1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to natural resources; providing for 
  1.3             reimbursement to property owners for damage caused by 
  1.4             snowmobiles; appropriating money; amending Minnesota 
  1.5             Statutes 2000, sections 84.81, subdivision 1; 84.82, 
  1.6             subdivision 3; 84.83, subdivision 2; proposing coding 
  1.7             for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 84. 
  1.8   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.9      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 84.81, 
  1.10  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  1.11     Subdivision 1.  [APPLICABILITY.] For the purposes of Laws 
  1.12  1967, chapter 876 sections 84.81 to 84.88, the terms defined 
  1.13  herein shall have the meaning ascribed to them. 
  1.14     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 84.82, 
  1.15  subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  1.16     Subd. 3.  [FEES FOR REGISTRATION.] (a) The fee for 
  1.17  registration of each snowmobile, other than those used for an 
  1.18  agricultural purpose, as defined in section 84.92, subdivision 
  1.19  1c, or those registered by a dealer or manufacturer pursuant to 
  1.20  clause (b) or (c) shall be as follows:  $45 for three years and 
  1.21  $4 for a duplicate or transfer. 
  1.22     (b) The total registration fee for all snowmobiles owned by 
  1.23  a dealer and operated for demonstration or testing purposes 
  1.24  shall be $50 per year. 
  1.25     (c) The total registration fee for all snowmobiles owned by 
  1.26  a manufacturer and operated for research, testing, 
  2.1   experimentation, or demonstration purposes shall be $150 per 
  2.2   year.  Dealer and manufacturer registrations are not 
  2.3   transferable. 
  2.4      (d) A damage fee of $300 is required for initial 
  2.5   registration or, for a registration issued before the effective 
  2.6   date of this section, for the first renewal after the effective 
  2.7   date of this section.  For subsequent renewals, the damage fee 
  2.8   shall be determined according to section 84.835. 
  2.9      Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 84.83, 
  2.10  subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
  2.11     Subd. 2.  [MONEY DEPOSITED IN THE ACCOUNT.] Fees from the 
  2.12  registration of snowmobiles, except the damage fee under section 
  2.13  84.82, subdivision 3, paragraph (d), and the unrefunded gasoline 
  2.14  tax attributable to snowmobile use pursuant to section 296A.18, 
  2.15  as well as the net proceeds from the sale of snowmobiles 
  2.16  forfeited pursuant to section 169A.63, shall be deposited in the 
  2.17  state treasury and credited to the snowmobile trails and 
  2.18  enforcement account.  
  2.19     Sec. 4.  [84.835] [SNOWMOBILE DAMAGE ACCOUNT; DAMAGE 
  2.20  CLAIMS.] 
  2.21     Subdivision 1.  [CREATION.] The snowmobile damage account 
  2.22  in the natural resources fund is created in the state treasury. 
  2.23     Subd. 2.  [MONEY DEPOSITED; APPROPRIATION.] Damage fees 
  2.24  from the registration of snowmobiles under section 84.82, 
  2.25  subdivision 3, paragraph (d), shall be deposited in the state 
  2.26  treasury and credited to the snowmobile damage account.  Money 
  2.27  in the account and interest earned on the money is appropriated 
  2.28  to the commissioner to pay claims according to this section. 
  2.29     Subd. 3.  [SNOWMOBILE TRESPASS.] A real property owner 
  2.30  whose property is posted with signs to prohibit the property's 
  2.31  use by snowmobile operators may file a claim under subdivision 5 
  2.32  if the property owner: 
  2.33     (1) has cultivated vegetation on the property, including 
  2.34  but not limited to lawn, trees, cultured sod, and crops; and 
  2.35     (2) obtains verification from a law enforcement officer 
  2.36  that a snowmobile operator has trespassed across the cultivated 
  3.1   vegetation, as evidenced by snowmobile tracks across the 
  3.2   vegetated area. 
  3.3      Subd. 4.  [SNOWMOBILE DAMAGE.] A real property owner with 
  3.4   verifiable damage to private property caused by the operation of 
  3.5   a snowmobile may file a claim under subdivision 5.  A property 
  3.6   owner need not submit proof that the damage was caused by any 
  3.7   particular snowmobile. 
  3.8      Subd. 5.  [CLAIMS PROCEDURE; RULEMAKING.] The commissioner 
  3.9   shall adopt rules to prescribe the process for submitting and 
  3.10  verifying claims under this section.  Claims must be submitted 
  3.11  by May 1 in the claims year in which the trespass or damage 
  3.12  occurs.  A claims year begins July 1 and ends on June 30 in the 
  3.13  following calendar year.  The commissioner must settle a claim 
  3.14  no later than June 30.  So long as money in the account is 
  3.15  available, the commissioner shall reimburse all verified claims. 
  3.16     Subd. 6.  [CLAIM AMOUNT.] (a) A property owner filing a 
  3.17  claim under subdivision 3 shall be reimbursed in the amount of 
  3.18  $100 per violation. 
  3.19     (b) A property owner filing a claim under subdivision 4 
  3.20  shall be reimbursed for the documented costs incurred in 
  3.21  replacing or repairing the damaged private property. 
  3.22     Subd. 7.  [FEE DETERMINATION.] (a) On July 1 each year, the 
  3.23  commissioner shall determine the amount of the damage fee for 
  3.24  subsequent renewals under section 84.82, subdivision 3, 
  3.25  paragraph (d).  The fee amount is the amount derived by: 
  3.26     (1) determining the number of snowmobiles registered in the 
  3.27  state and multiplying by $300; 
  3.28     (2) determining the amount of money in the snowmobile 
  3.29  damage account as of July 1; 
  3.30     (3) subtracting the amount in clause (2) from the amount in 
  3.31  clause (1); and 
  3.32     (4) dividing the difference in clause (3) by the number of 
  3.33  snowmobiles registered in the state. 
  3.34     (b) If the fee amount determined under paragraph (a) is 
  3.35  less than $1, no damage fee shall be assessed during that claims 
  3.36  year.