SF 3106

as introduced - 80th Legislature (1997 - 1998) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to state government; providing for community 
  1.3             ownership of a professional baseball franchise; 
  1.4             appropriating money. 
  1.5   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.6      Section 1.  [PURPOSE.] 
  1.7      The legislature determines that: 
  1.8      (1) a professional baseball franchise is an important asset 
  1.9   to the state of Minnesota, both in terms of the economy and the 
  1.10  quality of life; 
  1.11     (2) ensuring that a professional baseball franchise is in 
  1.12  Minnesota is an important public purpose; 
  1.13     (3) providing community ownership of a professional 
  1.14  baseball franchise helps ensure that this important asset will 
  1.15  remain in the state; 
  1.16     (4) providing community ownership of a professional 
  1.17  baseball franchise develops trust among fans, taxpayers, and the 
  1.18  team, so that the team enjoys popular support; and 
  1.19     (5) providing community ownership of a professional 
  1.20  baseball franchise ensures that the financial benefits of any 
  1.21  increased value of the franchise will accrue to those who pay 
  1.22  the costs. 
  1.23     Sec. 2.  [ACQUISITION.] 
  1.24     Subdivision 1.  [AUTHORITY.] (a) The governor and the 
  1.25  metropolitan sports facilities commission shall attempt to 
  2.1   effect ownership of the Minnesota Twins professional baseball 
  2.2   franchise. 
  2.3      (b) The governor may work with the Minnesota Twins and a 
  2.4   community foundation or a supporting organization to a community 
  2.5   foundation, to which the Twins would donate stock of the 
  2.6   professional baseball franchise. 
  2.7      (c) The governor may use funds available in the budget 
  2.8   reserve and cash flow accounts to make a loan to a community 
  2.9   foundation or supporting organization to acquire the Minnesota 
  2.10  Twins.  Before making such a loan, the governor must: 
  2.11     (1) consult with the legislative advisory committee, as 
  2.12  provided by Minnesota Statutes, section 3.30; 
  2.13     (2) certify that there is a binding agreement with a 
  2.14  community organization ensuring all conditions in subdivision 2 
  2.15  will be met; and 
  2.16     (3) determine that the transfer of the Minnesota Twins to 
  2.17  community ownership will occur within one year of the effective 
  2.18  date of this section.  
  2.19     (d) Money in the budget reserve and cash flow accounts is 
  2.20  appropriated to the governor for the purposes of paragraph (c). 
  2.21     (e) Public pension funds may not be used for purposes of 
  2.22  this section. 
  2.23     (f) The governor may work with a professional baseball 
  2.24  franchise and a community foundation to develop a plan to offer 
  2.25  shares of the franchise to the general public.  The governor may 
  2.26  assist the community organization in soliciting promises to buy 
  2.27  stock in the professional baseball franchise. 
  2.28     (g) The governor may assist the community organization 
  2.29  seeking gifts to be used to acquire a professional baseball 
  2.30  franchise. 
  2.31     Subd. 2.  [CONDITIONS.] (a) Money from the budget reserve 
  2.32  and cash flow accounts may be spent for purposes of this section 
  2.33  and section 1 only if there is a binding agreement with a 
  2.34  community foundation or supporting organization ensuring that 
  2.35  the following conditions will be met: 
  2.36     (1) a private managing partner must own no more than 25 
  3.1   percent of the full voting shares of the franchise, and must 
  3.2   agree to be responsible for all operating losses of the 
  3.3   franchise; 
  3.4      (2) other than the private managing partner, no individual 
  3.5   or entity may own more than five percent of the total full 
  3.6   voting shares of the franchise, and at least 50 percent of the 
  3.7   ownership of the full voting shares of the franchise must be 
  3.8   dispersed in a manner such that no person or entity owns more 
  3.9   than one percent of the shares of the franchise; 
  3.10     (3) the structure must provide for a class of limited 
  3.11  voting shares that entitles the shareholder the right to vote 
  3.12  only on whether the baseball franchise may move to another 
  3.13  state; 
  3.14     (4) the articles of incorporation and bylaws must provide 
  3.15  that the franchise may not move outside of the state without 
  3.16  approval of 80 percent of the owners of shares with full voting 
  3.17  rights, and 80 percent of the owners of limited voting shares 
  3.18  according to clause (3).  Notwithstanding any law to the 
  3.19  contrary, these 80 percent approval requirements must not be 
  3.20  amended by the shareholders or by any other means; and 
  3.21     (5) revenue from sale of shares of stock must be pledged to 
  3.22  repay the loan from the state. 
  3.23     (b) Within one year of the effective date of this section, 
  3.24  the commissioner of finance must determine if subscriptions for 
  3.25  purchases of full voting stock by the public will be sufficient 
  3.26  to purchase from the community organization 75 percent of the 
  3.27  shares of full voting stock in the team not owned by the 
  3.28  managing partner, along with other costs associated with this 
  3.29  acquisition.  The community foundation or supporting 
  3.30  organization must have the right to sell its interest in the 
  3.31  franchise if less than 75 percent of the full voting stock not 
  3.32  held by the managing partner is not sold within one year of the 
  3.33  community foundation or supporting organization receiving an 
  3.34  ownership interest in the franchise.  
  3.35     (c) For purposes of the percentage restrictions in 
  3.36  paragraph (a) clause (2), the shares owned by an individual or 
  4.1   entity include the shares owned by a related taxpayer as defined 
  4.2   in section 1313(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 
  4.3      Subd. 3.  [PROHIBITION.] Except as outlined by this 
  4.4   section, no state agency may expend any money from any state 
  4.5   fund for the purpose of generating revenue under this section or 
  4.6   providing operating support or defraying operating losses of a 
  4.7   professional baseball franchise. 
  4.8      Sec. 3.  [STADIUM.] 
  4.9      No state money may be spent for construction of a new 
  4.10  baseball stadium until the conditions of section 2, subdivision 
  4.11  2, are met.  After the conditions are met, financing for a new 
  4.12  stadium must come exclusively from sale of stock in the 
  4.13  professional baseball franchise, from sales of debt obligations 
  4.14  issued by the professional baseball franchise, from other 
  4.15  private sources including gifts, from sale of naming rights to 
  4.16  the stadium or other promotional or advertising fees associated 
  4.17  with the stadium, from sale of concession rights, from advance 
  4.18  sale of suites and club seats, from proceeds of a ticket 
  4.19  surcharge or other user fees associated with the use of or 
  4.20  attendance at the new stadium, or from transfer of assets owned 
  4.21  by the metropolitan sports facilities commission. 
  4.22     Sec. 4.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  4.23     Sections 1 to 3 are effective the day following final 
  4.24  enactment.