Minnesota Session Laws - 1993, Regular Session

  
    Laws of Minnesota 1993 

                         CHAPTER 11-S.F.No. 19 
           An act relating to taxation; providing for purchase of 
          certain tax-forfeited lands; providing a refund; 
          amending Minnesota Statutes 1992, sections 282.01, 
          subdivision 7; and 282.241. 
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
    Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1992, section 282.01, 
subdivision 7, is amended to read: 
    Subd. 7.  [COUNTY SALES; NOTICE, PURCHASE PRICE, 
DISPOSITION.] The sale herein provided for shall commence at 
such time as the county board of the county wherein such parcels 
lie, shall direct.  The county auditor shall offer the parcels 
of land in order in which they appear in the notice of sale, and 
shall sell them to the highest bidder, but not for a less sum 
than the appraised value, until all of the parcels of land shall 
have been offered, and thereafter shall sell any remaining 
parcels to anyone offering to pay the appraised value thereof, 
except that if the person could have repurchased a parcel of 
property under section 282.012 or 282.241, that person shall not 
be allowed to purchase that same parcel of property at the sale 
under this subdivision unless approved by the county board for a 
purchase price less than the sum of all delinquent taxes and 
assessments computed under section 282.251, together with 
penalties, interest, and costs that accrued or would have 
accrued if the parcel had not forfeited to the state.  Said sale 
shall continue until all such parcels are sold or until the 
county board shall order a reappraisal or shall withdraw any or 
all such parcels from sale.  Such list of lands may be added to 
and the added lands may be sold at any time by publishing the 
descriptions and appraised values of such parcels of land as 
shall have become forfeited and classified as nonconservation 
since the commencement of any prior sale or such parcels as 
shall have been reappraised, or such parcels as shall have been 
reclassified as nonconservation or such other parcels as are 
subject to sale but were omitted from the existing list for any 
reason in the same manner as hereinafter provided for the 
publication of the original list, provided that any parcels 
added to such list shall first be offered for sale to the 
highest bidder before they are sold at appraised value.  All 
parcels of land not offered for immediate sale, as well as 
parcels of such lands as are offered and not immediately sold 
shall continue to be held in trust by the state for the taxing 
districts interested in each of said parcels, under the 
supervision of the county board, and such parcels may be used 
for public purposes until sold, as the county board may direct. 
    Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1992, section 282.241, is 
amended to read: 
    282.241 [REPURCHASE AFTER FORFEITURE.] 
    The owner at the time of forfeiture, or the owner's heirs, 
devisees, or representatives, or any person to whom the right to 
pay taxes was given by statute, mortgage, or other agreement, 
may repurchase any parcel of land claimed by the state to be 
forfeited to the state for taxes unless before the time 
repurchase is made the parcel is sold under installment 
payments, or otherwise, by the state as provided by law, or is 
under mineral prospecting permit or lease, or proceedings have 
been commenced by the state or any of its political subdivisions 
or by the United States to condemn such parcel of land.  The 
parcel of land may be repurchased.  The repurchase price is the 
greater of (1) the appraised value of the parcel, or (2) for the 
sum of all delinquent taxes and assessments computed under 
section 282.251, together with penalties, interest, and costs, 
that accrued or would have accrued if the parcel of land had not 
forfeited to the state.  Except for property which was 
homesteaded on the date of forfeiture, such repurchase shall be 
permitted during one year only from the date of forfeiture, and 
in any case only after the adoption of a resolution by the board 
of county commissioners determining that thereby undue hardship 
or injustice resulting from the forfeiture will be corrected, or 
that permitting such repurchase will promote the use of such 
lands that will best serve the public interest.  If the county 
board has good cause to believe that a repurchase installment 
payment plan for a particular parcel is unnecessary and not in 
the public interest, the county board may require as a condition 
of repurchase that the entire repurchase price be paid at the 
time of repurchase.  A repurchase shall be subject to any 
easement, lease, or other encumbrance granted by the state prior 
thereto, and if said land is located within a restricted area 
established by any county under Laws 1939, chapter 340, such 
repurchase shall not be permitted unless said resolution with 
respect thereto is adopted by the unanimous vote of the board of 
county commissioners. 
    Sec. 3.  [EXTENSION OF TIME FOR REPURCHASE.] 
    Property eligible for repurchase on or after April 25, 
1992, but before the date of final enactment of this act, may be 
repurchased as provided in section 2 for an additional period of 
one year, beginning on the date of final enactment of this act.  
Any right of repurchase under this section is subject to (1) 
sale or conveyance of the property; (2) commencement of 
condemnation proceedings by the state or any of its political 
subdivisions or by the United States; or (3) the issuance of a 
mineral prospecting permit or lease. 
    Sec. 4.  [EFFECTIVE DATE; REFUND; REPURCHASE PRICE 
REDUCTION.] 
    (a) Sections 1 and 3 are effective the day following final 
enactment.  
    (b) Section 2 is effective retroactive to April 25, 1992.  
Upon application to the county auditor, a person who repurchased 
property under the provisions of Minnesota Statutes, section 
282.241, as amended by Laws 1992, chapter 511, article 2, 
section 29, shall receive a refund, if the person paid the total 
repurchase price, or, if the person is paying the repurchase 
price in installments, shall receive a reduction in the 
repurchase price.  The refund or reduction in repurchase price 
is equal to the amount of the property's appraised value at the 
time of the repurchase in excess of the sum of all delinquent 
taxes and assessments computed under Minnesota Statutes, section 
282.251, together with penalties, interest, and costs that 
accrued or would have accrued if the parcel of land had not 
forfeited to the state.  The refund shall be paid without 
interest. 
    (c) If the repurchase price is being paid in installments, 
the auditor and the repurchaser shall negotiate a new 
installment payment plan to reflect the repurchase price under 
section 2, or the repurchaser may pay any remaining balance in 
full; or, if the amount already paid exceeds the repurchase 
price under section 2, the repurchaser shall receive a refund, 
without interest, equal to the excess.  
    (d) The refund shall be paid by the county treasurer from 
the forfeited tax sale fund.  Taxing districts that received 
distributions from the forfeited tax sale fund in regard to a 
parcel for which a person is receiving a refund under this 
section must reimburse the fund.  The reimbursement shall be 
determined by the county auditor as part of the next settlement, 
except that if the forfeited tax sale fund does not contain the 
funds necessary to make the refund, the taxing districts shall 
each pay the reimbursement within five business days after 
notification by the county auditor.  The amount of the 
reimbursement is equal to the ratio of the total distributions 
from the fund to the total deposits in the fund multiplied by 
the taxing district's statutory distribution percentage under 
Minnesota Statutes, section 282.08, multiplied by the total 
refund.  In addition, the county must reimburse the fund in an 
amount equal to:  (1) the percentage of the total deposits 
retained in the fund or set aside for (i) county costs, (ii) 
timber development under Minnesota Statutes, section 282.08, 
clause (4), paragraph (a), and (iii) county parks or 
recreational areas under Minnesota Statutes, section 282.08, 
clause (4), paragraph (b); multiplied by (2) the total refund.  
The reimbursement shall be paid without interest. 
    Presented to the governor March 26, 1993 
    Signed by the governor March 29, 1993, 4:52 p.m.