1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to county and agricultural society lands; clarifying authority of county 
1.3 	boards and county agricultural societies to exchange lands;amending Minnesota 
1.4 	Statutes 2010, sections 38.01; 373.01, subdivision 1.
1.5 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.6 	Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 38.01, is amended to read:
1.7 	38.01 COUNTY AGRICULTURAL SOCIETIES; FORMATION, POWERS.
1.8 	(a) An agricultural society or association may be incorporated by citizens of any 
1.9 	county, or two or more counties jointly, but only one agricultural society shall be organized 
1.10 	in any county. An agricultural society may sue and be sued in its corporate name; may 
1.11 	adopt bylaws, rules, and regulations, alter and amend the same; may purchase and hold, 
1.12 	lease and control any real or personal property deemed to promote the objects of the 
1.13 	society, and may rent, lease, sell, exchange, and convey the same. Any income from 
1.14 	the rental or lease of the property may be used for any or all of the following purposes: 
1.15 	(1) Acquisition of additional real property; (2) Construction of additional buildings; or 
1.16 	(3) Maintenance and care of the society's property. This section shall not be construed 
1.17 	to preclude the continuance of any agricultural society now existing or the granting of 
1.18 	aid to the society.
1.19 	(b) An agricultural society shall have jurisdiction and control of the grounds upon 
1.20 	which its fairs are held and of the streets and adjacent grounds during the fair, so far 
1.21 	as may be necessary for fair purposes, and are exempt from local zoning ordinances 
1.22 	throughout the year as provided in section 38.16.
1.23 	(c) The society may contract with the sheriff, local municipality, or security guard as 
1.24 	defined in section 626.88 to provide the society with police service. A person providing 
2.1 	police service pursuant to a contract is not, by reason of the contract, classified as an 
2.2 	employee of the agricultural society for any purpose other than the discharge of powers 
2.3 	and duties under the contract.
2.4 	(d) Any person who shall willfully violate any rule or regulation made by agricultural 
2.5 	societies during the days of a fair shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
2.6 	The provisions of this section supersede all special laws on the same subject.

2.7 	Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 373.01, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
2.8 		Subdivision 1.Public corporation; listed powers. (a) Each county is a body politic 
2.9 	and corporate and may:
2.10 	(1) Sue and be sued.
2.11 	(2) Acquire and hold real and personal property for the use of the county, and lands 
2.12 	sold for taxes as provided by law.
2.13 	(3) Purchase and hold for the benefit of the county real estate sold by virtue of 
2.14 	judicial proceedings, to which the county is a party.
2.15 	(4) Sell, lease, and convey real or personal estate owned by the county, and give 
2.16 	contracts or options to sell, lease, or convey it, and make orders respecting it as deemed 
2.17 	conducive to the interests of the county's inhabitants.
2.18 	(5) Make all contracts and do all other acts in relation to the property and concerns 
2.19 	of the county necessary to the exercise of its corporate powers.
2.20 	(b) No sale, lease, or conveyance of real estate owned by the county, except the lease 
2.21 	of a residence acquired for the furtherance of an approved capital improvement project, nor 
2.22 	any contract or option for it, shall be valid, without first advertising for bids or proposals in 
2.23 	the official newspaper of the county for three consecutive weeks and once in a newspaper 
2.24 	of general circulation in the area where the property is located. The notice shall state the 
2.25 	time and place of considering the proposals, contain a legal description of any real estate, 
2.26 	and a brief description of any personal property. Leases that do not exceed $15,000 for any 
2.27 	one year may be negotiated and are not subject to the competitive bid procedures of this 
2.28 	section. All proposals estimated to exceed $15,000 in any one year shall be considered at 
2.29 	the time set for the bid opening, and the one most favorable to the county accepted, but the 
2.30 	county board may, in the interest of the county, reject any or all proposals.
