HF 1082

as introduced - 83rd Legislature (2003 - 2004) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to the state auditor; changing outdated 
  1.3             language; modifying duties of the state auditor; 
  1.4             clarifying accrued liability determination; amending 
  1.5             Minnesota Statutes 2002, sections 6.71; 6.72, 
  1.6             subdivision 1; 6.74; 6.75; 6.77; 69.772, subdivision 
  1.7             2; 115A.929; 306.95; 458D.17, subdivision 5; 471.696; 
  1.8             477A.014, subdivision 4; proposing coding for new law 
  1.9             in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 6; repealing Minnesota 
  1.10            Statutes 2002, sections 3.971, subdivision 8; 149A.97, 
  1.11            subdivision 8; 163.10; 306.97. 
  1.12  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.13     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 6.71, is 
  1.14  amended to read: 
  1.15     6.71 [SCOPE OF AUDITOR'S INVESTIGATION.] 
  1.16     Whenever the governing body of a city, town, or school 
  1.17  district shall have requested a public accountant to make an 
  1.18  audit of its books and affairs, and such audit is in progress or 
  1.19  has been completed, and freeholders registered voters or 
  1.20  electors petition or the governing body requests or both the 
  1.21  state auditor to make an examination covering the same, or part 
  1.22  of the same, period, the state auditor may, in the public 
  1.23  interest, limit the scope of the examination to less than that 
  1.24  specified in section 6.54, but the scope shall cover, at least, 
  1.25  an investigation of those complaints which are within the state 
  1.26  auditor's powers and duties to investigate.  
  1.27     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 6.72, subdivision 
  1.28  1, is amended to read: 
  2.1      Subdivision 1.  [REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.] Commencing 
  2.2   November 15, 1981, and every two years thereafter, as funds and 
  2.3   personnel permit, the state auditor shall report to the 
  2.4   legislature on the general financial condition of the various 
  2.5   volunteer firefighters' relief associations in the state as of 
  2.6   December 31 of the year preceding the filing of the report.  Two 
  2.7   copies of the report shall be filed with the executive director 
  2.8   of the legislative commission on pensions and retirement and ten 
  2.9   copies of the report shall be filed with the director of the 
  2.10  legislative reference library.  
  2.11     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 6.74, is amended 
  2.12  to read: 
  2.13     6.74 [INFORMATION COLLECTED FROM LOCAL GOVERNMENTS.] 
  2.14     The state auditor, or a designated agent, shall collect 
  2.15  annually, as funds and personnel permit, from all city, county, 
  2.16  and other local units of government, information as to the 
  2.17  assessment of property, collection of taxes, receipts from 
  2.18  licenses and other sources, the expenditure of public funds for 
  2.19  all purposes, borrowing, debts, principal and interest payments 
  2.20  on debts, and such other information as may be needful.  The 
  2.21  data shall be supplied upon blanks forms prescribed by the state 
  2.22  auditor, and all public officials so called upon shall fill out 
  2.23  properly and return promptly all blanks forms so transmitted.  
  2.24  The state auditor or assistants, may examine local records in 
  2.25  order to complete or verify the information.  
  2.26     Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 6.75, is amended 
  2.27  to read: 
  2.28     6.75 [ANNUAL REPORT.] 
  2.29     The state auditor shall, as funds and personnel permit, 
  2.30  make and file, annually, in the state auditor's office a summary 
  2.31  report of the information collected, with such compilations and 
  2.32  analyses and interpretations as may be deemed helpful.  Copies 
  2.33  of such report may be made and distributed to interested persons 
  2.34  and governmental units.  A copy of the report shall be forwarded 
  2.35  to the legislative auditor.  
  2.36     Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 6.77, is amended 
  3.1   to read: 
  3.2      6.77 [LOCAL GOVERNMENT EXPENDITURES FOR LEGAL COSTS.] 
  3.3      (a) On or before January 1, 1998, and each year thereafter, 
  3.4   The state auditor, as funds and personnel permit, shall collect 
  3.5   from all counties, cities of the first, second, and third class, 
  3.6   and school districts with enrollment exceeding 100 students, 
  3.7   information as to expenditure of public funds for legal services 
  3.8   incurred to defend the entity from lawsuits and amounts paid in 
  3.9   voluntary settlements or judgments in any lawsuit.  The data 
  3.10  must include costs incurred for any fees paid as retainers for 
  3.11  outside counsel.  Fees paid for attorneys who perform work on 
  3.12  criminal or prosecutorial matters must be reported.  
