1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to commerce; clarifying that certain credit reporting agencies and 
1.3 	employees are not required to be licensed as private detectives; amending 
1.4 	Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 326.3341.
1.5 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.6 	Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 326.3341, is amended to read:
1.7 	326.3341 EXEMPTIONS.
1.8 	Sections 326.32 to 326.339 do not apply to:
1.9 	(1) an employee while providing security or conducting an investigation of a 
1.10 	pending or potential claim against the employee's employer;
1.11 	(2) a peace officer or employee of the United States, this state or one of its political 
1.12 	subdivisions, while engaged in the discharge of official duties for the government 
1.13 	employer;
1.14 	(3) persons engaged exclusively in obtaining and furnishing information as to the 
1.15 	financial standing, rating, and credit responsibility of persons or as to the personal habits 
1.16 	and financial responsibility of applicants for insurance, indemnity bonds, or commercial 
1.17 	credit;
1.18 	(4) an attorney-at-law while performing the duties of an attorney-at-law or an 
1.19 	investigator employed exclusively by an attorney or a law firm engaged in investigating 
1.20 	legal matters;
1.21 	(5) a collection agency or finance company licensed to do business under the laws 
1.22 	of this state or an employee of one of those companies while acting within the scope 
1.23 	of employment when making an investigation incidental to the business of the agency, 
1.24 	including an investigation as to location of a debtor, of the debtor's assets or property, 
2.1 	provided the client has a financial interest in or a lien upon the assets or property of the 
2.2 	debtor;
2.3 	(6) an insurance adjuster employed exclusively by an insurance company, or 
2.4 	licensed as an adjuster with the state of Minnesota and engaged in the business of 
2.5 	adjusting insurance claims; or
2.6 	(7) persons engaged in responding to alarm signals including, but not limited to, fire 
2.7 	alarms, industrial process failure alarms and burglary alarms, for purposes of maintaining, 
2.8 	repairing or resetting the alarm, or for opening the premises for law enforcement personnel 
2.9 	or responding agents.; or
2.10 	(8) a consumer reporting agency, as defined in United States Code, title 15, section 
2.11 	1681a, or its employees, provided that the consumer reporting agency complies with the 
2.12 	federal Fair Credit Reporting Act and that the consumer reporting agency's activities are 
2.13 	limited to conducting preemployment background investigations.  For purposes of this 
2.14 	clause, "preemployment background investigation" means background investigations, 
2.15 	in-person interviews, telephone interviews, or written inquiries that pertain only to a 
2.16 	client's prospective employee and the prospective employee's employment and that are 
2.17 	engaged in with prior written consent of the prospective employee.

2.18 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective retroactively from January 1, 2001.