HF 291

2nd Engrossment - 89th Legislature (2015 - 2016) Posted on 04/18/2016 04:35pm

A bill for an act
relating to public safety; increasing fine for certain traffic violations around
school buses; enhancing penalties and establishing minimum fines for repeat
violations of driving without a license; allowing alcohol use by sensory testing
services; extending funding for avian influenza emergency response; providing
for a fund transfer from the correctional industries revolving fund to the general
fund; appropriating money; amending Minnesota Statutes 2014, sections
169.444, subdivision 2; 171.24; Laws 2015, chapter 65, article 1, section 18;
proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 325E.

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

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 169.444, subdivision 2, is amended to read:

Subd. 2.

Violations by drivers; penalties.

(a) A person who fails to stop a vehicle
or to keep it stopped, as required in subdivision 1, or who violates subdivision 1a, is guilty
of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not less than deleted text begin $300 deleted text end new text begin $500 new text end .

(b) A person is guilty of a gross misdemeanor if the person fails to stop a motor
vehicle or to keep it stopped, as required in subdivision 1, or who violates subdivision 1a,
and commits either or both of the following acts:

(1) passes or attempts to pass the school bus in a motor vehicle on the right-hand,
passenger-door side of the bus; or

(2) passes or attempts to pass the school bus in a motor vehicle when a school child is
outside of and on the street or highway used by the school bus or on the adjacent sidewalk.

new text begin EFFECTIVE DATE. new text end

new text begin This section is effective August 1, 2016, and applies to
violations committed on and after that date.
new text end

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 171.24, is amended to read:

171.24 VIOLATIONS; DRIVING WITHOUT VALID LICENSE.

Subdivision 1.

Driving after suspension; misdemeanor.

Except as otherwise
provided in subdivision 5, a person is guilty of a misdemeanor if:

(1) the person's driver's license or driving privilege has been suspended;

(2) the person has been given notice of or reasonably should know of the suspension;
and

(3) the person disobeys the order by operating in this state any motor vehicle, the
operation of which requires a driver's license, while the person's license or privilege
is suspended.

Subd. 2.

Driving after revocation; misdemeanor.

new text begin Except as otherwise provided
in subdivision 5, new text end a person is guilty of a misdemeanor if:

(1) the person's driver's license or driving privilege has been revoked;

(2) the person has been given notice of or reasonably should know of the revocation;
and

(3) the person disobeys the order by operating in this state any motor vehicle, the
operation of which requires a driver's license, while the person's license or privilege is
revoked.

Subd. 3.

Driving after cancellation; misdemeanor.

new text begin Except as otherwise provided
in subdivision 5, new text end a person is guilty of a misdemeanor if:

(1) the person's driver's license or driving privilege has been canceled;

(2) the person has been given notice of or reasonably should know of the
cancellation; and

(3) the person disobeys the order by operating in this state any motor vehicle, the
operation of which requires a driver's license, while the person's license or privilege is
canceled.

Subd. 4.

Driving after disqualification; misdemeanor.

new text begin Except as otherwise
provided in subdivision 5, new text end a person is guilty of a misdemeanor if the person:

(1) has been disqualified from holding a commercial driver's license or been denied
the privilege to operate a commercial motor vehicle;

(2) has been given notice of or reasonably should know of the disqualification; and

(3) disobeys the order by operating in this state a commercial motor vehicle while
the person is disqualified to hold the license or privilege.

Subd. 5.

Gross misdemeanor new text begin violations new text end .

new text begin (a) new text end A person is guilty of a gross
misdemeanor if:

(1) the person's driver's license or driving privilege has been canceled or denied
under section 171.04, subdivision 1, clause (10);

(2) the person has been given notice of or reasonably should know of the cancellation
or denial; and

(3) the person disobeys the order by operating in this state any motor vehicle, the
operation of which requires a driver's license, while the person's license or privilege is
canceled or denied.

new text begin (b) A person is guilty of a gross misdemeanor if the person violates this section and
causes a collision resulting in substantial bodily harm or death to another.
new text end

new text begin (c) A person is guilty of a gross misdemeanor and is subject to the minimum penalty
under subdivision 5a, paragraph (b), if the person violates this section within ten years of
the first of two prior convictions under this section.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 5a. new text end

new text begin Minimum penalties. new text end

new text begin (a) A person who is convicted under this section
a second time must, at a minimum, be sentenced to pay a fine of at least $750. This
paragraph does not apply to penalties under subdivision 5, paragraph (c).
new text end

new text begin (b) A person who is convicted under this section a third or subsequent time must, at
a minimum, be sentenced to pay a fine of at least $1,500.
new text end

new text begin (c) The court may order a person to perform community work service in lieu of all or
a portion of the minimum fine required under this subdivision if the court makes specific
findings on the record that the convicted person is indigent or that payment of the fine
would create undue hardship for the convicted person or that person's immediate family.
new text end

Subd. 6.

