SF 1315

as introduced - 82nd Legislature (2001 - 2002) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to the metropolitan airports commission; 
  1.3             promoting airline competition; regulating lease of 
  1.4             gates at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport; 
  1.5             proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, 
  1.6             chapter 473. 
  1.7   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.8      Section 1.  [473.6022] [PROMOTION OF AIRLINE COMPETITION; 
  1.9   GATE LIMIT.] 
  1.10     Subdivision 1.  [50 PERCENT LIMIT ON GATES.] To accomplish 
  1.11  the important public purposes of promoting competition, 
  1.12  increasing diversity of airlines offering service to 
  1.13  Minnesotans, and preventing unhealthy dependency by the 
  1.14  community and consumers on a single airline, the metropolitan 
  1.15  airports commission, in its proprietary capacity as owner and 
  1.16  operator of the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (the 
  1.17  Airport) must not enter into leases with any single airline for 
  1.18  50 percent or more of gates at the Airport. 
  1.19     Subd. 2.  [EXCEPTION.] An airline may obtain leases for 
  1.20  gates over the 50 percent limit in subdivision 1 only if the 
  1.21  commission has exhausted all other reasonable options for lease 
  1.22  holders and only if the leases over the 50 percent limit are 
  1.23  short-term leases.  The commission shall make public notice of 
  1.24  this exception in the State Register, including its efforts and 
  1.25  plans to find other airlines. 
  1.26     Subd. 3.  [DEFINITIONS.] When used in this section, the 
  2.1   terms defined in this subdivision shall have the meaning given 
  2.2   them unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. 
  2.3      (a) "Single airline" means any airline and includes an 
  2.4   entity or person directly or indirectly controlling, controlled 
  2.5   by, or under common control with the airline. 
  2.6      (b) "Short-term lease" means any lease for a term of 90 
  2.7   days or less, or which can be terminated by the commission 
  2.8   without cause upon notice of 90 days.  
  2.9      Sec. 2.  [TRANSITION PERIOD.] 
  2.10     (a) A transition period leading to the full application of 
  2.11  section 1 applies if, and as long as, a single airline has 
  2.12  leases for 50 percent or more of gate leases at the Airport. 
  2.13     (b) During the transition period, the commission and a 
  2.14  single airline with 50 percent or more of gate leases must not 
  2.15  renegotiate or extend any existing lease beyond its current term.
  2.16     (c) If the term of a current lease is extended, the lease 
  2.17  becomes a new lease. 
  2.18     (d) A new gate lease with a single airline that controls 50 
  2.19  percent or more of the gates at the Airport cannot extend beyond 
  2.20  30 days. 
  2.21     (e) An additional existing gate or new gate that did not 
  2.22  previously exist must not be leased to a single airline having 
  2.23  control of 50 percent or more of the gates at the Airport. 
  2.24     (f) Gates not leased to airlines are common-use gates.  
  2.25  Common-use gates means what it means in "common-use gates" 
  2.26  agreements executed by the metropolitan airports commission 
  2.27  before January 1, 2001. 
  2.28     (g) A lease that purports to apply during the transition 
  2.29  period that is contrary to this section is void. 
  2.30     Sec. 3.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  2.31     Sections 1 and 2 are effective the day after their final 
  2.32  enactment except that: 
  2.33     (1) section 1, subdivision 2, is effective only after no 
  2.34  single airline has gate leases for 50 percent or more of the 
  2.35  Airport's gates; and 
  2.36     (2) new leases executed after February 21, 2001, with a 
  3.1   single airline with over 50 percent of gate leases are 
  3.2   terminated on the effective date of this act.