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SF 1859

1st Engrossment - 93rd Legislature (2023 - 2024) Posted on 10/25/2023 10:41am

KEY: stricken = removed, old language.
underscored = added, new language.

Current Version - 1st Engrossment

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A bill for an act
relating to transportation; modifying selection process procedures for Corridors
of Commerce projects; amending Minnesota Statutes 2022, section 161.088,
subdivisions 1, 2, 4, 5, by adding subdivisions.

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

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2022, section 161.088, subdivision 1, is amended to read:


Subdivision 1.

Definitions.

For purposes of this section, the following terms have the
meanings given:

(1) "beyond the project limits" means any point that is located:

(i) outside of the project limits;

(ii) along the same trunk highway; and

(iii) within the same region of the state;

(2) "city" means a statutory or home rule charter city;

new text begin (3) "greater Minnesota area" means the counties that are not metropolitan counties;
new text end

new text begin (4) "metropolitan area" means Anoka, Carver, Chisago, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey,
Scott, and Washington Counties;
new text end

deleted text begin (3)deleted text end new text begin (5)new text end "program" means the corridors of commerce program established in this section;
and

deleted text begin (4)deleted text end new text begin (6)new text end "project limits" means the estimated construction limits of a project for trunk
highway construction, reconstruction, or maintenance, that is a candidate for selection under
the corridors of commerce program.

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2022, section 161.088, subdivision 2, is amended to read:


Subd. 2.

Program authority; funding.

(a) As provided in this section, the commissioner
shall establish a corridors of commerce program for trunk highway construction,
reconstruction, and improvement, including maintenance operations, that improves commerce
in the state.

(b) The commissioner may expend funds under the program from appropriations to the
commissioner that are:

(1) made specifically by law for use under this section;

(2) at the discretion of the commissioner, made for the budget activities in the state roads
program of operations and maintenance, program planning and delivery, or state road
construction; and

(3) made for the corridor investment management strategy program, unless specified
otherwise.

(c) The commissioner deleted text begin shalldeleted text end new text begin mustnew text end include in the program the cost participation policy
for local units of government.

(d) The commissioner may use up to 17 percent of any appropriation deleted text begin to the programdeleted text end new text begin
under this section
new text end for program deliverynew text begin and for project scoring, ranking, and selection under
subdivision 5
new text end .

Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2022, section 161.088, subdivision 4, is amended to read:


Subd. 4.

Project eligibility.

(a) The eligibility requirements for projects that can be
funded under the program are:

(1) consistency with the statewide multimodal transportation plan under section 174.03;

(2) location of the project on an interregional corridor, for a project located outside of
the Department of Transportation metropolitan district;

(3) placement into at least one project classification under subdivision 3;

(4) project construction work will commence within deleted text begin threedeleted text end new text begin fournew text end years, or a longer length
of time as determined by the commissioner; and

(5) for each type of project classification under subdivision 3, a maximum allowable
amount for the total project cost estimate, as determined by the commissioner with available
data.

(b) A project whose construction is programmed in the state transportation improvement
program is not eligible for funding under the program. This paragraph does not apply to a
project that is programmed as result of selection under this section.

(c) A project may be, but is not required to be, identified in the 20-year state highway
investment plan under section 174.03.

(d) For each project, the commissioner must consider all of the eligibility requirements
under paragraph (a). The commissioner is prohibited from considering any eligibility
requirement not specified under paragraph (a).

new text begin (e) A project in the greater Minnesota area with a total project cost of more than
$10,000,000 is classified as a greater Minnesota large project. A project in the greater
Minnesota area with a total project cost of $10,000,000 or less is classified as a greater
Minnesota small project. All projects in the metropolitan area are classified as metropolitan
projects, regardless of the total project cost.
new text end

Sec. 4.

Minnesota Statutes 2022, section 161.088, subdivision 5, is amended to read:


Subd. 5.

Project selection process; criteria.

(a) The commissioner must establish a
process to identify, evaluate, and select projects under the program. The process must be
consistent with the requirements of this subdivision and must not include any additional
evaluation criteria.

(b) As part of the project selection process, the commissioner must annually accept
recommendations on candidate projects from area transportation partnerships and deleted text begin other
interested stakeholders in each Department of Transportation district
deleted text end new text begin counties in the
metropolitan area as provided by this section
new text end . The commissioner must determine the
eligibility for each candidate project deleted text begin identified under this paragraphdeleted text end new text begin that is submitted as
provided in this section
new text end . For each eligible project, the commissioner must classify and
evaluate the project for the program, using all of the criteria established under paragraph
deleted text begin (c)deleted text end new text begin (d)new text end .

