SF 1083

1st Engrossment - 84th Legislature (2005 - 2006) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

A bill for an act
relating to local government; authorizing the state
auditor to waive certain rules and laws applying to
local government units; creating a grants board to
fund cooperative efforts in public service delivery;
proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes,
chapter 6.

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

LOCAL GOVERNMENT WAIVERS AND GRANTS

Section 1.

new text begin [6.79] DUTIES OF STATE AUDITOR.
new text end

new text begin The state auditor shall:
new text end

new text begin (1) accept applications from local government units for
waivers of administrative rules and temporary, limited
exemptions from enforcement of procedural requirements in state
law, and determine whether to approve, modify, or reject the
application; and
new text end

new text begin (2) accept applications for grants to local government
units and related organizations proposing to promote cooperative
efforts in public service delivery and determine whether to
approve, modify, or reject the application.
new text end

Sec. 2.

new text begin [6.80] RULE AND LAW WAIVER REQUESTS.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Generally. new text end

new text begin (a) Except as provided in
paragraph (b), a local government unit may request the state
auditor to grant a waiver from one or more administrative rules
or a temporary, limited exemption from enforcement of state
procedural laws governing delivery of services by the local
government unit. Two or more local government units may submit
a joint application for a waiver or exemption under this section
if they propose to cooperate in providing a service or program
that is subject to the rule or law. Before submitting an
application to the state auditor, the governing body of the
local government unit must approve, in concept, the proposed
waiver or exemption at a meeting required to be public under
chapter 13D. A local government unit or two or more units
acting jointly may apply for a waiver or exemption on behalf of
a nonprofit organization providing services to clients whose
costs are paid by the unit or units. A waiver or exemption
granted to a nonprofit organization under this section applies
to services provided to all the organization's clients.
new text end

new text begin (b) A school district that is granted a variance from rules
of the commissioner of education under section 122A.163, need
not apply for a waiver of those rules under this section. A
school district may not seek a waiver of rules under this
section if the commissioner of education has authority to grant
a variance to the rules under section 122A.163. This paragraph
does not preclude a school district from being included in a
cooperative effort with another local government unit under this
section.
new text end

new text begin (c) Before petitioning the State Auditor's Office for an
exemption from an administrative rule, the petitioner must have
requested and been denied such an exemption from the appropriate
agency pursuant to sections 14.055 and 14.056.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Application. new text end

new text begin A local government unit requesting
a waiver of a rule or exemption from enforcement of a law under
this section shall present a written application to the state
auditor. The application must include:
new text end

new text begin (1) the name and address of the entity for whom a waiver of
a rule or exemption from enforcement of a law is being
requested;
new text end

new text begin (2) identification of the service or program at issue;
new text end

new text begin (3) identification of the administrative rule or the law
imposing a procedural requirement with respect to which the
waiver or exemption is sought;
new text end

new text begin (4) a description of the improved service outcome sought,
including an explanation of the effect of the waiver or
exemption in accomplishing that outcome, and why that outcome
cannot be accomplished under established rules or laws;
new text end

new text begin (5) information on the State Auditor's Office treatment on
similar cases;
new text end

new text begin (6) the name, address, and telephone number of any person,
business, or other government unit the petitioner knows would be
adversely affected by the grant of the petition; and
new text end

new text begin (7) a signed statement as to the accuracy of the facts
presented.
new text end

new text begin A copy of the application must be provided by the requesting
local government unit to the exclusive representative certified
under section 179A.12 to represent employees who provide the
service or program affected by the requested waiver or exemption.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Review process. new text end

new text begin (a) Upon receipt of an
application from a local government unit, the state auditor
shall review the application. The state auditor shall dismiss
an application if the application proposes a waiver of rules or
exemption from enforcement of laws that would result in due
process violations, violations of federal law or the state or
federal constitution, or the loss of services to people who are
entitled to them.
new text end

new text begin (b) The state auditor shall determine whether a law from
which an exemption for enforcement is sought is a procedural
law, specifying how a local government unit is to achieve an
outcome, rather than a substantive law prescribing the outcome
or otherwise establishing policy. In making its determination,
the state auditor shall consider whether the law specifies such
requirements as:
new text end

new text begin (1) who must deliver a service;
new text end

new text begin (2) where the service must be delivered;
new text end

new text begin (3) to whom and in what form reports regarding the service
must be made; and
new text end

new text begin (4) how long or how often the service must be made
available to a given recipient. For purposes of this section
procedural law does not include a statutory notice requirement.
new text end

