1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to public safety; transferring responsibility 
  1.3             for collecting 911 emergency telephone service fee to 
  1.4             commissioner of revenue; allowing for payment of 
  1.5             certain costs of local governments relating to the 
  1.6             installation of certain signs or markers; making 
  1.7             clarifying changes; amending Minnesota Statutes 2000, 
  1.8             sections 403.11, subdivision 1; and 403.113, 
  1.9             subdivision 3. 
  1.10  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.11     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 403.11, 
  1.12  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  1.13     Subdivision 1.  [EMERGENCY TELEPHONE SERVICE FEE.] (a) Each 
  1.14  customer of a telephone company or communications carrier that 
  1.15  provides service capable of originating a 911 emergency 
  1.16  telephone call is assessed a fee to cover the costs of ongoing 
  1.17  maintenance and related improvements for trunking and central 
  1.18  office switching equipment for minimum 911 emergency telephone 
  1.19  service, plus administrative and staffing costs of the 
  1.20  department of administration related to managing the 911 
  1.21  emergency telephone service program.  Recurring charges by a 
  1.22  public utility providing telephone service for updating the 
  1.23  information required by section 403.07, subdivision 3, must be 
  1.24  paid by the commissioner of administration if the utility is 
  1.25  included in an approved 911 plan and the charges have been 
  1.26  certified and approved under subdivision 3.  The commissioner of 
  1.27  administration shall transfer an amount equal to two cents a 
  2.1   month from the fee assessed under this section on cellular and 
  2.2   other nonwire access services to the commissioner of public 
  2.3   safety for the purpose of offsetting the costs, including 
  2.4   administrative and staffing costs, incurred by the state patrol 
  2.5   division of the department of public safety in handling 911 
  2.6   emergency calls made from cellular phones.  Money remaining in 
  2.7   the 911 emergency telephone service account after all other 
  2.8   obligations are paid must not cancel and is carried forward to 
  2.9   subsequent years and may be appropriated from time to time to 
  2.10  the commissioner of administration to provide financial 
  2.11  assistance to counties for the improvement of local emergency 
  2.12  telephone services.  The improvements may include providing 
  2.13  access to minimum 911 service for telephone service subscribers 
  2.14  currently without access and upgrading existing 911 service to 
  2.15  include automatic number identification, local location 
  2.16  identification, automatic location identification, and other 
  2.17  improvements specified in revised county 911 plans approved by 
  2.18  the department. 
  2.19     (b) The fee may not be less than eight cents nor more than 
  2.20  30 cents a month for each customer access line or other basic 
  2.21  access service, including trunk equivalents as designated by the 
  2.22  public utilities commission for access charge purposes and 
  2.23  including cellular and other nonwire access services.  The fee 
  2.24  must be the same for all customers.  
  2.25     (c) The fee must be collected by each company or carrier 
  2.26  providing service subject to the fee.  Fees are payable to and 
  2.27  must be submitted to the commissioner of administration monthly 
  2.28  before the 25th of each month following the month of collection, 
  2.29  except that fees may be submitted quarterly if less than $250 a 
  2.30  month is due, or annually if less than $25 a month is due.  
  2.31  revenue on a form prescribed by the commissioner.  The form and 
  2.32  fee must be filed using the filing cycle and due dates provided 
  2.33  for taxes imposed under chapter 297A.  The audit, assessment, 
  2.34  refund, penalty, interest, enforcement, collection remedies, 
  2.35  appeal, and administrative provisions of chapters 270 and 289A 
  2.36  that are applicable to taxes imposed under chapter 297A apply to 
  3.1   the fee.  Companies submitting fees shall document fee 
  3.2   collections to the department of administration in a form 
  3.3   approved by the commissioner of administration.  Receipts must 
  3.4   be deposited in the state treasury and credited to a 911 
  3.5   emergency telephone service account in the special revenue 
  3.6   fund.  The money in the account may only be used for 911 
  3.7   telephone services as provided in paragraph (a).  
  3.8      (d) The commissioner of administration, with the approval 
  3.9   of the commissioner of finance, shall establish the amount of 
  3.10  the fee within the limits specified and inform the companies and 
  3.11  carriers of the amount to be collected.  Companies and, 
  3.12  carriers, and the commissioner of revenue must be given a 
  3.13  minimum of 45 days' notice of fee changes. 
  3.14     (e) This subdivision does not apply to customers of a 
  3.15  telecommunications carrier as defined in section 237.01, 
  3.16  subdivision 6. 
  3.17     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 403.113, 
  3.18  subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  3.19     Subd. 3.  [LOCAL EXPENDITURES.] (a) Money distributed under 
  3.20  subdivision 2 for enhanced 911 service may be spent: 
  3.21     (1) on enhanced 911 system costs for the purposes stated in 
  3.22  subdivision 1, paragraph (a).  In addition, money may be spent; 
  3.23     (2) to lease, purchase, lease-purchase, or maintain 
  3.24  enhanced 911 equipment, including telephone equipment; 
  3.25     (3) on recording equipment; 
  3.26     (4) on computer hardware; 
  3.27     (5) on computer software for database provisioning, 
  3.28  addressing, mapping, and any other software necessary for 
  3.29  automatic location identification or local location 
  3.30  identification; 
  3.31     (6) on trunk lines; 
  3.32     (7) on selective routing equipment; 
  3.33     (8) on the master street address guide; 
  3.34     (9) on dispatcher public safety answering point equipment 
  3.35  proficiency and operational skills; 
  3.36     (10) on pay for long-distance charges incurred due to 
  4.1   transferring 911 calls to other jurisdictions; and the 
  4.2      (11) on equipment necessary within the public safety 
  4.3   answering point for community alert systems and to notify and 
  4.4   communicate with the emergency services requested by the 911 
  4.5   caller; and 
  4.6      (12) to address, install, or maintain any associated signs, 
  4.7   posts, or markers. 
  4.8      (b) Money distributed for enhanced 911 service may not be 
  4.9   spent on: 
  4.10     (1) purchasing or leasing of real estate or cosmetic 
  4.11  additions to or remodeling of communications centers; or 
  4.12     (2) mobile communications vehicles, fire engines, 
  4.13  ambulances, law enforcement vehicles, or other emergency 
  4.14  vehicles; 
  4.15     (3) signs, posts, or other markers related to addressing or 
  4.16  any costs associated with the installation or maintenance of 
  4.17  signs, posts, or markers.