Minnesota Session Laws - 1999, Regular Session

                             CHAPTER 8-H.F.No. 214 
                  An act relating to health; modifying volunteer 
                  ambulance attendant provisions; amending Minnesota 
                  Statutes 1998, sections 144E.001, by adding a 
                  subdivision; 144E.35, subdivision 2; 144E.41; 168.12, 
                  subdivision 2e; and 295.52, subdivision 5. 
        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
           Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 144E.001, is 
        amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
           Subd. 15.  [VOLUNTEER AMBULANCE ATTENDANT.] "Volunteer 
        ambulance attendant" means a person who provides emergency 
        medical services for a Minnesota licensed ambulance service 
        without the expectation of remuneration and who does not depend 
        in any way upon the provision of these services for the person's 
        livelihood.  An individual may be considered a volunteer 
        ambulance attendant even though the individual receives an 
        hourly stipend for each hour of actual service provided, except 
        for hours on standby alert, or other nominal fee, and even 
        though the hourly stipend or other nominal fee is regarded as 
        taxable income for purposes of state or federal law, provided 
        that the hourly stipend and other nominal fees do not exceed 
        $3,000 within one year of the final certification examination. 
           Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 144E.35, 
        subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
           Subd. 2.  [VOLUNTEER ATTENDANT DEFINED REIMBURSEMENT 
        PROVISIONS.] For purposes of this section, "volunteer ambulance 
        attendant" means a person who provides emergency medical 
        services for a Minnesota licensed ambulance service without the 
        expectation of remuneration and who does not depend in any way 
        upon the provision of these services for the person's 
        livelihood.  An individual may be considered a volunteer 
        ambulance attendant even though that individual receives an 
        hourly stipend for each hour of actual service provided, except 
        for hours on standby alert, even though this hourly stipend is 
        regarded as taxable income for purposes of state or federal law, 
        provided that this hourly stipend does not exceed $3,000 within 
        one year of the final certification examination.  Reimbursement 
        will be paid under provisions of this section when documentation 
        is provided the board that the individual has served for one 
        year from the date of the final certification exam as an active 
        member of a Minnesota licensed ambulance service. 
           Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 144E.41, is 
        amended to read: 
           144E.41 [PROGRAM ELIGIBILITY; QUALIFIED AMBULANCE SERVICE 
        PERSONNEL.] 
           (a) Persons eligible to participate in the ambulance 
        service personnel longevity award and incentive program are 
        qualified ambulance service personnel. 
           (b) Qualified ambulance service personnel are ambulance 
        attendants, ambulance drivers, and ambulance service medical 
        directors or medical advisors who meet the following 
        requirements: 
           (1) employment of the person by or provision by the person 
        of service to an ambulance service that is licensed as such by 
        the state of Minnesota and that provides ambulance services that 
        are generally available to the public and are free of unfair 
        discriminatory practices under chapter 363; 
           (2) performance by the person during the 12 months ending 
        as of the immediately previous June 30 of all or a predominant 
        portion of the person's services in the state of Minnesota or on 
        behalf of Minnesota residents, as verified by August 1 annually 
        in an affidavit from the chief administrative officer of the 
        ambulance service; 
           (3) current certification of the person during the 12 
        months ending as of the immediately previous June 30 by the 
        Minnesota department of health as an ambulance attendant, 
        ambulance driver, or ambulance service medical director or 
        medical advisor under section 144E.16, and supporting rules, and 
        current active ambulance service employment or service provision 
        status of the person, as verified by August 1 annually in an 
        affidavit from the chief administrative officer of the ambulance 
        service; and 
           (4) conformance by the person with the definition of the 
        phrase "volunteer ambulance attendant" under section 144E.35, 
        subdivision 2 144E.001, subdivision 15, except that for the 
        salary limit specified in that provision there must be 
        substituted, for purposes of this section only, a limit of 
        $3,000 for calendar year 1993, and $3,000 multiplied by the 
        cumulative percentage increase in the national Consumer Price 
        Index, all items, for urban wage earners and clerical workers, 
        as published by the federal Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor 
        Statistics, since December 31, 1993, and for an ambulance 
        service medical director, conformance based solely on the 
        person's hourly stipends or salary for service as a medical 
        director.  
           (c) The term "active ambulance service employment or 
        service provision status" means being in good standing with and 
        on the active roster of the ambulance service making the 
        certification. 
           (d) The maximum period of ambulance service employment or 
        service provision for which a person may receive credit towards 
        an award under this chapter, including prior service credit 
        under section 144E.45, subdivision 2, paragraph (c), is 20 years.
           (e) For a person who is employed by or provides service to 
        more than one ambulance service concurrently during any period 
        during the 12-month period, credit towards an award under this 
        chapter is limited to one ambulance service during any period.  
        The creditable period is with the ambulance service for which 
        the person undertakes the greatest portion of employment or 
        service hours. 
           Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 168.12, 
        subdivision 2e, is amended to read: 
           Subd. 2e.  [VOLUNTEER AMBULANCE ATTENDANTS; SPECIAL 
        PLATES.] (a) The registrar shall issue special license plates to 
        an applicant who is a volunteer ambulance attendant as defined 
        in section 144E.35, subdivision 2 144E.001, subdivision 15, and 
        who owns or jointly owns a motor vehicle taxed as a passenger 
        automobile.  The registrar shall issue the special plates on 
        payment of the registration tax required by law for the vehicle, 
        compliance with all other applicable laws relating to 
        registration and licensing of motor vehicles and drivers, and 
        payment of an additional fee of $10.  The registrar shall not 
        issue more than one set of these plates to each qualified 
        applicant. 
           (b) A person may use special plates issued under this 
        subdivision only during the period that the person is a 
        volunteer ambulance attendant.  When the person to whom the 
        special plates were issued ceases to be a volunteer ambulance 
        attendant, or when ownership of the vehicle is transferred, the 
        person shall remove the special plates from the vehicle and 
        return them to the registrar.  On return of the plates, the 
        owner of the vehicle, or new owner in case of a transferred 
        vehicle, is entitled to receive regular license plates for the 
        vehicle without cost for the rest of the registration period for 
        which the special plates were issued.  Special plates issued 
        under this subdivision may be transferred to another vehicle 
        owned by the volunteer ambulance attendant on payment of a fee 
        of $5. 
           (c) The fees specified in this subdivision must be paid 
        into the state treasury and deposited in the highway user tax 
        distribution fund.  
           (d) The commissioner may adopt rules governing the design, 
        issuance, and sale of the special plates authorized by this 
        subdivision. 
           Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 295.52, 
        subdivision 5, is amended to read: 
           Subd. 5.  [VOLUNTEER AMBULANCE SERVICES.] Volunteer 
        ambulance services are not subject to the tax under this 
        section.  For purposes of this requirement, "volunteer ambulance 
        service" means an ambulance service in which all of the 
        individuals whose primary responsibility is direct patient care 
        meet the definition of volunteer under section 144E.35, 
        subdivision 2 144E.001, subdivision 15.  The ambulance service 
        may employ administrative and support staff, and remain eligible 
        for this exemption, if the primary responsibility of these staff 
        is not direct patient care. 
           Sec. 6.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
           Sections 1 to 5 are effective the day following final 
        enactment. 
           Presented to the governor March 11, 1999 
           Signed by the governor March 15, 1999, 2:32 p.m.