Minnesota Session Laws - 1983, Regular Session

  

                         Laws of Minnesota 1983 

                        CHAPTER 240--S.F.No. 857
           An act relating to agriculture; excluding pipeline 
          companies from certain restrictions on acquisition of 
          agricultural land; amending Minnesota Statutes 1982, 
          section 500.221, subdivision 2. 
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
    Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1982, section 500.221, 
subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
    Subd. 2.  [ALIENS AND NON-AMERICAN CORPORATIONS.] Except as 
hereinafter provided, no natural person shall acquire directly 
or indirectly any interest in agricultural land unless the 
person is a citizen of the United States or a permanent resident 
alien of the United States.  In addition to the restrictions in 
section 500.24, no corporation, partnership, limited 
partnership, trustee, or other business entity shall directly or 
indirectly, acquire or otherwise obtain any interest, whether 
legal, beneficial or otherwise, in any title to agricultural 
land unless at least 80 percent of each class of stock issued 
and outstanding or 80 percent of the ultimate beneficial 
interest of the entity is held directly or indirectly by 
citizens of the United States or permanent resident aliens.  
This section shall not apply:  
     (1) to agricultural land that may be acquired by devise, 
inheritance, as security for indebtedness, by process of law in 
the collection of debts, or by any procedure for the enforcement 
of a lien or claim thereon, whether created by mortgage or 
otherwise.  All agricultural land acquired in the collection of 
debts or by the enforcement of a lien or claim shall be disposed 
of within three years after acquiring ownership;  
    (2) to citizens or subjects of a foreign country whose 
rights to hold land are secured by treaty;  
    (3) to lands used for transportation purposes by a common 
carrier, as defined in section 218.011, subdivision 2;  
    (4) to lands or interests in lands acquired for use in 
connection with mining and mineral processing operations.  
Pending the development of agricultural land for mining purposes 
the land may not be used for farming except under lease to a 
family farm, a family farm corporation or an authorized farm 
corporation; and 
    (5) to agricultural land operated for research or 
experimental purposes if the ownership of the agricultural land 
is incidental to the research or experimental objectives of the 
person or business entity and the total acreage owned by the 
person or business entity does not exceed the acreage owned on 
May 27, 1977; or 
    (6) to the purchase of any tract of 40 acres or less for 
facilities incidental to pipeline operation by a company 
operating a pipeline as defined in section 116I.01, subdivision 
3. 
    Approved June 1, 1983