SF 842

as introduced - 87th Legislature (2011 - 2012) Posted on 02/23/2012 09:14am

A bill for an act
relating to taxation; modifying provisions of the Sustainable Forest Incentive Act;
amending Minnesota Statutes 2010, sections 290C.02, subdivision 3; 290C.03;
290C.11; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 290C;
repealing Minnesota Statutes 2010, sections 290C.02, subdivision 5; 290C.06.

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

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 290C.02, subdivision 3, is amended to read:

Subd. 3.

Claimant.

(a) "Claimant" means:

(1) a person, as that term is defined in section 290.01, subdivision 2, who owns
forest land in Minnesota and files an application authorized by the Sustainable Forest
Incentive Act;

(2) a purchaser or grantee if property enrolled in the program was sold or transferred
after the original application was filed and prior to the annual incentive payment being
made; or

(3) an owner of land previously covered by an auxiliary forest contract that
automatically qualifies for inclusion in the Sustainable Forest Incentive Act program
pursuant to section 88.49, subdivision 9a, or 88.491, subdivision 2.

deleted text begin The purchaser or grantee must notify the commissioner in writing of the sale or
transfer of the property. deleted text end Owners of land that qualifies for inclusion pursuant to section
88.49, subdivision 9a, or 88.491, subdivision 2, must notify the commissioner in writing
of the expiration of the auxiliary forest contract or land trade with a governmental unit and
submit an application to the commissioner by August 15 in order to be eligible to receive a
payment by October 1 of that same year. For purposes of section 290C.11, claimant also
includes any person bound by the covenant required in section 290C.04.

(b) No more than one claimant is entitled to a payment under this chapter with
respect to any tract, parcel, or piece of land enrolled under this chapter that has been
assigned the same parcel identification number. When enrolled forest land is owned by
two or more persons, the owners must determine between them which person is eligible to
claim the payments provided under sections 290C.01 to 290C.11. In the case of property
sold or transferred, the former owner and the purchaser or grantee must determine between
them which person is eligible to claim the payments provided under sections 290C.01 to
290C.11. The owners, transferees, or grantees must notify the commissioner in writing
which person is eligible to claim the payments.

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 290C.03, is amended to read:

290C.03 ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS.

(a) Land may be enrolled in the sustainable forest incentive program under this
chapter if all of the following conditions are met:

(1) the land consists of at least 20 contiguous acres and at least 50 percent of the
land must meet the definition of forest land in section 88.01, subdivision 7, during the
enrollment;

(2) a forest management plan for the land must be prepared by an approved plan
writer and implemented during the period in which the land is enrolled new text begin , provided that a
forest management plan prepared or renewed after August 1, 2011, must be implemented
for a term of at least 20 years new text end ;

(3) timber harvesting and forest management guidelines must be used in conjunction
with any timber harvesting or forest management activities conducted on the land during
the period in which the land is enrolled;

(4) the land must be enrolled for a minimum of eight years;

(5) there are no delinquent property taxes on the land; deleted text begin and
deleted text end

(6) claimants enrolling more than 1,920 acres in the sustainable forest incentive
program must allow year-round, nonmotorized access to fish and wildlife resources on
enrolled land except within one-fourth mile of a permanent dwelling or during periods of
high fire hazard as determined by the commissioner of natural resources new text begin ; and
new text end

new text begin (7) the claimant must register the plan with the commissioner of natural resources,
who must verify that the land is qualified. The commissioner of natural resources must
annually provide county assessors with verification information on a timely basis new text end .

(b) Claimants required to allow access under paragraph (a), clause (6), do not by
that action:

(1) extend any assurance that the land is safe for any purpose;

(2) confer upon the person the legal status of an invitee or licensee to whom a duty
of care is owed; or

(3) assume responsibility for or incur liability for any injury to the person or property
caused by an act or omission of the person.

Sec. 3.

new text begin [290C.095] TRANSFER OF OWNERSHIP.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Disclosure to new owner. new text end

new text begin When lands enrolled in the sustainable
forest incentive program are sold or transferred to new owners, the seller or grantor must
disclose to a prospective purchaser or grantee information describing the imposition of
penalties in section 290C.11 for noncompliance with section 290C.04 and obtain the
signature of the purchaser or grantee on a statement acknowledging the disclosures. In this
section, the purchaser or grantee is referred to as the "new owner."
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Notification to commissioner. new text end

new text begin (a) The new owner must notify the
commissioner in writing of the sale or transfer of the property within 60 days of the
transfer of title to the property when the previous owner sold or transferred all their land
enrolled in the sustainable forest incentive program under the recorded covenant specified
in section 290C.04.
new text end

new text begin (b) An owner who sells or transfers only part of the owner's land enrolled in the
sustainable forest incentive program must notify the commissioner in writing of the sale
or transfer within 60 days of the transfer of title. The notification must include the legal
description of the sold or transferred property, its property tax parcel numbers, and the
name and address of the new owner.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Plan after sale. new text end

new text begin (a) Upon notification, the commissioner shall inform
the new owner that the new owner must:
new text end

new text begin (1) obtain a new forest management plan that must be written by an approved plan
writer; or
new text end

new text begin (2) agree in writing to accept the previous owner's forest management goals and
prescriptions to meet proposed future conditions of the land and register a copy of the
previous owner's forest management plan as provided in section 290C.03, paragraph
(a), clause (7), in name of the new owner.
new text end

new text begin (b) The new owner must obtain a new plan or furnish a copy of the previous owner's
plan within (1) two years from the date the title of the property was transferred or (2) the
date the original forest management plan expires, whichever occurs first.
new text end

new text begin (c) The commissioner shall terminate enrollment in the sustainable forest incentive
program on lands that have been purchased or granted according to the procedure in
section 290C.10 if the purchaser or grantee fails to obtain or furnish a forest management
plan and register it as required in section 290C.03, paragraph (a), clause (7), within the
time specified in paragraph (b).
new text end

Sec. 4.

Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 290C.11, is amended to read:

290C.11 PENALTIES FOR REMOVAL.

(a) If the commissioner determines that land enrolled in the sustainable forest
incentive program is in violation of the conditions for enrollment as specified in section
290C.03, the commissioner shall notify the claimant of the intent to remove all enrolled
land from the sustainable forest incentive program. The claimant has 60 days to appeal
this determination under the provisions of section 290C.13.

(b) If the commissioner determines the land is to be removed from the sustainable
forest incentive program new text begin due to noncompliance with the covenant new text end , the claimant is liable
for payment to the commissioner in deleted text begin the deleted text end new text begin an new text end amount deleted text begin equal to the payments deleted text end new text begin that is the higher
of (1) 15 percent of the assessor's estimated market value of the property for real property
taxes payable the following year that reflects improvements made to the property in the
prior taxes payable year or (2) two times the payments new text end received under this chapter for the
previous four-year period, plus interest. The claimant has 90 days to satisfy the payment
for removal of land from the sustainable forest incentive program under this section. If the
penalty is not paid within the 90-day period under this paragraph, the commissioner shall
certify the amount to the county auditor for collection as a part of the general ad valorem
real property taxes on the land in the following taxes payable year.

Sec. 5. new text begin REPEALER.
new text end

new text begin Minnesota Statutes 2010, sections 290C.02, subdivision 5; and 290C.06, new text end new text begin are
repealed.
new text end