HF 1768

as introduced - 84th Legislature (2005 - 2006) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

A bill for an act
relating to highways; allowing counties to submit
proposals for toll facilities; requiring proposed
development agreements to be available to the public;
placing certain restrictions on toll facility
development agreements; imposing planning requirements
on toll facilities; limiting collection of tolls;
limiting number of toll facility development
agreements; amending Minnesota Statutes 2004, sections
160.85, subdivisions 1, 3a; 160.86; 160.87, by adding
a subdivision; proposing coding for new law in
Minnesota Statutes, chapter 160.

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

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 160.85,
subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

Road authority.

A road authority may
solicit or accept proposals from and enter into development
agreements with new text begin counties or new text end private operators for developing,
financing, designing, constructing, improving, rehabilitating,
owning, and operating toll facilities wholly or partly within
the road authority's jurisdiction. If a road authority solicits
toll facility proposals, it must publish a notice of
solicitation in the State Register.

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 160.85,
subdivision 3a, is amended to read:

Subd. 3a.

Information meeting.

Before approving or
denying a development agreement, the commissioner shall hold a
public information meeting in any municipality or county in
which any portion of the proposed toll facility runs. The
commissioner shall determine the time and place of the
information meeting. new text begin The commissioner shall make the proposed
development agreement available for public review at the meeting
and for a reasonable period of time before the meeting.
new text end

Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 160.86, is
amended to read:

160.86 TOLL FACILITY DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT; REQUIREMENTS.

A development agreement must include the following
provisions:

(a) The toll facility must meet the road authority's
standards of design and construction for roads and bridges of
the same functional classification.

(b) The commissioner must review and approve the location
and design of a bridge over navigable waters as if the bridge
were constructed by a road authority. This requirement does not
diminish the private operator's responsibility for bridge safety.

(c) The private operator shall manage and operate the toll
facility in cooperation with the road authority and subject to
the development agreement.

(d) The toll facility is subject to regular inspections by
the road authority and the commissioner.

(e) The agreement must provide the terms and conditions of
maintenance, snow removal, and police services to the toll
facility. The road authority must provide the services. The
services must meet at least the road authority's standards for
facilities of the same functional classification.

(f) The agreement must establish a reasonable rate of
return on investment and capital during the term of the
agreement.

new text begin (g) A development agreement may not contain a provision
that (1) prohibits or restricts a road authority from
constructing, improving, or maintaining any highway within its
jurisdiction, or (2) prohibits or restricts the development,
design, construction, or operation of public transit facilities
or service, including commuter rail lines.
new text end

Sec. 4.

new text begin [160.865] TOLL FACILITIES; ADDITIONAL PLANNING
REQUIREMENTS.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Inclusion in statewide transportation
improvement program. new text end

new text begin The commissioner of transportation may not
make a development agreement for a toll facility unless the
facility is included in the commissioner's statewide
transportation improvement program for the federal fiscal year
in which construction of the facility would begin.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Report to legislature. new text end

new text begin By January 15 of each
even-numbered year, the commissioner shall submit to the chairs
of the legislative committees having jurisdiction over
transportation policy and finance a status report on development
activities relating to toll facilities during the previous two
years, including:
new text end

new text begin (1) solicitations of interest;
new text end

new text begin (2) requests for letters of interest;
new text end

new text begin (3) calls for corridor concepts;
new text end

new text begin (4) selection of corridors; and
new text end

new text begin (5) formal requests for proposals, requests for
qualifications, and requests for public partners.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Notice to legislative committees. new text end

new text begin The
commissioner shall notify the chairs of the senate and house of
representatives committees having jurisdiction over
transportation policy and finance each time the commissioner
selects a corridor with the intention of soliciting proposals
for a toll facility in that corridor. The notification must be
made within ten days of the selection.
new text end

Sec. 5.

Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 160.87, is
amended by adding a subdivision to read:

new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin Limitation on collection of tolls; use of toll
revenue. new text end

new text begin Notwithstanding subdivisions 1 to 3, a toll facility
operator or road authority may collect tolls on a toll facility
only until all costs related to the construction of the
facility, including right-of-way acquisition and payment of
principal and interest on any debt incurred for its
construction, have been paid.
new text end

Sec. 6.

new text begin [160.94] LIMIT ON DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENTS.
new text end

new text begin The commissioner may not enter into more than two
development agreements under sections 160.84 to 160.92 before
July 1, 2007.
new text end

Sec. 7.

new text begin [160.95] COMPATIBILITY OF TOLL-COLLECTION
SYSTEMS.
new text end

new text begin The commissioner shall take all necessary steps to insure
that (1) all toll facilities use exclusively electronic
collection methods, and (2) to the maximum feasible degree, all
toll-collection systems used in Minnesota are compatible with
each other.
new text end