Minnesota Session Laws - 2000, Regular Session

                            CHAPTER 366-S.F.No. 3566 
                  An act relating to crime prevention; creating a new 
                  criminal penalty for failure to pay over sales tax on 
                  motor vehicles collected from a purchaser; amending 
                  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 297B.10. 
        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
           Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 297B.10, is 
        amended to read: 
           297B.10 [PENALTIES.] 
           (1) Any person, including persons other than the purchaser, 
        who prepares, completes, or submits a false or fraudulent motor 
        vehicle purchaser's certificate with intent to defeat or evade 
        the tax imposed under this chapter or any purchaser who fails to 
        complete or submit a motor vehicle purchaser's certificate with 
        intent to defeat or evade the tax or who attempts to defeat or 
        evade the tax in any manner, is guilty of a gross misdemeanor 
        unless the tax involved exceeds $300, in which event the person 
        is guilty of a felony.  The term "person" as used in this 
        section includes any officer or employee of a corporation or a 
        member or employee of a partnership who as an officer, member, 
        or employee is under a duty to perform the act with respect to 
        which the violation occurs.  Notwithstanding the provisions of 
        section 628.26 or any other provision of the criminal laws of 
        this state, an indictment may be found and filed, or a complaint 
        filed, upon any criminal offense specified in this section, in 
        the proper court within six years after the commission of the 
        offense. 
           (2) Any person who collects the tax imposed under this 
        chapter from a purchaser and willfully fails to remit the tax is 
        guilty of a felony. 
           (3) Any person who violates any of the provisions of this 
        chapter, unless the violation be of the type referred to in 
        clause (1) or (2), is guilty of a misdemeanor.  
           (3) (4) When two or more offenses in clause (1) or (2) are 
        committed by the same person within six months, the offenses may 
        be aggregated; further, if the offenses are committed in more 
        than one county, the accused may be prosecuted for all the 
        offenses aggregated under this clause in any county in which one 
        of the offenses was committed. 
           Sec. 2.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
           Section 1 is effective the day following final enactment 
        and applies to crimes committed on or after that date. 
           Presented to the governor April 10, 2000 
           Signed by the governor April 13, 2000, 4:42 p.m.