new text begin (c) Before proceeding to the evaluation required under paragraph (d), all project
recommendations submitted for consideration must be screened as follows:
new text end

new text begin (1) for projects in the greater Minnesota area:
new text end

new text begin (i) the area transportation partnership for the area must review all project
recommendations from the partnership's area;
new text end

new text begin (ii) each area transportation partnership must select up to three large projects and three
small projects as defined in subdivision 4 to recommend for advancement to the evaluation
process under paragraph (d). Each area transportation partnership may develop its own
process to determine which projects to recommend. An area transportation partnership must
not include the same segment of road in more than one project; and
new text end

new text begin (iii) only the projects recommended for evaluation may be developed by the department
and scored for selection under paragraph (d). All projects not recommended for evaluation
are disqualified from further consideration and must not be evaluated under paragraph (d);
and
new text end

new text begin (2) for projects located in the metropolitan area:
new text end

new text begin (i) projects located within a county in the metropolitan area must be reviewed by the
county board;
new text end

new text begin (ii) each county board must select up to two projects to recommend for advancement to
the evaluation process under paragraph (d). A board must not include the same segment of
road in more than one project. Each board may develop its own process to determine which
project to recommend; and
new text end

new text begin (iii) only the projects submitted by the county boards as provided in this paragraph may
be developed by the department and scored for selection under paragraph (d). All projects
not recommended for evaluation are disqualified from further consideration and must not
be evaluated under paragraph (d).
new text end

deleted text begin (c)deleted text end new text begin (d)new text end Projects must be evaluated using all of the following criteria:

(1) a return on investment measure that provides for comparison across eligible projects;

(2) measurable impacts on commerce and economic competitiveness;

(3) efficiency in the movement of freight, including but not limited to:

(i) measures of annual average daily traffic and commercial vehicle miles traveled, which
may include data near the project location on that trunk highway or on connecting trunk
and local highways; and

(ii) measures of congestion or travel time reliability, which may be within or near the
project limits, or both;

(4) improvements to traffic safety;

(5) connections to regional trade centers, local highway systems, and other transportation
modes;

(6) the extent to which the project addresses multiple transportation system policy
objectives and principles;

(7) support and consensus for the project among members of the surrounding community;

(8) the time and work needed before construction may begin on the project; deleted text begin and
deleted text end

(9) regional balance throughout the statedeleted text begin .deleted text end new text begin ; and
new text end

new text begin (10) written recommendations submitted as provided by subdivision 5a.
new text end

The commissioner must deleted text begin give the criteria in clauses (1) to (8) equal weight indeleted text end new text begin assign 100
selection points to each evaluation criterion set forth in clauses (1) to (8) for
new text end the selection
process.

new text begin (e) The commissioner must select projects so that approximately 50 percent of the
available funding is used for projects in the metropolitan area and the other 50 percent is
used for projects in the greater Minnesota area. Of funding for projects in the metropolitan
area, at least 45 percent must be spent for projects in Anoka, Carver, Chisago, Dakota, Scott,
and Washington Counties. Of the funding for projects in the greater Minnesota area,
approximately 25 percent must be used for projects classified as greater Minnesota small
projects as defined in subdivision 4. When selecting projects in the greater Minnesota area,
the commissioner must select projects so that no district has two or more projects more than
any other district.
new text end

deleted text begin (d) The list of all projects evaluated must be made public and must include the score of
each project
deleted text end new text begin (f) The commissioner must publish information regarding the selection process
on the department's website. The information must include:
new text end

new text begin (1) lists of all projects submitted for consideration and all projects recommended by the
screening entities;
new text end

new text begin (2) the scores and ranking for each project; and
new text end

new text begin (3) an overview of each selected project, with amounts and sources of fundingnew text end .

deleted text begin (e)deleted text end new text begin (g)new text end As part of the project selection process, the commissioner may divide funding to
be separately available among projects within each classification under subdivision 3, and
may apply separate or modified criteria among those projects falling within each
classification.

Sec. 5.

Minnesota Statutes 2022, section 161.088, is amended by adding a subdivision to
read:


new text begin Subd. 5a. new text end

new text begin Recommendations. new text end

new text begin After receiving all projects submitted pursuant to
subdivision 5 but before making final selections, the commissioner must compile a list of
all projects that were submitted and transmit the list to each legislator and to the governor.
The list must include the location of each project and a brief description of the work to be
done. Within 30 days of the date the project list is transmitted, each legislator and the
governor may submit to the commissioner a written recommendation for one project on the
list. The commissioner must award one additional point to a project for each written
recommendation received for that project.
new text end

Sec. 6.

Minnesota Statutes 2022, section 161.088, is amended by adding a subdivision to
read:


new text begin Subd. 5b. new text end

new text begin Project selection period. new text end

new text begin Beginning July 1, 2027, and every five years
thereafter, area transportation partnerships and the metropolitan counties must submit
projects to the commissioner of transportation as provided in subdivision 5. The
commissioner must evaluate the projects and select projects by March 1 of the following
year. To the greatest extent possible, the commissioner must select a sufficient number of
projects to ensure that all funds allocated for the five-year period are encumbered or spent
by the end of the period. If all selected projects are funded in the five-year time period and
there were projects that were identified and not selected, the commissioner must select
additional projects from the original project submissions. If all the projects that were
submitted are funded, the commissioner may authorize an additional project selection period
to select projects for the remainder of the period. Except as authorized by this subdivision,
the project submission and selection process must only occur every five years.
new text end