HF 2772

1st Engrossment - 79th Legislature (1995 - 1996) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to transportation; appropriating money to 
  1.3             commissioner of transportation to create a process to 
  1.4             promote telecommuting and develop telecommunication 
  1.5             resources in an integrated manner. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  [FINDINGS.] 
  1.8      The legislature finds that: 
  1.9      (1) Public and private telecommuting and telecommunication 
  1.10  investments in the state and region are being made in a 
  1.11  nonintegrated and uncoordinated manner and without a guiding 
  1.12  principle of universal telecommunications availability.  
  1.13  Therefore, the legislature finds that it is in the best interest 
  1.14  of the state to support a community dialogue process to address 
  1.15  those issues and the work of the Minnesota telecommunicating 
  1.16  partnership. 
  1.17     (2) When weather conditions create significant road 
  1.18  congestion, workers are unable to travel to work in a timely 
  1.19  fashion, resulting in significant economic loss of time and 
  1.20  productivity, as well as property damage and personal injury.  
  1.21  Traditional transportation costs and congestion continue to 
  1.22  increase, while the costs of electronic technology are rapidly 
  1.23  decreasing, facilitating changes in where and how work is 
  1.24  performed.  The cost of government operations will be reduced if 
  1.25  telecommuting growth exceeds the growth in vehicle trip 
  2.1   generation. 
  2.2      Sec. 2.  [COMMUNITY DIALOGUE PROCESS.] 
  2.3      The department of transportation shall convene a community 
  2.4   dialogue process with equal representation from institutions of 
  2.5   higher education, health care institutions, industry, labor, 
  2.6   state and local government agencies, community groups, and 
  2.7   adjoining states. 
  2.8      The process shall: 
  2.9      (1) gather information on existing telecommunication 
  2.10  systems; 
  2.11     (2) conduct public opinion polls via the internet; and 
  2.12     (3) develop recommendations on improving the integration 
  2.13  and coordination of telecommunication systems. 
  2.14     The department shall report the findings and 
  2.15  recommendations of the process to the legislature by February 
  2.16  15, 1997. 
  2.17     Sec. 3.  [TELECOMMUTING DAY.] 
  2.18     The department of employee relations, in consultation with 
  2.19  the department of transportation and the United States Weather 
  2.20  Service, shall declare a telecommuting day when the criteria 
  2.21  established pursuant to section 4 are met.  On a telecommuting 
  2.22  day, employers shall be encouraged to direct as many employees 
  2.23  as possible to telecommute. 
  2.24     Sec. 4.  [CRITERIA FOR TELECOMMUTING DAY.] 
  2.25     The department of employee relations shall establish 
  2.26  criteria to determine when to declare a telecommuting day and 
  2.27  how to communicate that declaration to affected employees.  The 
  2.28  department may consult with the department of public safety, the 
  2.29  department of transportation, and private telecommuting 
  2.30  consultants in setting the criteria.  The criteria shall relate 
  2.31  to weather, road conditions, and other factors the department 
  2.32  finds to be relevant in making the determination. 
  2.33     Sec. 5.  [APPROPRIATION.] 
  2.34     $200,000 is appropriated from the general fund to the 
  2.35  commissioner of the department of transportation for the 
  2.36  biennium ending June 30, 1997, for the purpose of section 2.  
  3.1   This appropriation is available only upon receipt by the 
  3.2   commissioner of $100,000 in matching contributions of money from 
  3.3   nonstate sources.