HF 1633

as introduced - 80th Legislature (1997 - 1998) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act
  1.2             relating to snowmobiles; requiring snowmobile 
  1.3             liability insurance; authorizing the issuance of civil 
  1.4             citations; requiring lottery game with a snowmobile 
  1.5             safety theme; providing civil and criminal penalties; 
  1.6             appropriating money; amending Minnesota Statutes 1996, 
  1.7             section 349.12, subdivision 25; proposing coding for 
  1.8             new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 84. 
  1.9   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.10     Section 1.  [84.861] [LIABILITY INSURANCE REQUIRED.] 
  1.11     Subdivision 1.  [REQUIREMENT.] An owner of a snowmobile 
  1.12  must obtain and maintain liability insurance that meets the 
  1.13  requirements of this section.  The liability insurance may be a 
  1.14  separate snowmobile policy or a rider to another type of policy. 
  1.15  For purposes of this section, "policy" means coverage provided 
  1.16  in either form. 
  1.17     Subd. 2.  [REQUIRED PROVISIONS.] A snowmobile liability 
  1.18  insurance policy required under subdivision 1 shall, at a 
  1.19  minimum: 
  1.20     (1) state the name and address of the named insured, name 
  1.21  and address of the insurer, policy number, coverage provided by 
  1.22  the policy, premium charged, term, limits of liability, 
  1.23  snowmobile maker's permanent identification number if the 
  1.24  snowmobile has one, and snowmobile's registration number; 
  1.25     (2) state that the coverage meets at least the minimum 
  1.26  requirements of this section; 
  1.27     (3) have stated limits of liability, exclusive of interest 
  2.1   and costs, with respect to each snowmobile that the policy 
  2.2   covers, of not less than $30,000 for bodily injury to one person 
  2.3   in any one accident and, subject to that limit for one person, 
  2.4   of not less than $60,000 for bodily injury to two or more 
  2.5   persons in any one accident; and 
  2.6      (4) obligate the insurer to pay, on behalf of the insured 
  2.7   or anyone else using the snowmobile with the owner's permission, 
  2.8   amounts that the insured or other user is legally obligated to 
  2.9   pay as damages for bodily injury arising out of the ownership, 
  2.10  maintenance, or use of a snowmobile if the injury occurs within 
  2.11  the United States or Canada. 
  2.12     Subd. 3.  [PROOF OF INSURANCE REQUIRED.] (a) A snowmobile 
  2.13  registration or title transfer shall not be granted unless the 
  2.14  owner displays proof of insurance under this section at the time 
  2.15  of application. 
  2.16     (b) A snowmobile user shall have proof of insurance in 
  2.17  possession at all times while using the snowmobile and shall 
  2.18  display it on demand of a conservation officer of the department 
  2.19  of natural resources or other peace officer as defined in 
  2.20  section 626.84. 
  2.21     Subd. 4.  [SEASONAL COVERAGE PERMITTED.] This section does 
  2.22  not require liability coverage to be in effect for the period 
  2.23  between April 15 and October 15. 
  2.24     Subd. 5.  [NONCONFORMING COVERAGE PROHIBITED.] No policy 
  2.25  covering a snowmobile, including a policy providing only 
  2.26  property insurance, shall be issued or renewed to cover any 
  2.27  period between October 15 and April 15 unless the policy 
  2.28  provides liability insurance as required under this section. 
  2.29     Subd. 6.  [ENFORCEMENT.] This section shall be interpreted 
  2.30  and enforced in the same manner as the mandatory automobile and 
  2.31  motorcycle liability insurance requirement to the maximum extent 
  2.32  appropriate. 
  2.33     Subd. 7.  [PENALTIES.] (a) A violation of subdivision 1 or 
  2.34  subdivision 3, paragraph (b), is a misdemeanor. 
  2.35     (b) Upon conviction for a violation referred to in 
  2.36  paragraph (a), the owner's registration shall be revoked and the 
  3.1   owner is ineligible to reregister any snowmobile for the next 60 
  3.2   days that fall between October 15 and April 15. 
  3.3      Sec. 2.  [84.913] [CIVIL PENALTY.] 
  3.4      Subdivision 1.  [AUTHORITY TO ISSUE.] A conservation 
  3.5   officer, sheriff, or deputy may issue a citation to a person who 
  3.6   violates any provision of sections 84.81 to 84.912. 
  3.7      Subd. 2.  [PENALTIES.] A citation shall impose the 
  3.8   following penalties: 
  3.9      (1) $50 for the first violation; 
  3.10     (2) $200 for the second violation in a 12-month period; 
  3.11     (3) $300 and loss of every license or registration being 
  3.12  used for a third or subsequent violation in a two-year period; 
  3.13  and 
  3.14     (4) $50 for removal of a legally posted sign. 
  3.15     Subd. 3.  [APPEAL.] A citation may be appealed under the 
  3.16  procedures in section 116.072, subdivision 6, if the person 
  3.17  requests a hearing by notifying the commissioner of natural 
  3.18  resources in writing within 15 days after receipt of the 
  3.19  citation.  If a hearing is not requested within the 15-day 
  3.20  period, the citation becomes a final order not subject to 
  3.21  further review. 