Responsibility for prosecution.

new text begin (a) new text end The attorney in the jurisdiction
in which the violation occurred who is responsible for prosecution of misdemeanor
violations of this section is also responsible for prosecution of gross misdemeanor
violations of this section.

new text begin (b) Nothing in this section or section 609.035 or 609.04 shall limit the power of the
state to prosecute or punish a person for conduct that constitutes any other crime under
any other law of this state.
new text end

Subd. 7.

Sufficiency of notice.

(a) Notice of revocation, suspension, cancellation,
or disqualification is sufficient if personally served, or if mailed by first class mail to the
person's last known address or to the address listed on the person's driver's license. Notice
is also sufficient if the person was informed that revocation, suspension, cancellation, or
disqualification would be imposed upon a condition occurring or failing to occur, and
where the condition has in fact occurred or failed to occur.

(b) It is not a defense that a person failed to file a change of address with the post
office, or failed to notify the Department of Public Safety of a change of name or address
as required under section 171.11.

new text begin Subd. 8. new text end

new text begin Definition. new text end

new text begin For the purposes of this section, "substantial bodily harm" has
the meaning given in section 609.02, subdivision 7a.
new text end

new text begin EFFECTIVE DATE. new text end

new text begin This section is effective August 1, 2016, and applies to
offenses committed on or after that date.
new text end

Sec. 3.

new text begin [325E.041] SENSORY TESTING RESEARCH.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Definitions. new text end

new text begin For purposes of this section, the following terms have
the meanings given:
new text end

new text begin (1) "sensory testing firm" means a business that tests consumer reaction to physical
aspects of products for a third-party client;
new text end

new text begin (2) "trained sensory assessors" means members of the public at least 21 years of age
selected by sensory testing firms and trained for a minimum of one hour to test products;
new text end

new text begin (3) "sensory testing facility" means a facility specifically designed as a controlled
environment for testing; and
new text end

new text begin (4) "department" means the Department of Public Safety.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Allowed activities. new text end

new text begin Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, a sensory
testing firm may possess and may purchase alcohol at retail or wholesale, and may allow
consumption of that alcohol, by trained sensory assessors for testing purposes at their
facility, provided that:
new text end

new text begin (1) the firm must comply with section 340A.409 and all other state laws that do not
conflict with this section;
new text end

new text begin (2) firms choosing to serve alcohol must be licensed by the department, which may
assess a fee sufficient to cover costs; and
new text end

new text begin (3) records of testing protocols must be retained by the firm for at least one year.
new text end

new text begin EFFECTIVE DATE. new text end

new text begin This section is effective the day following final enactment.
new text end

Sec. 4.

Laws 2015, chapter 65, article 1, section 18, is amended to read:

Sec. 18. AVIAN INFLUENZA EMERGENCY RESPONSE.

Notwithstanding Minnesota Statutes, section
12.221, subdivision 6, deleted text begin for fiscal years
2016 and 2017 deleted text end new text begin through June 30, 2019, new text end
only, the disaster contingency account,
under Minnesota Statutes, section 12.221,
subdivision 6, may be used to pay for costs of
deleted text begin eligible avian influenza deleted text end emergency response
activities new text begin for avian influenza and any animal
disease emergency new text end . By January 15, 2018, new text begin and
again by January 15, 2020, new text end the commissioner
of management and budget must report to
the chairs and ranking minority members
of the senate Finance Committee and the
house of representatives Committee on Ways
and Means on any amount used for deleted text begin avian
influenza deleted text end new text begin the purposes authorized new text end under this
section.

Sec. 5. new text begin TRANSFER; APPROPRIATION.
new text end

new text begin Notwithstanding Minnesota Statutes, section 241.27, the commissioner of
management and budget shall transfer $1,000,000 in fiscal year 2017 from the Minnesota
correctional industries revolving fund to the general fund. This is a onetime transfer.
new text end