  3.13     (b) The state auditor shall make and file, annually, as 
  3.14  funds and personnel permit, in the state auditor's office a 
  3.15  summary report of the information collected.  Copies of the 
  3.16  report may be made and distributed to interested persons and 
  3.17  governmental units. 
  3.18     Sec. 6.  [6.78] [BEST PRACTICES REVIEWS.] 
  3.19     The state auditor shall conduct best practices reviews that 
  3.20  examine the procedures and practices used to deliver local 
  3.21  government services, determine the methods of local government 
  3.22  service delivery, identify variations in cost and effectiveness, 
  3.23  and identify practices to save money or provide more effective 
  3.24  service delivery.  The state auditor shall recommend to local 
  3.25  governments service delivery methods and practices to improve 
  3.26  the cost-effectiveness of services.  The state auditor shall 
  3.27  determine the local government services to be reviewed in 
  3.28  consultation with representatives of the Association of 
  3.29  Minnesota Counties, the League of Minnesota Cities, the 
  3.30  Association of Metropolitan Municipalities, the Minnesota 
  3.31  Association of Townships, and the Minnesota Association of 
  3.32  School Administrators. 
  3.33     Sec. 7.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 69.772, 
  3.34  subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
  3.35     Subd. 2.  [DETERMINATION OF ACCRUED LIABILITY.] Each 
  3.36  firefighters' relief association which pays a service pension 
  4.1   when a retiring firefighter meets the minimum requirements for 
  4.2   entitlement to a service pension specified in section 424A.02 
  4.3   and which in its articles of incorporation or bylaws requires 
  4.4   service credit for a period of service of at least 20 years of 
  4.5   active service for a totally nonforfeitable service pension 
  4.6   shall determine the accrued liability of the special fund of the 
  4.7   firefighters' relief association relative to each active or 
  4.8   deferred member of the relief association, calculated 
  4.9   individually using the following table: 
  4.10           Cumulative                       Accrued
  4.11              Year                         Liability
  4.12          .............                  .............
  4.13                1                            $  60 
  4.14                2                              124 
  4.15                3                              190 
  4.16                4                              260 
  4.17                5                              334 
  4.18                6                              410 
  4.19                7                              492 
  4.20                8                              576 
  4.21                9                              666 
  4.22               10                              760 
  4.23               11                              858 
  4.24               12                              962 
  4.25               13                             1070 
  4.26               14                             1184 
  4.27               15                             1304 
  4.28               16                             1428 
  4.29               17                             1560 
  4.30               18                             1698 
  4.31               19                             1844 
  4.32               20                             2000 
  4.33               21 and thereafter               100 additional
  4.34                                                   per year
  4.35     As set forth in the table the accrued liability for each 
  4.36  member or deferred member of the relief association corresponds 
  5.1   to the cumulative years of active service to the credit of the 
  5.2   member.  The accrued liability of the special fund for each 
  5.3   active or deferred member is determined by multiplying the 
  5.4   accrued liability from the chart by the ratio of the lump sum 
  5.5   service pension amount currently provided for in the bylaws of 
  5.6   the relief association to a service pension of $100 per year of 
  5.7   service.  If a member has fractional service as of December 31, 
  5.8   the figure for service credit to be used for the determination 
  5.9   of accrued liability pursuant to this section shall be rounded 
  5.10  to the nearest full year of service credit.  The total accrued 
  5.11  liability of the special fund as of December 31 shall be the sum 
  5.12  of the accrued liability attributable to each active or deferred 
  5.13  member of the relief association.  
  5.14     To the extent that the state auditor considers it to be 
  5.15  necessary or practical, the state auditor may specify and issue 
  5.16  procedures, forms, or mathematical tables for use in performing 
  5.17  the calculations required pursuant to this subdivision. 
  5.18     Sec. 8.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 115A.929, is 
  5.19  amended to read: 
  5.20     115A.929 [FEES; ACCOUNTING.] 
  5.21     Each political subdivision that provides for solid waste 
  5.22  management shall account for all revenue collected from waste 
  5.23  management fees, together with interest earned on revenue from 
  5.24  the fees, separately from other revenue collected by the 
  5.25  political subdivision and shall report revenue collected from 
  5.26  the fees and use of the revenue separately from other revenue 
  5.27  and use of revenue in any required financial report or audit.  
