amendment to the Minnesota constitution, article XIV to dedicate motor vehicle sales tax revenues to highway and transit purposes

ARTICLE 4 - COUNTY STATE AID FUND DISTRIBUTION FORMULA

Modifying the county state aid highway fund apportionment formula, providing for the calculation and apportionment of the apportionment and excess sums and of the construction apportionment

ARTICLE 5 - TRANSPORTATION POLICY

Authorizing the commissioner of transportation to bill highway operations units of the DOT and local road authorities for the costs of a centrally managed highway sign program, establishing a special account in the trunk highway fund for deposit of receipts; limiting the collection of tolls by toll facility operators or road authorities; designating a certain portion of trunk highway #371 as the purple heart memorial highway and the interstate bridge on trunk highway #10 connecting the city of Moorhead with the city of Fargo, North Dakota as the veterans memorial bridge; modifying the interest rate on advances by road authorities to the commissioner to expedite trunk highway construction projects, requiring a rate agreed upon by the parties; increasing the amount from the county state aid highway fund required to be set aside for department administrative costs; authorizing county use of county state aid highway fund apportionments to aid towns in the replacement of town road signs; defining or redefining certain terms for motor vehicle registration purposes; modifying and clarifying the registration tax exemption for persons engaged in active military service; waiving the fee for nonresident temporary new motor vehicle permits for information electronically transmitted to the commissioner of public safety by dealers or deputy motor vehicle registrars and modifying the permit posting requirement; expanding eligibility for collector vehicle license plates; authorizing and providing for the issuance of personalized special veterans motor vehicle license plates and authorizing display of the plates on certain larger noncommercial trucks; exempting special veterans motorcycle license plates from certain design requirements and eliminating the limit on the number of vehicle license plate sets allowed to be issued to veterans; authorizing and providing for the issuance of special motor vehicle license plates to veterans of the global war on terrorism and to recipients of the Iraq or Afghanistan campaign medals and imposing a temporary surcharge on issuance of the plates for deposit in the vehicle services operating account in the special revenue fund; providing for the issuance of special license plates for eligible members of the disabled American veterans and for Minnesota military family support organization license plates, establishing the Minnesota military family support organization account; modifying certain requirements regulating motor vehicle ownership transfers and registration tax refunds; removing certain exceptions to the definition of commercial motor vehicle relating to the transportation of hazardous materials for traffic regulations and drivers license purposes; expanding the definition of recreational vehicle combination to certain motor vehicle carriers hauling equestrian equipment or supplies, authorizing operation of combinations exceeding certain length limits without a permit; clarifying the prohibition on driving vehicles on roadway shoulders to pass on the right; authorizing implements of husbandry to be operated or towed to the left half of the roadway under certain conditions; authorizing buses used to transport adults to and from day activity centers to be equipped with school bus prewarning flashing amber signals and stop signal arms, specifying conditions for operator activation of equipment; authorizing electronic toll collection devices to hang between the driver and the windshield; increasing the gross weight limit for certain vehicles or combinations hauling livestock on noninterstate trunk highways, requiring a permit and specifying a fee; clarifying the exception from certain weight record requirements for motor carriers hauling raw or unfinished forest products; authorizing the commissioner of transportation to issue special oversize load permits for the transport of manufactured storage buildings and providing for the issuance of special permits for certain vehicles hauling paper products, requiring compliance with certain restrictions and imposing an annual fee; extending the exemption for vehicles transporting milk from seasonal highway weight restrictions; modifying certain uniform traffic ticket content requirements; modifying the period of drivers license revocation for commercial motor vehicle operators driving while impaired (DWI); removing Canadian provinces from the definition of state and defining tank vehicle for drivers license purposes; modifying the validity of class D drivers licenses for the operation of farm trucks and for the towing of vehicles; making certain technical and clarifying modifications; expanding the drivers license exemption for persons employed by the federal government to operate motor vehicles owned by or leased to the federal government and clarifying the exemption for military personnel; extending the validity of instruction permits; modifying the percentage of excess two wheeled vehicle endorsement duplicate drivers license additional fees to be credited to the general fund; requiring the commissioner of public safety to indicate on commercial drivers licenses restrictions on the operation of commercial motor vehicles equipped with air brakes for persons not successfully completing the air brake component of the skills test; extending certain drivers records retention requirements relating to violations of driver or vehicle out of service orders or to certain alcohol related offenses; modifying the requirement relating to the recording of certain speed limit violations; requiring examination before drivers license renewal of certain habitual violators; specifying certain commissioner commercial drivers license records check requirements; requiring commercial motor vehicle operation disqualification under federal standards, expanding the exemptions to authorized emergency vehicle operators operating commercial motor vehicles and excluding certain violation convictions relating to the operation of vehicles other than commercial vehicles from disqualification period determination; requiring the department of public safety to participate fully in the commercial drivers license information system; authorizing the commissioner to suspend drivers licenses of persons paying drivers license fees with bad checks; specifying certain state aviation planning requirements, requiring the commissioner of transportation to create an advisory council; temporarily authorizing commissioner grants from the state transportation fund to certain smaller cities for design and preliminary engineering of bridges on city streets, specifying a total grants limit; providing for drivers license renewal and motor vehicle registration for persons in active military service; creating a Minnesota grade crossing safety account in the special revenue fund for rail highway grade crossing safety projects on public streets and highways; exempting housing and redevelopment authority (HRA) facilities built to facilitate the operation of public transit from competitive bidding requirements; authorizing the metropolitan council to enter into agreements with cities or towns to join the metropolitan transit taxing district, specifying certain agreement content requirements and certain property tax levy options; requiring certain metropolitan airports commission (MAC) meetings on noise mitigation efforts; authorizing the Dakota county regional railroad authority to construct and operate a bus rapid transit system in the Cedar avenue transit corridor; requiring the commissioner of public safety to suspend the program to verify insurance coverage through sampling, providing for reinstatement of suspended licenses, dismissal of charges, removal of previous violations and vacation of convictions, requiring remediation by insurers and a report by the commissioner to the legislature on the operation of the program, requiring the commissioner to use certain unspent funds for program suspension administration; providing a wetland replacement requirement exemption for trail construction in or near the city of Cologne; establishing a speed limit for trains operated within the city of Orr in St. Louis county to eliminate or reduce local safety hazards; prohibiting state and local agencies from requiring a permit to park at state funded park and ride facilities; reducing the ethanol mandate upon commissioner determination of a loss of federal transportation funds; specifying certain DOT bicycling and walking promotion policy requirements; requiring the commissioner of public safety to appoint an additional deputy registrar of motor vehicles and drivers license agent for Hennepin county and to appoint the Carver county auditor as a deputy motor vehicle registrar and drivers license agent in the city of Chanhassen; requiring the commissioner of transportation and the metropolitan council to jointly conduct a study on the feasibility of implementing a BRT system in the transportation corridor between Stillwater and St. Paul and report to the legislature by a certain date; repealing the definition of sworn statement and the requirement for notice to the registrar of engine or motor transfers, certain commercial motor vehicle drivers license disqualification requirements, the definition of off peak hours for metropolitan transit fare policy purposes and certain rules regulating motor carriers
(Ch. 88, 2005 - VETO)