  3.22     Subd. 4.  [ENFORCEMENT OF CITATIONS.] Citations may be 
  3.23  enforced under section 116.072, subdivisions 9 and 10. 
  3.24     Subd. 5.  [CUMULATIVE REMEDY.] The authority to issue a 
  3.25  citation is in addition to other remedies available under 
  3.26  statutory or common law, except that the state may not seek 
  3.27  penalties under any other provision of law for the incident 
  3.28  subject to the citation. 
  3.29     Subd. 6.  [PAYMENT OF PENALTY.] Penalty fees shall be paid 
  3.30  within 15 days of issuance of the citation to the issuer. 
  3.31     Subd. 7.  [ALLOCATION OF PENALTY FEES.] Penalty fees shall 
  3.32  be deposited in the state treasury and credited to the 
  3.33  snowmobile trails and enforcement account in the natural 
  3.34  resources fund, or in the county treasury if a court hearing is 
  3.35  required.  The amounts credited to the snowmobile trails and 
  3.36  enforcement account are appropriated annually for enforcement 
  4.1   purposes, including purchasing equipment, hiring off-duty peace 
  4.2   officers, and establishing volunteer safety patrols. 
  4.3      Subd. 8.  [OFF-DUTY PEACE OFFICERS.] The commissioner of 
  4.4   natural resources is authorized to hire peace officers from 
  4.5   other jurisdictions for snow and water patrol enforcement 
  4.6   purposes as needed.  Appropriations under subdivision 7 shall be 
  4.7   available for this purpose. 
  4.8      Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 349.12, 
  4.9   subdivision 25, is amended to read: 
  4.10     Subd. 25.  [LAWFUL PURPOSE.] (a) "Lawful purpose" means one 
  4.11  or more of the following:  
  4.12     (1) any expenditure by or contribution to a 501(c)(3) or 
  4.13  festival organization, as defined in subdivision 15a, provided 
  4.14  that the organization and expenditure or contribution are in 
  4.15  conformity with standards prescribed by the board under section 
  4.16  349.154, which standards must apply to both types of 
  4.17  organizations in the same manner and to the same extent; 
  4.18     (2) a contribution to an individual or family suffering 
  4.19  from poverty, homelessness, or physical or mental disability, 
  4.20  which is used to relieve the effects of that poverty, 
  4.21  homelessness, or disability; 
  4.22     (3) a contribution to an individual for treatment for 
  4.23  delayed posttraumatic stress syndrome or a contribution to a 
  4.24  program recognized by the Minnesota department of human services 
  4.25  for the education, prevention, or treatment of compulsive 
  4.26  gambling; 
  4.27     (4) a contribution to or expenditure on a public or private 
  4.28  nonprofit educational institution registered with or accredited 
  4.29  by this state or any other state; 
  4.30     (5) a contribution to a scholarship fund for defraying the 
  4.31  cost of education to individuals where the funds are awarded 
  4.32  through an open and fair selection process; 
  4.33     (6) activities by an organization or a government entity 
  4.34  which recognize humanitarian or military service to the United 
  4.35  States, the state of Minnesota, or a community, subject to rules 
  4.36  of the board, provided that the rules must not include mileage 
  5.1   reimbursements in the computation of the per occasion 
  5.2   reimbursement limit and must impose no aggregate annual limit on 
  5.3   the amount of reasonable and necessary expenditures made to 
  5.4   support: 
  5.5      (i) members of a military marching or colorguard unit for 
  5.6   activities conducted within the state; or 
  5.7      (ii) members of an organization solely for services 
  5.8   performed by the members at funeral services; 
  5.9      (7) recreational, community, and athletic facilities and 
  5.10  activities intended primarily for persons under age 21, provided 
  5.11  that such facilities and activities do not discriminate on the 
  5.12  basis of gender and the organization complies with section 
  5.13  349.154; 
  5.14     (8) payment of local taxes authorized under this chapter, 
  5.15  taxes imposed by the United States on receipts from lawful 
  5.16  gambling, the taxes imposed by section 297E.02, subdivisions 1, 
  5.17  4, 5, and 6, and the tax imposed on unrelated business income by 
  5.18  section 290.05, subdivision 3; 
  5.19     (9) payment of real estate taxes and assessments on 
  5.20  permitted gambling premises wholly owned by the licensed 
  5.21  organization paying the taxes, not to exceed: 
  5.22     (i) for premises used for bingo, the amount that an 
  5.23  organization may expend under board rules on rent for bingo; and 
  5.24     (ii) $35,000 per year for premises used for other forms of 
  5.25  lawful gambling; 
  5.26     (10) a contribution to the United States, this state or any 
  5.27  of its political subdivisions, or any agency or instrumentality 
  5.28  thereof other than a direct contribution to a law enforcement or 
  5.29  prosecutorial agency for a purpose other than enforcement of 
  5.30  snowmobile safety laws and rules; 
  5.31     (11) a contribution to or expenditure by a nonprofit 
  5.32  organization which is a church or body of communicants gathered 
  5.33  in common membership for mutual support and edification in 
  5.34  piety, worship, or religious observances; 
  5.35     (12) payment of one-half of the reasonable costs of an 
  5.36  audit required in section 297E.06, subdivision 4; 
  6.1      (13) a contribution to or expenditure on a wildlife 
  6.2   management project that benefits the public at-large, provided 
  6.3   that the state agency with authority over that wildlife 
  6.4   management project approves the project before the contribution 
  6.5   or expenditure is made; or 
  6.6      (14) expenditures, approved by the commissioner of natural 
  6.7   resources, by an organization for grooming and maintaining 
  6.8   snowmobile trails that are (1) grant-in-aid trails established 
  6.9   under section 85.019, or (2) other trails open to public use, 
  6.10  including purchase or lease of equipment for this purpose. 