  5.28  Each political subdivision must file with the director, on or 
  5.29  before June 30 annually, the separate report of all revenue 
  5.30  collected from waste management fees, together with interest on 
  5.31  revenue from the fees, for the previous year.  For the purposes 
  5.32  of this section, "waste management fees" means: 
  5.33     (1) all fees, charges, and surcharges collected under 
  5.34  sections 115A.919, 115A.921, and 115A.923; 
  5.35     (2) all tipping fees collected at waste management 
  5.36  facilities owned or operated by the political subdivision; 
  6.1      (3) all charges imposed by the political subdivision for 
  6.2   waste collection and management services; and 
  6.3      (4) any other fees, charges, or surcharges imposed on waste 
  6.4   or for the purpose of waste management, whether collected 
  6.5   directly from generators or indirectly through property taxes or 
  6.6   as part of utility or other charges for services provided by the 
  6.7   political subdivision. 
  6.8      Sec. 9.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 306.95, is 
  6.9   amended to read: 
  6.10     306.95 [DUTIES OF THE COUNTY AUDITOR.] 
  6.11     Subdivision 1.  [NOTIFICATION OF STATE AUDITOR.] Any county 
  6.12  auditor finding evidence of violations of this chapter when 
  6.13  reviewing reports or bonds filed by any person, firm, 
  6.14  partnership, association, or corporation operating a cemetery, 
  6.15  mausoleum, or columbarium must notify the state auditor's office 
  6.16  county attorney in a timely manner of such finding. 
  6.17     Subd. 2.  [ANNUAL LETTER.] Every county auditor must file 
  6.18  an annual letter by May 31 with the state auditor's office 
  6.19  county attorney disclosing whether the county auditor has 
  6.20  detected any indications of violations of this chapter in the 
  6.21  reports or bonds which were filed or should have been filed.  If 
  6.22  the county auditor has not detected from the information 
  6.23  supplied to the county auditor any such indications, that fact 
  6.24  must be reported to the state auditor county attorney in the 
  6.25  annual letter. 
  6.26     Sec. 10.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 458D.17, 
  6.27  subdivision 5, is amended to read: 
  6.28     Subd. 5.  [AUDIT.] The board shall provide for and pay the 
  6.29  cost of an independent annual audit of its official books and 
  6.30  records by the state public examiner auditor or a certified 
  6.31  public accountant. 
  6.32     Sec. 11.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 471.696, is 
  6.33  amended to read: 
  6.34     471.696 [FISCAL YEAR; DESIGNATION.] 
  6.35     Beginning in 1979, the fiscal year of a city and all of its 
  6.36  funds shall be the calendar year, except that a city may, by 
  7.1   resolution, provide that the fiscal year for city-owned nursing 
  7.2   homes be the reporting year designated by the commissioner of 
  7.3   human services.  Beginning in 1994, the fiscal year of a town 
  7.4   and all of its funds shall be the calendar year.  The state 
  7.5   auditor may upon request of a town and a showing of inability to 
  7.6   conform, extend the deadline for compliance with this section 
  7.7   for one year. 
  7.8      Sec. 12.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 477A.014, 
  7.9   subdivision 4, is amended to read: 
  7.10     Subd. 4.  [COSTS.] The director of the office of strategic 
  7.11  and long-range planning shall annually bill the commissioner of 
  7.12  revenue for one-half of the costs incurred by the state 
  7.13  demographer in the preparation of materials required by section 
  7.14  4A.02.  The state auditor shall bill the commissioner of revenue 
  7.15  for the costs of best practices reviews and the services 
  7.16  provided by the government information division and the parts of 
  7.17  the constitutional office that are related to the government 
  7.18  information function, not to exceed $217,000 in fiscal year 1992 
  7.19  and $217,000 in fiscal year 1993 and thereafter.  The 
  7.20  commissioner of administration shall bill the commissioner of 
  7.21  revenue for the costs of the local government records program 
  7.22  and the intergovernmental information systems activity, not to 
  7.23  exceed $201,100 in fiscal year 1992 and $205,800 in fiscal year 
  7.24  1993 and thereafter.  The commissioner of employee relations 
  7.25  shall bill the commissioner of revenue for the costs of 
  7.26  administering the local government pay equity function, not to 
  7.27  exceed $56,000 in fiscal year 1992 and $55,000 in fiscal year 
  7.28  1993 and thereafter.  
  7.29     Sec. 13.  [REPEALER.] 
  7.30     Minnesota Statutes 2002, sections 3.971, subdivision 8; 
  7.31  149A.97, subdivision 8; 163.10; and 306.97, are repealed.