1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to taxation; property; changing the class of 
  1.3             certain utility property; removing certain limits on 
  1.4             utility property; amending Minnesota Statutes 1998, 
  1.5             section 273.13, subdivisions 24 and 31. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 273.13, 
  1.8   subdivision 24, is amended to read: 
  1.9      Subd. 24.  [CLASS 3.] (a) Commercial and industrial 
  1.10  property and utility real and personal property~~, except class 5~~ 
  1.11  ~~property as identified in subdivision 31, clause (1),~~ is class 
  1.12  3a.  Each parcel has a class rate of 2.45 percent of the first 
  1.13  tier of market value, and 3.5 percent of the remaining market 
  1.14  value, except that in the case of contiguous parcels of 
  1.15  commercial and industrial property owned by the same person or 
  1.16  entity, only the value equal to the first-tier value of the 
  1.17  contiguous parcels qualifies for the reduced class rate.  For 
  1.18  the purposes of this subdivision, the first tier means the first 
  1.19  $150,000 of market value.  ~~In the case of utility property owned~~ 
  1.20  ~~by one person or entity, only one parcel in each county has a~~ 
  1.21  ~~reduced class rate on the first tier of market value.~~ 
  1.22     For purposes of this paragraph, parcels are considered to 
  1.23  be contiguous even if they are separated from each other by a 
  1.24  road, street, vacant lot, waterway, or other similar intervening 
  1.25  type of property. 
  2.1      (b) Employment property defined in section 469.166, during 
  2.2   the period provided in section 469.170, shall constitute class 
  2.3   3b and has a class rate of 2.3 percent of the first $50,000 of 
  2.4   market value and 3.5 percent of the remainder, except that for 
  2.5   employment property located in a border city enterprise zone 
  2.6   designated pursuant to section 469.168, subdivision 4, paragraph 
  2.7   (c), the class rate of the first tier of market value and the 
  2.8   class rate of the remainder is determined under paragraph (a), 
  2.9   unless the governing body of the city designated as an 
  2.10  enterprise zone determines that a specific parcel shall be 
  2.11  assessed pursuant to the first clause of this sentence.  The 
  2.12  governing body may provide for assessment under the first clause 
  2.13  of the preceding sentence only for property which is located in 
  2.14  an area which has been designated by the governing body for the 
  2.15  receipt of tax reductions authorized by section 469.171, 
  2.16  subdivision 1. 
  2.17     (c) Structures which are (i) located on property classified 
  2.18  as class 3a, (ii) constructed under an initial building permit 
  2.19  issued after January 2, 1996, (iii) located in a transit zone as 
  2.20  defined under section 473.3915, subdivision 3, (iv) located 
  2.21  within the boundaries of a school district, and (v) not 
  2.22  primarily used for retail or transient lodging purposes, shall 
  2.23  have a class rate equal to 85 percent of the class rate of the 
  2.24  second tier of the commercial property rate under paragraph (a) 
  2.25  on any portion of the market value that does not qualify for the 
  2.26  first tier class rate under paragraph (a).  As used in item (v), 
  2.27  a structure is primarily used for retail or transient lodging 
  2.28  purposes if over 50 percent of its square footage is used for 
  2.29  those purposes.  A class rate equal to 85 percent of the class 
  2.30  rate of the second tier of the commercial property class rate 
  2.31  under paragraph (a) shall also apply to improvements to existing 
  2.32  structures that meet the requirements of items (i) to (v) if the 
  2.33  improvements are constructed under an initial building permit 
  2.34  issued after January 2, 1996, even if the remainder of the 
  2.35  structure was constructed prior to January 2, 1996.  For the 
  2.36  purposes of this paragraph, a structure shall be considered to 
  3.1   be located in a transit zone if any portion of the structure 
  3.2   lies within the zone.  If any property once eligible for 
  3.3   treatment under this paragraph ceases to remain eligible due to 
  3.4   revisions in transit zone boundaries, the property shall 
  3.5   continue to receive treatment under this paragraph for a period 
  3.6   of three years. 
  3.7      Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 273.13, 
  3.8   subdivision 31, is amended to read: 
  3.9      Subd. 31.  [CLASS 5.] Class 5 property includes:  
  3.10     (1) ~~tools, implements, and machinery of an electric~~ 
  3.11  ~~generating, transmission, or distribution system or a pipeline~~ 
  3.12  ~~system transporting or distributing water, gas, crude oil, or~~ 
  3.13  ~~petroleum products or mains and pipes used in the distribution~~ 
  3.14  ~~of steam or hot or chilled water for heating or cooling~~ 
  3.15  ~~buildings, which are fixtures;~~ 
  3.16     ~~(2)~~ unmined iron ore and low-grade iron-bearing formations 
  3.17  as defined in section 273.14; and 
  3.18     ~~(3)~~ (2) all other property not otherwise classified. 
  3.19     Class 5 property has a class rate of 3.5 percent of market 
  3.20  value. 
  3.21     Sec. 3.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  3.22     Sections 1 and 2 are effective for taxes levied in 1999, 
  3.23  payable in 2000, and thereafter.