new text begin (c) If the application is submitted by a local government
unit in the metropolitan area or the unit requests a waiver of a
rule or temporary, limited exemptions from enforcement of a
procedural law over which the Metropolitan Council or a
metropolitan agency has jurisdiction, the state auditor shall
also transmit a copy of the application to the council for
review and comment. The council shall report its comments to
the board within 60 days of the date the application was
transmitted to the council. The council may point out any
resources or technical assistance it may be able to provide a
local government submitting a request under this section.
new text end

new text begin (d) Within 15 days after receipt of the application, the
state auditor shall transmit a copy of it to the commissioner of
each agency having jurisdiction over a rule or law from which a
waiver or exemption is sought. The agency may mail a notice
that it has received an application for a waiver or exemption to
all persons who have registered with the agency under section
14.14, subdivision 1a, identifying the rule or law from which a
waiver or exemption is requested. If no agency has jurisdiction
over the rule or law, the state auditor shall transmit a copy of
the application to the attorney general. The agency shall
inform the state auditor of its agreement with or objection to
and grounds for objection to the waiver or exemption request
within 60 days of the date when the application was transmitted
to it. An agency's failure to do so is considered agreement to
the waiver or exemption. The state auditor shall decide whether
to grant a waiver or exemption at the end of the 60-day response
period. Interested persons may submit written comments to the
state auditor on the waiver or exemption request up to the end
of the 60-day response period.
new text end

new text begin (e) If the exclusive representative of the affected
employees of the requesting local government unit objects to the
waiver or exemption request it may inform the state auditor of
the objection to and the grounds for the objection to the waiver
or exemption request within 60 days of the receipt of the
application.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin Hearing. new text end

new text begin If a state agency under subdivision 3,
paragraph (d), or the exclusive representative of the affected
employees under subdivision 3, paragraph (e), has objected to a
waiver or exemption request, the State Auditor's Office shall
set a date for a hearing on the applications. The hearing must
be conducted informally at a time and place determined by all
parties. Persons representing the local government unit shall
present their case for the waiver or exemption, and persons
representing the agency or the exclusive representative of the
affected employees shall explain their objection to it. The
state auditor may request additional information from the local
government unit or either objecting party. The state auditor
may also request, either before or at the hearing, information
or comments from representatives of business, labor, local
governments, state agencies, consultants, and members of the
public. If necessary, the hearing may be continued for a later
date. The state auditor may modify the terms of the waiver or
exemption request in arriving at the agreement required under
subdivision 5.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 5. new text end

new text begin Conditions of agreements. new text end

new text begin (a) In determining
whether to grant a petition for a waiver of a rule or exemption
from enforcement of a law, the state auditor should consider the
following factors:
new text end

new text begin (1) whether there is a true and unique impediment under
current law to accomplishing the goal of the local government
unit;
new text end

new text begin (2) granting the waiver of a rule or exemption from
enforcement of law will only change procedural requirements of a
local government unit;
new text end

new text begin (3) the purpose of any rule or law that is waived is still
being met in another manner;
new text end

new text begin (4) granting the proposed waiver of a rule or exemption
from enforcement of a law would result in a more efficient means
of providing government services; and
new text end

new text begin (5) granting the proposed waiver will not have a
significant negative impact on other state government, local
government units, businesses, or citizens.
new text end

new text begin (b) If the state auditor grants a request for a waiver or
exemption, the state auditor and the local government unit shall
enter into an agreement providing for the delivery of the
service or program that is the subject of the application. The
agreement must specify desired outcomes, the reasons why the
desired outcomes cannot be met under current laws or rules, and
the means of measurement by which the state auditor will
determine whether the outcomes specified in the agreement have
been met. The agreement must specify the duration of the waiver
or exemption. The duration of a waiver from an administrative
rule may be for no less than two years and no more than four
years, subject to renewal if both parties agree. An exemption
from enforcement of a law terminates ten days after adjournment
of the regular legislative session held during the calendar year
following the year when the exemption is granted, unless the
legislature has acted to extend or make permanent the exemption.
new text end

new text begin (c) The state auditor must report any grants of waivers or
exemptions to the legislature, including the chairs of the
governmental operations and appropriate policy committees in the
house and senate, and the governor within 30 days.
new text end

