Minnesota Session Laws - 1993, Regular Session

  
    Laws of Minnesota 1993 

                        CHAPTER 83-H.F.No. 1122 
           An act relating to transportation; prohibiting parking 
          in transit stops marked with a handicapped sign; 
          establishing priority for transit in energy 
          emergencies; requiring motor vehicles to yield to 
          transit buses entering traffic; amending Minnesota 
          Statutes 1992, sections 169.01, by adding a 
          subdivision; 169.20, by adding a subdivision; 169.346, 
          subdivision 1; and 216C.15, subdivision 1. 
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
    Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1992, section 169.01, is 
amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
    Subd. 77.  [TRANSIT BUS.] "Transit bus" means a bus engaged 
in regular route transit as defined in section 174.22, 
subdivision 8. 
    Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1992, section 169.20, is 
amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
    Subd. 7.  [TRANSIT BUS.] The driver of a vehicle traveling 
in the right-hand lane of traffic shall yield the right-of-way 
to any transit bus attempting to enter that lane from a bus stop 
or shoulder, as indicated by a flashing left turn signal. 
    Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 1992, section 169.346, 
subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
    Subdivision 1.  [PARKING CRITERIA.] A person shall not: 
    (1) park a motor vehicle in or obstruct access to a parking 
space designated and reserved for the physically disabled, on 
either private or public property; 
    (2) park a motor vehicle in or obstruct access to an area 
designated by a local governmental unit as a transfer zone for 
disabled persons; or 
    (3) exercise the parking privilege provided in section 
169.345, unless:  
    (i) that person is a physically disabled person as defined 
in section 169.345, subdivision 2, or the person is transporting 
or parking a vehicle for a physically disabled person; and 
    (ii) the vehicle visibly displays one of the following:  a 
license plate issued under section 168.021, a certificate issued 
under section 169.345, or an equivalent certificate, insignia, 
or license plate issued by another state, a foreign country, or 
one of its political subdivisions; or 
    (4) park a motor vehicle in an area used as a regular route 
transit stopping point where a transit vehicle that is 
accessible to the physically disabled regularly stops and a sign 
that bears the international symbol of access in white on blue 
is posted.  A sign posted under this clause may display other 
information relating to the regular route transit service.  For 
purposes of this clause, an area used as a regular route transit 
stopping point consists of the 80 feet immediately preceding the 
sign described in this clause. 
    Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 1992, section 216C.15, 
subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
    Subdivision 1.  [PRIORITIES AND REQUIREMENTS.] The 
commissioner shall maintain an emergency conservation and 
allocation plan.  The plan shall provide a variety of strategies 
and staged conservation measures to reduce energy use and in the 
event of an energy supply emergency, shall establish guidelines 
and criteria for allocation of fuels to priority users.  The 
plan shall contain alternative conservation actions and 
allocation plans to reasonably meet various foreseeable shortage 
circumstances and allow a choice of appropriate responses.  The 
plan shall be consistent with requirements of federal emergency 
energy conservation and allocation laws and regulations, shall 
be based on reasonable energy savings or transfers from scarce 
energy resources and shall: 
    (a) give priority to individuals, institutions, agriculture 
and, businesses, and public transit under contract with the 
commissioner of transportation or the regional transit board 
which demonstrate they have engaged in energy-saving measures 
and shall include provisions to insure that: 
    (1) immediate allocations to individuals, institutions, 
agriculture and, businesses, and public transit be based on 
needs at energy conservation levels; 
    (2) successive allocations to individuals, institutions, 
agriculture and, businesses, and public transit be based on 
needs after implementation of required action to increase energy 
conservation; and 
    (3) needs of individuals and, institutions, and public 
transit are adjusted to insure the health and welfare of the 
young, old and infirm; 
    (b) insure maintenance of reasonable job safety conditions 
and avoid environmental sacrifices; 
    (c) establish programs, controls, standards, priorities or 
quotas for the allocation, conservation and consumption of 
energy resources; and for the suspension and modification of 
existing standards and the establishment of new standards 
affecting or affected by the use of energy resources, including 
those related to the type and composition of energy sources, and 
to the hours and days during which public buildings, commercial 
and industrial establishments, and other energy consuming 
facilities may or are required to remain open; 
    (d) establish programs to control the use, sale or 
distribution of commodities, materials, goods or services; 
    (e) establish regional programs and agreements for the 
purpose of coordinating the energy resources, programs and 
actions of the state with those of the federal government, of 
local governments, and of other states and localities; and 
    (f) determine at what level of an energy supply emergency 
situation the pollution control agency shall be requested to ask 
the governor to petition the president for a temporary emergency 
suspension of air quality standards as required by the Clean Air 
Act, United States Code, title 42, section 7410f; and 
    (g) establish procedures for fair and equitable review of 
complaints and requests for special exemptions regarding 
emergency conservation measures or allocations. 
    Presented to the governor May 3, 1993 
    Signed by the governor May 5, 1993, 6:18 p.m.