SF 1709

Introduction - 94th Legislature (2025 - 2026)

Posted on 02/21/2025 10:22 a.m.

A bill for an act
relating to taxation; modifying the rate at which interest accrues on unpaid special
assessments; requiring refunds of certain payments on interest; making technical
changes; amending Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 429.061, subdivisions 2, 3.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 429.061, subdivision 2, is amended to read:

Subd. 2.

Adoption; interest.

At such meeting or at any adjournment thereof the council
shall hear and pass upon all objections to the proposed assessment, whether presented orally
or in writing. The council may amend the proposed assessment as to any parcel and by
resolution adopt the same as the special assessment against the lands named in the assessment
roll. Notice of any adjournment of the hearing shall be adequate if the minutes of the meeting
so adjourned show the time and place when and where the hearing is to be continued.

The council may consider any objection to the amount of a proposed assessment as to
a specific parcel of land at an adjourned hearing upon further notice to the affected property
owner as it deems advisable. At the adjourned hearing the council or a committee of it may
hear further written or oral testimony on behalf of the objecting property owner and may
consider further written or oral testimony from appropriate city officials and other witnesses
as to the amount of the assessment. The council or committee shall prepare a record of the
proceedings at the adjourned hearing and written findings as to the amount of the assessment.
The amount of the assessment as finally determined by the council shall become a part of
the adopted assessment roll. No appeal may be taken as to the amount of any assessment
adopted under this section unless written objection signed by the affected property owner
is filed with the municipal clerk prior to the assessment hearing or presented to the presiding
officer at the hearing. All objections to the assessments not received at the assessment
hearing in the manner prescribed by this subdivision are waived, unless the failure to object
at the assessment hearing is due to a reasonable cause.

If the adopted assessment differs from the proposed assessment as to any particular lot,
piece, or parcel of land, the clerk must mail to the owner a notice stating the amount of the
adopted assessment. Owners must also be notified by mail of any changes adopted by the
council in interest rates or prepayment requirements from those contained in the notice of
the proposed assessment.

The assessment, with accruing interest, shall be a lien upon all private and public property
included therein, from the date of the resolution adopting the assessment, concurrent with
general taxes; but the lien shall not be enforceable against public property as long as it is
publicly owned, and during such period the assessment shall be recoverable from the owner
of such property only in the manner and to the extent provided in section 435.19. Unless
otherwise provided in the resolution, all assessments shall be payable in equal annual
installments extending over such period, not exceeding 30 years, as the resolution determines,
payable on the first Monday in January in each year, but the number of installments need
not be uniform for all assessments included in a single assessment roll if a uniform criterion
for determining the number of installments is provided by the resolution. Assessments on
property located in a targeted neighborhood as defined in Laws 1987, chapter 386, article
6, section 4, may be payable in variable annual installments if the resolution provides for a
variable payment. The first installment of each assessment shall be included in the first tax
rolls completed after its adoption and shall be payable in the same year as the taxes contained
therein; except that the payment of the first installment of any assessment levied upon
unimproved property may be deferred until a designated future year, or until the platting of
the property or the construction of improvements thereon, upon such terms and conditions
and based upon such standards and criteria as may be provided by resolution of the council.
If special assessments against the property have been deferred pursuant to this subdivision,
the governmental unit shall record with the county recorder in the county in which the
property is located a certificate containing the legal description of the affected property and
of the amount deferred. In any event, every assessment the payment of which is so deferred,
when it becomes payable, shall be divided into a number of installments such that the last
installment thereof will be payable not more than 30 years after the levy of the assessment.
All assessments shall bear interest at such rate as the resolution determines. To the first
installment of each assessment shall be added interest on the entire assessment from a date
specified in the resolution levying the assessment, not earlier than the date of the resolution,
until December 31 of the year in which the first installment is payable, and to each subsequent
installment shall be added interest for one year on all unpaid installments; or alternatively,
any assessment may be made payable in equal annual installments including principal and
interest, each in the amount annually required to pay the principal over such period with
interest at such rate as the resolution determines, not exceeding the maximum period and
rate specified above new text begin ; however, if the amount of interest added to the installment under this
paragraph is greater than the amount of interest accrued on the installment to the date of
payment, then the difference between those amounts shall be treated as an overpayment
and made available for claim as a refund as provided in section 276.19 new text end . In the latter event
no prepayment shall be accepted under subdivision 3 without payment of all installments
due to and including December 31 of the year of prepayment, together with the original
principal amount reduced only by the amounts of principal included in such installments,
computed on an annual amortization basis. When payment of an assessment is deferred, as
authorized in this subdivision, interest thereon for the period of deferment may be made
payable annually at the same times as the principal installments of the assessment would
have been payable if not deferred; or interest for this period may be added to the principal
amount of the assessment when it becomes payable; or, if so provided in the resolution
levying the assessment, interest thereon to December 31 of the year before the first
installment is payable may be forgiven.

new text begin EFFECTIVE DATE. new text end

new text begin This section is effective the day following final enactment and
applies to special assessments assessed on or after that date.
new text end

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 429.061, subdivision 3, is amended to read:

Subd. 3.

Transmitted to auditor, prepayment.

After the adoption of the assessment,
the clerk shall transmit a certified duplicate of the assessment roll with each installment,
including interest, set forth separately to the county auditor of the county to be extended on
the proper tax lists of the county; but in lieu of such certification, the council may in its
discretion direct the clerk to file all assessment rolls in the clerk's office and to certify
annually to the county auditor, on or before November 30 in each year, the total amount of
installments of and interest on assessments on each parcel of land in the municipality which
are to become due in the following year. If any installment and interest has not been deleted text begin so deleted text end
certified prior to the year when it is due, the clerk shall forthwith deleted text begin certify the same deleted text end new text begin make the
certification new text end to the county auditor for collection in the deleted text begin then deleted text end succeeding year; and if the
municipality has issued improvement warrants to finance the improvement, it shall pay out
of its general funds into the fund of the improvement interest on the deleted text begin then deleted text end unpaid balance of
the assessment for the year or years during which the collection of such installment is
postponed. All assessments and interest thereon shall be collected and paid over in the same
manner as other municipal taxes. The owner of any property so assessed may, at any time
prior to certification of the assessment or the first installment thereof to the county auditor,
pay the whole of the assessment on such property, with interest accrued to the date of
payment, to the municipal treasurer, except that no interest shall be charged if the entire
assessment is paid within 30 days from the adoption thereof; and, except as hereinafter
provided, the owner may at any time prior to November 15 of any year, prepay to the
treasurer of the municipality having levied said assessments, the whole assessment remaining
due with interest accrued to deleted text begin December 31 of the year in which said prepayment is made deleted text end new text begin the
date of payment new text end . If the assessment roll is retained by the municipal clerk, the installment
and interest in process of collection on the current tax list shall be paid to the county treasurer
and the remaining principal balance of the assessment, if paid, shall be paid to the municipal
treasurer. The council may by ordinance authorize the partial prepayment of assessments,
in such manner as the ordinance may provide, prior to certification of the assessment or the
first installment thereof to the county auditor.

new text begin EFFECTIVE DATE. new text end

new text begin This section is effective the day following final enactment and
applies to special assessments assessed on or after that date.
new text end