  6.11     (b) Notwithstanding paragraph (a), "lawful purpose" does 
  6.12  not include: 
  6.13     (1) any expenditure made or incurred for the purpose of 
  6.14  influencing the nomination or election of a candidate for public 
  6.15  office or for the purpose of promoting or defeating a ballot 
  6.16  question; 
  6.17     (2) any activity intended to influence an election or a 
  6.18  governmental decision-making process; 
  6.19     (3) the erection, acquisition, improvement, expansion, 
  6.20  repair, or maintenance of real property or capital assets owned 
  6.21  or leased by an organization, unless the board has first 
  6.22  specifically authorized the expenditures after finding that (i) 
  6.23  the real property or capital assets will be used exclusively for 
  6.24  one or more of the purposes in paragraph (a); (ii) with respect 
  6.25  to expenditures for repair or maintenance only, that the 
  6.26  property is or will be used extensively as a meeting place or 
  6.27  event location by other nonprofit organizations or community or 
  6.28  service groups and that no rental fee is charged for the use; 
  6.29  (iii) with respect to expenditures, including a mortgage payment 
  6.30  or other debt service payment, for erection or acquisition only, 
  6.31  that the erection or acquisition is necessary to replace with a 
  6.32  comparable building, a building owned by the organization and 
  6.33  destroyed or made uninhabitable by fire or natural disaster, 
  6.34  provided that the expenditure may be only for that part of the 
  6.35  replacement cost not reimbursed by insurance; or (iv) with 
  6.36  respect to expenditures, including a mortgage payment or other 
  7.1   debt service payment, for erection or acquisition only, that the 
  7.2   erection or acquisition is necessary to replace with a 
  7.3   comparable building a building owned by the organization that 
  7.4   was acquired from the organization by eminent domain or sold by 
  7.5   the organization to a purchaser that the organization reasonably 
  7.6   believed would otherwise have acquired the building by eminent 
  7.7   domain, provided that the expenditure may be only for that part 
  7.8   of the replacement cost that exceeds the compensation received 
  7.9   by the organization for the building being replaced; 
  7.10     (4) an expenditure by an organization which is a 
  7.11  contribution to a parent organization, foundation, or affiliate 
  7.12  of the contributing organization, if the parent organization, 
  7.13  foundation, or affiliate has provided to the contributing 
  7.14  organization within one year of the contribution any money, 
  7.15  grants, property, or other thing of value; 
  7.16     (5) a contribution by a licensed organization to another 
  7.17  licensed organization unless the board has specifically 
  7.18  authorized the contribution.  The board must authorize such a 
  7.19  contribution when requested to do so by the contributing 
  7.20  organization unless it makes an affirmative finding that the 
  7.21  contribution will not be used by the recipient organization for 
  7.22  one or more of the purposes in paragraph (a); or 
  7.23     (6) a contribution to a statutory or home rule charter 
  7.24  city, county, or town by a licensed organization with the 
  7.25  knowledge that the governmental unit intends to use the 
  7.26  contribution for a pension or retirement fund. 
  7.27     Sec. 4.  [LOTTERY GAME WITH SNOWMOBILE SAFETY THEME.] 
  7.28     The director of the state lottery shall, in fiscal year 
  7.29  1998, conduct an instant lottery game with a snowmobile safety 
  7.30  theme.  All tickets for the game required by this section must 
  7.31  bear a message designed to increase public awareness of 
  7.32  snowmobile safety. 
  7.33     Sec. 5.  [LOTTERY NET PROCEEDS; APPROPRIATION.] 
  7.34     The commissioner of finance shall, from the amount of state 
  7.35  lottery net proceeds transferred in fiscal year 1998 to the 
  7.36  general fund under Minnesota Statutes, section 349A.10, 
  8.1   subdivision 5, transfer to the snowmobile trails and enforcement 
  8.2   account in the natural resources fund an amount equal to the net 
  8.3   proceeds in fiscal year 1998 from the lottery game conducted 
  8.4   under section 4, as certified to the commissioner by the 
  8.5   director of the state lottery.  The commissioner shall make the 
  8.6   transfer by July 1, 1998.  The amount transferred is 
  8.7   appropriated on that date to the commissioner of natural 
  8.8   resources for snowmobile enforcement and safety programs.  This 
  8.9   appropriation is available until expended.