new text begin (d) The state auditor may reconsider or renegotiate the
agreement if the rule or law affected by the waiver or exemption
is amended or repealed during the term of the original
agreement. A waiver of a rule under this section has the effect
of a variance granted by an agency under section 14.055. A
local unit of government that is granted an exemption from
enforcement of a procedural requirement in state law under this
section is exempt from that law for the duration of the
exemption. The state auditor may require periodic reports from
the local government unit, or conduct investigations of the
service or program.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 6. new text end

new text begin Enforcement. new text end

new text begin If the state auditor finds that
the local government unit is failing to comply with the terms of
the agreement under subdivision 5, the state auditor may rescind
the agreement. Upon the rescission, the local unit of
government becomes subject to the rules and laws covered by the
agreement.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 7. new text end

new text begin Access to data. new text end

new text begin If a local government unit,
through a cooperative program under this section, gains access
to data collected, created, received, or maintained by another
local government that is classified as not public, the unit
gaining access is governed by the same restrictions on access to
and use of the data as the unit that collected, created,
received, or maintained the data.
new text end

Sec. 3.

new text begin [6.81] GRANTS PROMOTING COOPERATIVE EFFORTS IN
PUBLIC SERVICE DELIVERY.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Board. new text end

new text begin A cooperative grants board chaired
by the state auditor, and made up of two members of the
Minnesota house of representatives and two members of the
Minnesota senate shall review applications for cooperative
efforts in public service delivery made by local units of
government for years in which funds have been appropriated for
such a purpose. The state auditor, with the advice of the
board, shall approve the applications.
new text end

new text begin The speaker of the house of representatives and the house
of representatives minority leader shall each appoint a member
to the board. The senate majority leader and the senate
minority leader shall each appoint a member to the board.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Grants. new text end

new text begin Two or more local government units; an
association of local governments; a local unit of government
acting in conjunction with the Metropolitan Council, an
organization, or a state agency; or an organization formed by
two or more local units of government under a joint powers
agreement may apply to the board for a grant to be used to
develop a plan for intergovernmental cooperation in providing
services.
new text end

new text begin The purpose of the grants is to promote cooperative efforts
in public service delivery by local units of government and
include, but are not limited to, covering the initial start-up
costs of a cooperative effort and costs associated with planning
and integrating a service or function provided by two or more
local government units. Agreements solely to make joint
purchases are not sufficient to qualify under this section.
new text end

new text begin The application to the board must state what other sources
of funding have been considered by the local units of government
to implement the project and explain why it is not possible to
complete the project without assistance from the board. The
state auditor may not award a grant if it determines that the
local units of government could complete the project without
board assistance. A copy of the application must be submitted
by the applicants to the exclusive representatives certified
under section 179A.12 to represent employees who provide the
service or program affected by the application.
new text end

new text begin The state auditor shall award grants on the basis of each
qualified applicant's score under the scoring system in
subdivision 4. The amount of a grant under this section may not
exceed $50,000.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Repayment of grants. new text end

new text begin If the state auditor finds
that the grantee has failed to implement the plan according to
the terms of the grant agreement, it may require the grantee to
repay all or a portion of the grant. All grant money repaid to
the state under this section is appropriated to the board for
additional grants.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin Cooperative grants scoring system. new text end

new text begin In deciding
whether to award a grant promoting cooperative efforts in public
service delivery, the board shall use the following scoring
system:
new text end

new text begin (1) up to 15 points shall be awarded to reflect the extent
to which the application demonstrates creative thinking, careful
planning, cooperation, involvement of the clients of the
affected service, and commitment to assume risk;
new text end

new text begin (2) up to 20 points shall be awarded to reflect the extent
to which the proposed project is likely to improve the quality
of the service and to have benefits for other local governments;
new text end

new text begin (3) up to 15 points shall be awarded to reflect the extent
to which the application's budget provides sufficient detail,
maximizes the use of state funds, documents the need for
financial assistance, commits to local financial support, and
limits expenditures to essential activities;
new text end

new text begin (4) up to 20 points shall be awarded to reflect the extent
to which the application reflects the statutory goal of the
grant program;
new text end

new text begin (5) up to 15 points shall be awarded to reflect the merit
of the proposed project and the extent to which it warrants the
state's financial participation;
new text end

new text begin (6) up to five points shall be awarded to reflect the
cost/benefit ratio projected for the proposed project;
new text end

new text begin (7) up to five points shall be awarded to reflect the
number of government units participating in the proposal; and
new text end

new text begin (8) up to five points shall be awarded to reflect the
minimum length of time the application commits to implementation.
new text end