HF 2117

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

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to gambling; providing for the establishment 
  1.3             of state-run casinos; providing duties and powers to 
  1.4             the director of the state lottery; providing for the 
  1.5             use of casino revenues; appropriating money; proposing 
  1.6             coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 349A.
  1.7   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.8      Section 1.  [349A.21] [STATE CASINOS.] 
  1.9      The director of the state lottery shall establish and 
  1.10  operate four casinos, one in each of the first, second, seventh, 
  1.11  and eighth congressional districts.  The director shall provide 
  1.12  by rule the games appropriate to be available in the casinos.  
  1.13  The director shall build, purchase, or lease necessary 
  1.14  facilities for the casinos.  The director may employ state 
  1.15  employees or contract with private vendors to provide services 
  1.16  related to the operation of the casinos to the extent the 
  1.17  director determines is appropriate. 
  1.18     Sec. 2.  [349A.22] [SITING COMMISSION.] 
  1.19     The governor shall appoint a siting commission of five 
  1.20  persons who shall choose sites for the casinos.  The commission 
  1.21  shall invite local government units to propose appropriate 
  1.22  sites.  No site selected may be closer than 20 miles from a 
  1.23  tribal gaming facility.  The commission shall report its choice 
  1.24  of sites before July 1, 1998.  For the purposes of chapter 15, 
  1.25  the siting commission shall be treated as an advisory task force.
  1.26     Sec. 3.  [349A.23] [USE OF REVENUES.] 
  2.1      The net proceeds of the casinos, after allocation pursuant 
  2.2   to article XI, section 14, of the Constitution, are annually 
  2.3   appropriated from a separate account in the general fund to the 
  2.4   commissioner of finance to be used in the following priority: 
  2.5      (1) to discharge the costs to the state incurred after 
  2.6   January 1, 1997, to finance, build, and equip a facility for 
  2.7   major league baseball in the metropolitan area defined by 
  2.8   section 473.121, subdivision 2; 
  2.9      (2) to discharge the costs to the state incurred after 
  2.10  January 1, 1997, to renovate the St. Paul civic center; 
  2.11     (3) to provide $10,000,000 each year to the amateur sports 
  2.12  commission for community-based recreational grant programs; 
  2.13     (4) to the property tax trust fund for the purposes stated 
  2.14  in section 5. 
  2.15     Sec. 4.  [349A.24] [CERTIFICATES OF INDEBTEDNESS.] 
  2.16     To ensure that cash is available for the purposes of 
  2.17  section 3 when needed, the governor may authorize the 
  2.18  commissioner of finance to issue certificates of indebtedness in 
  2.19  anticipation of revenue from the casinos.  Except as provided in 
  2.20  this section, the certificates are subject to section 16A.671. 
  2.21     Sec. 5.  [349A.25] [PROPERTY TAX TRUST FUND.] 
  2.22     Money credited to the property tax trust fund shall be 
  2.23  invested by the state board of investment pursuant to section 
  2.24  11A.24.  The yield from the investment of the principal shall be 
  2.25  used as provided by law to reduce the property taxes on 
  2.26  residential property and to provide equivalent relief to renters 
  2.27  of residential units. 
  2.28     Sec. 6.  [APPROPRIATION.] 
  2.29     $....... is appropriated from the general fund to the 
  2.30  director of the state lottery for the purposes of this act.