2.31 	(c) Sales of personal property the value of which is estimated to be $15,000 or 
2.32 	more shall be made only after advertising for bids or proposals in the county's official 
2.33 	newspaper, on the county's Web site, or in a recognized industry trade journal. At the same 
2.34 	time it posts on its Web site or publishes in a trade journal, the county must publish in the 
2.35 	official newspaper, either as part of the minutes of a regular meeting of the county board 
3.1 	or in a separate notice, a summary of all requests for bids or proposals that the county 
3.2 	advertises on its Web site or in a trade journal. After publication in the official newspaper, 
3.3 	on the Web site, or in a trade journal, bids or proposals may be solicited and accepted by 
3.4 	the electronic selling process authorized in section 471.345, subdivision 17. Sales of 
3.5 	personal property the value of which is estimated to be less than $15,000 may be made 
3.6 	either on competitive bids or in the open market, in the discretion of the county board. 
3.7 	"Web site" means a specific, addressable location provided on a server connected to the 
3.8 	Internet and hosting World Wide Web pages and other files that are generally accessible 
3.9 	on the Internet all or most of a day.
3.10 	(d) Notwithstanding anything in this section to the contrary herein, the county 
3.11 	may, when acquiring real property for county highway right-of-way, exchange parcels 
3.12 	of real property of substantially similar or equal value without advertising for bids. The 
3.13 	estimated values for these parcels shall must be determined by the county assessor or 
3.14 	private appraisal. Before giving final approval to any exchange of land, the county board 
3.15 	shall hold a public hearing on the exchange. At least two weeks before the hearing, the 
3.16 	county auditor shall post a notice in the auditor's office of the hearing that contains a 
3.17 	description of the lands affected.
3.18 	(e) If real estate or personal property remains unsold after advertising for and 
3.19 	consideration of bids or proposals the county may employ a broker to sell the property. 
3.20 	The broker may sell the property for not less than 90 percent of its appraised market value 
3.21 	as determined by the county. The broker's fee shall be set by agreement with the county but 
3.22 	may not exceed ten percent of the sale price and must be paid from the proceeds of the sale.
3.23 	(f) A county or its agent may rent a county-owned residence acquired for the 
3.24 	furtherance of an approved capital improvement project subject to the conditions set 
3.25 	by the county board and not subject to the conditions for lease otherwise provided by 
3.26 	paragraph (a), clause (4), and paragraphs (b), (c), (d), (e), and (g).
3.27 	(g) In no case shall lands be disposed of without there being reserved to the county 
3.28 	all iron ore and other valuable minerals in and upon the lands, with right to explore for, 
3.29 	mine and remove the iron ore and other valuable minerals, nor shall the minerals and 
3.30 	mineral rights be disposed of, either before or after disposition of the surface rights, 
3.31 	otherwise than by mining lease, in similar general form to that provided by section 93.20
3.32 	for mining leases affecting state lands. The lease shall be for a term not exceeding 50 
3.33 	years, and be issued on a royalty basis, the royalty to be not less than 25 cents per ton of 
3.34 	2,240 pounds, and fix a minimum amount of royalty payable during each year, whether 
3.35 	mineral is removed or not. Prospecting options for mining leases may be granted for 
4.1 	periods not exceeding one year. The options shall require, among other things, periodical 
4.2 	showings to the county board of the results of exploration work done.
4.3 	(h) Notwithstanding anything in this subdivision to the contrary, the county may, 
4.4 	when selling real property owned in fee simple that cannot be improved because of 
4.5 	noncompliance with local ordinances regarding minimum area, shape, frontage, or access, 
4.6 	proceed to sell the nonconforming parcel without advertising for bid. At the county's 
4.7 	discretion, the real property may be restricted to sale to adjoining landowners or may be 
4.8 	sold to any other interested party. The property shall be sold to the highest bidder, but 
4.9 	in no case shall the property be sold for less than 90 percent of its fair market value as 
4.10 	determined by the county assessor. All owners of land adjoining the land to be sold shall 
4.11 	be given a written notice at least 30 days before the sale. This paragraph shall be liberally 
4.12 	construed to encourage the sale of nonconforming real property and promote its return to 
4.13 	the tax roles.