HF 416

1st Engrossment - 84th Legislature (2005 - 2006) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

A bill for an act
relating to metropolitan government; changing
residency requirements for membership on the
Metropolitan Council and the Metropolitan Airports
Commission; amending Minnesota Statutes 2004, sections
473.123, subdivisions 2a, 3; 473.604, subdivision 1.

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

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 473.123,
subdivision 2a, is amended to read:

Subd. 2a.

Terms.

Following each apportionment of council
districts, as provided under subdivision 3a, council members
must be appointed from newly drawn districts as provided in
subdivision 3a. new text begin At the time of appointment, new text end each council
member, other than the chair, must reside in the council
district represented new text begin and must have resided in the council
district for at least six months and in the state for at least
one year immediately preceding the appointment new text end . Each council
district must be represented by one member of the council. The
terms of members end with the term of the governor, except that
all terms expire on the effective date of the next
apportionment. A member serves at the pleasure of the
governor. A member shall continue to serve the member's
district until a successor is appointed and qualified; except
that, following each apportionment, the member shall continue to
serve at large until the governor appoints 16 council members,
one from each of the newly drawn council districts as provided
under subdivision 3a, to serve terms as provided under this
section. The appointment to the council must be made by the
first Monday in March of the year in which the term ends.

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 473.123,
subdivision 3, is amended to read:

Subd. 3.

Membership; appointment; qualifications.

(a)
Sixteen members must be appointed by the governor from districts
defined by this section. new text begin At the time of appointment, new text end each
council member must reside in the council district
represented new text begin and must have resided in the council district for at
least six months and in the state for at least one year
immediately preceding the appointment new text end . Each council district
must be represented by one member of the council.

(b) In addition to the notice required by section 15.0597,
subdivision 4, notice of vacancies and expiration of terms must
be published in newspapers of general circulation in the
metropolitan area and the appropriate districts. The governing
bodies of the statutory and home rule charter cities, counties,
and towns having territory in the district for which a member is
to be appointed must be notified in writing. The notices must
describe the appointments process and invite participation and
recommendations on the appointment.

(c) The governor shall create a nominating committee,
composed of seven metropolitan citizens appointed by the
governor, to nominate persons for appointment to the council
from districts. Three of the committee members must be local
elected officials. Following the submission of applications as
provided under section 15.0597, subdivision 5, the nominating
committee shall conduct public meetings, after appropriate
notice, to accept statements from or on behalf of persons who
have applied or been nominated for appointment and to allow
consultation with and secure the advice of the public and local
elected officials. The committee shall hold the meeting on each
appointment in the district or in a reasonably convenient and
accessible location in the part of the metropolitan area in
which the district is located. The committee may consolidate
meetings. Following the meetings, the committee shall submit to
the governor a list of nominees for each appointment. The
governor is not required to appoint from the list.

(d) Before making an appointment, the governor shall
consult with all members of the legislature from the council
district for which the member is to be appointed.

(e) Appointments to the council are subject to the advice
and consent of the senate as provided in section 15.066.

(f) Members of the council must be appointed to reflect
fairly the various demographic, political, and other interests
in the metropolitan area and the districts.

(g) Members of the council must be persons knowledgeable
about urban and metropolitan affairs.

(h) Any vacancy in the office of a council member shall
immediately be filled for the unexpired term. In filling a
vacancy, the governor may forgo the requirements of paragraph
(c) if the governor has made appointments in full compliance
with the requirements of this subdivision within the preceding
12 months.

Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 473.604,
subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

Composition.

The commission consists of:

(1) the mayor of each of the cities, or a qualified voter
appointed by the mayor, for the term of office as mayor;

(2) eight members, appointed by the governor from each of
the following agency districts:

(i) district A, consisting of council districts 1 and 2;

(ii) district B, consisting of council districts 3 and 4;

(iii) district C, consisting of council districts 5 and 6;

(iv) district D, consisting of council districts 7 and 8;

(v) district E, consisting of council districts 9 and 10;

(vi) district F, consisting of council districts 11 and 12;

(vii) district G, consisting of council districts 13 and
14; and

(viii) district H, consisting of council districts 15 and
16.

new text begin At the time of appointment, new text end each member shall be a resident of
the district represented new text begin and must have been a resident of the
council district for at least six months and of the state for at
least one year immediately preceding the appointment new text end . Before
making an appointment, the governor shall consult with each
member of the legislature from the district for which the member
is to be appointed, to solicit the legislator's recommendation
on the appointment;

(3) four members appointed by the governor from outside of
the metropolitan area to reflect fairly the various regions and
interests throughout the state that are affected by the
operation of the commission's major airport and airport system.
Two of these members must be residents of statutory or home rule
charter cities, towns, or counties containing an airport
designated by the commissioner of transportation as a key
airport. The other two must be residents of statutory or home
rule charter cities, towns, or counties containing an airport
designated by the commissioner of transportation as an
intermediate airport. The members must be appointed by the
governor as follows: one for a term of one year, one for a term
of two years, one for a term of three years, and one for a term
of four years. All of the terms start on July 1, 1989. The
successors of each member must be appointed to four-year terms
commencing on the first Monday in January of each fourth year
after the expiration of the original term. Before making an
appointment, the governor shall consult each member of the
legislature representing the municipality or county from which
the member is to be appointed, to solicit the legislator's
recommendation on the appointment; and

(4) a chair appointed by the governor for a term of four
years. The chair may be removed at the pleasure of the governor.

Sec. 4. new text begin APPLICATION.
new text end

new text begin This act applies in the counties of Anoka, Carver, Dakota,
Hennepin, Ramsey, Scott, and Washington.
new text end

Sec. 5. new text begin EFFECTIVE DATE.
new text end

new text begin Sections 1 to 4 are effective for appointments made on or
after January 1, 2007.
new text end