HF 1390

as introduced - 87th Legislature (2011 - 2012) Posted on 04/06/2011 08:45am

A bill for an act
relating to the environment; modifying powers of the Metropolitan Council
in providing sewage treatment services; amending Minnesota Statutes 2010,
sections 473.515, subdivision 3; 473.517, subdivision 3.

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

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 473.515, subdivision 3, is amended to read:

Subd. 3.

Connections with metropolitan system.

new text begin (a) Except as provided in
paragraph (b), new text end the council may require any person or local government unit in the
metropolitan area to provide for the discharge of its sewage, directly or indirectly, into the
metropolitan disposal system, or to connect any disposal system or part thereof with the
metropolitan disposal system wherever reasonable opportunity therefor is provided; may
regulate the manner in which such connections are made; may require any person or local
government unit discharging sewage into the metropolitan disposal system to provide
preliminary treatment therefor; may prohibit the discharge into the metropolitan disposal
system of any substance which it determines will or may be harmful to the system or
any persons operating it; and may require any local government unit to discontinue the
acquisition, betterment, or operation of any facility for its disposal system wherever and
so far as adequate service is or will be provided by the metropolitan disposal system.

new text begin (b) A local government unit may decline sewage discharge services from the council
and provide its own sewage disposal system if:
new text end

new text begin (1) the local unit of government determines that council charges for sewage
treatment services are having an adverse affect on the business climate within the
jurisdiction of the local government unit; or
new text end

new text begin (2) the local government unit is experiencing problems with groundwater and
surface water interactions and has determined that providing sewage discharge services
within the jurisdiction of the local government unit will assist in correcting the problems.
new text end

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 473.517, subdivision 3, is amended to read:

Subd. 3.

Allocation of treatment, interceptor costs; reserved capacity.

(a)
In preparing each budget the council shall estimate the current costs of acquisition,
betterment, and debt service, only, of the treatment works in the metropolitan disposal
system which will not be used to total capacity during the budget year, and the percentage
of such capacity which will not be used, and shall deduct the same percentage of such
treatment works costs from the current costs allocated under subdivision 1. The council
shall also estimate the current costs of acquisition, betterment, and debt service, only,
of the interceptors in the metropolitan disposal system that will not be used to total
capacity during the budget year, shall estimate the percentage of the total capacity that
will not be used, and shall deduct the same percentage of interceptor costs from the
current costs allocated under subdivision 1. The total amount so deducted with respect
to all treatment works and interceptors in the system shall be allocated among and paid
by the respective local government units in the metropolitan area through a metropolitan
sewer availability charge for each new connection or increase in capacity demand to the
metropolitan disposal system within each local government unit. new text begin The council shall not
assess a sewer availability charge for a change in property use or addition to a property
that does not result in a significant increase in sewer discharge from the property. new text end Amounts
collected through the metropolitan sewer availability charge (SAC) must be deposited in
the council's wastewater reserve capacity fund. Each fiscal year an amount from the
wastewater reserve capacity fund shall be transferred to the wastewater operating fund
for the reserved capacity costs described in this paragraph. For the purposes of this
subdivision, the amount transferred from the wastewater reserve capacity fund to the
wastewater operating fund shall be referred to as the "SAC transfer amount."

(b) If, after appropriate study and a public hearing, the council determines for the
next fiscal year that a reduction of the SAC transfer amount is necessary or desirable to
ensure adequate funds remain in the wastewater reserve capacity fund, based on a goal
of maintaining at least the next year's estimated SAC transfer amount in the wastewater
reserve capacity fund, the council may reduce the SAC transfer amount for that fiscal year.
If the council reduces the SAC transfer amount for the next fiscal year, the council must
then increase the metropolitan sewer availability charge not less than the greater of six
percent or the annual percentage change in the Consumer Price Index for the metropolitan
region for the previous year plus three percentage points. For the purposes of this
subdivision, any reduction in the SAC transfer amount shall be referred to as the "SAC
transfer deficit." The provisions of this paragraph expire at the end of calendar year 2015.

(c) The council will record on a cumulative basis the total SAC transfer deficit. In
any year that the wastewater reserve capacity fund has a year-end balance of at least two
years' estimated SAC transfer amount, the council shall increase the subsequent annual
SAC transfer amount in excess of the amount required by paragraph (a) with the goal
of eliminating the cumulative total SAC transfer deficit. The annual amount by which
the council increases the SAC transfer amount shall be determined by the council after
appropriate study and a public hearing.

Sec. 3. new text begin APPLICATION.
new text end

new text begin Sections 1 and 2 apply in the counties of Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey,
Scott, and Washington.
new text end