1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to state government; modifying laws governing certain Department 
1.3 	of Commerce advisory groups;amending Minnesota Statutes 2012, sections 
1.4 	216B.813, subdivision 2; 216B.815; 216C.02, subdivision 1; repealing 
1.5 	Minnesota Statutes 2012, sections 82B.021, subdivision 10; 82B.05, subdivisions 
1.6 	1, 3, 5, 6, 7; 82B.06; 116L.361, subdivision 2; 116L.363.
1.7 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.8 	Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 216B.813, subdivision 2, is amended to 
1.9 	read:
1.10 		Subd. 2.Grants. (a) The commissioner of commerce shall operate a competitive 
1.11 	grant program for projects to assist the state in attaining its renewable hydrogen energy 
1.12 	goals. ~~The commissioner of commerce shall assemble an advisory committee made up of~~ 
1.13 	~~industry, university, government, and nongovernment organizations to:~~
1.14 	~~(1) help identify the most promising technology deployment projects for public~~ 
1.15 	~~investment;~~
1.16 	~~(2) advise on the technical specifications for those projects; and~~
1.17 	~~(3) make recommendations on project grants.~~
1.18 	(b) The commissioner shall give preference to project concepts included in the 
1.19 	department's most recent biennial report: Strategic Demonstration Projects to Accelerate 
1.20 	the Commercialization of Renewable Hydrogen and Related Technologies in Minnesota. 
1.21 	Projects eligible for funding must combine one or more of the hydrogen production 
1.22 	options listed in the department's report with an end use that has significant commercial 
1.23 	potential, preferably high visibility, and relies on fuel cells or related technologies. Each 
1.24 	funded technology deployment must include an explicit education and awareness-raising 
1.25 	component, be compatible with the renewable hydrogen deployment criteria defined in 
2.1 	section 216B.812, and receive 50 percent of its total cost from nonstate sources. The 50 
2.2 	percent requirement does not apply for recipients that are public institutions.

2.3 	Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 216B.815, is amended to read:
2.4 	216B.815 REGIONAL ENERGY RESEARCH AND EDUCATION 
2.5 	PARTNERSHIP.
2.6 	(a) The state's public research and higher education institutions should work with 
2.7 	one another and with similar institutions in the region to establish Minnesota and the 
2.8 	Upper Midwest as a center of research, education, outreach, and technology transfer for 
2.9 	the production of renewable energy and products, including hydrogen, fuel cells, and 
2.10 	related technologies. The partnership should be designed to create a critical mass of 
2.11 	research and education capability that can compete effectively for federal and private 
2.12 	investment in these areas.
2.13 	(b) ~~The partnership must include an advisory committee comprised of government,~~ 
2.14 	~~industry, academic, and nonprofit representatives to help focus its research and education~~ 
2.15 	~~efforts on the most critical issues.~~
2.16 	~~(c)~~ Initiatives undertaken by the partnership may include:
2.17 	(1) collaborative and interdisciplinary research, demonstration projects, and 
2.18 	commercialization of market-ready technologies;
2.19 	(2) creation of undergraduate and graduate course offerings and eventually degreed 
2.20 	and vocational programs with reciprocity;
2.21 	(3) establishment of fellows programs at the region's institutes of higher learning 
2.22 	that provide financial incentives for relevant study, research, and exchange; and
2.23 	(4) development and field-testing of relevant curricula, teacher kits for all educational 
2.24 	levels, and widespread teacher training, in collaboration with state energy offices, teachers, 
2.25 	nonprofits, businesses, the United States Department of Energy, and other interested parties.

2.26 	Sec. 3. Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 216C.02, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
2.27 		Subdivision 1.Powers. (a) The commissioner may:
2.28 	(1) apply for, receive, and spend money received from federal, municipal, county, 
2.29 	regional, and other government agencies and private sources;
2.30 	(2) apply for, accept, and disburse grants and other aids from public and private 
2.31 	sources;
2.32 	(3) contract for professional services if work or services required or authorized to 
2.33 	be carried out by the commissioner cannot be satisfactorily performed by employees of 
2.34 	the department or by another state agency;
3.1 	(4) enter into interstate compacts to carry out research and planning jointly with 
3.2 	other states or the federal government when appropriate;
3.3 	(5) upon reasonable request, distribute informational material at no cost to the 
3.4 	public; and
3.5 	(6) enter into contracts for the performance of the commissioner's duties with 
3.6 	federal, state, regional, metropolitan, local, and other agencies or units of government and 
3.7 	educational institutions, including the University of Minnesota, without regard to the 
3.8 	competitive bidding requirements of chapters 16A and 16C.
3.9 	(b) The commissioner shall collect information on conservation and other 
3.10 	energy-related programs carried on by other agencies, by public utilities, by cooperative 
3.11 	electric associations, by municipal power agencies, by other fuel suppliers, by political 
3.12 	subdivisions, and by private organizations. Other agencies, cooperative electric 
3.13 	associations, municipal power agencies, and political subdivisions shall cooperate 
3.14 	with the commissioner by providing information requested by the commissioner. The 
3.15 	commissioner may by rule require the submission of information by other program 
3.16 	operators. The commissioner shall make the information available to other agencies and 
3.17 	to the public and, as necessary, shall recommend to the legislature changes in the laws 
3.18 	governing conservation and other energy-related programs to ensure that:
3.19 	(1) expenditures on the programs are adequate to meet identified needs;
3.20 	(2) the needs of low-income energy users are being adequately addressed;
3.21 	(3) duplication of effort is avoided or eliminated;
3.22 	(4) a program that is ineffective is improved or eliminated; and
3.23 	(5) voluntary efforts are encouraged through incentives for their operators.
3.24 	~~The commissioner shall appoint an advisory task force to help evaluate the information~~ 
3.25 	~~collected and formulate recommendations to the legislature. The task force must include~~ 
3.26 	~~low-income energy users.~~
3.27 	(c) By January 15 of each year, the commissioner shall report to the legislature on 
3.28 	the projected amount of federal money likely to be available to the state during the next 
3.29 	fiscal year, including grant money and money received by the state as a result of litigation 
3.30 	or settlements of alleged violations of federal petroleum-pricing regulations. The report 
3.31 	must also estimate the amount of money projected as needed during the next fiscal year 
3.32 	to finance a level of conservation and other energy-related programs adequate to meet 
3.33 	projected needs, particularly the needs of low-income persons and households, and must 
3.34 	recommend the amount of state appropriations needed to cover the difference between the 
3.35 	projected availability of federal money and the projected needs.

4.1 	Sec. 4.  REPEALER.
 4.2 	Minnesota Statutes 2012, sections 82B.021, subdivision 10; 82B.05, subdivisions 1, 
4.3 	3, 5, 6, and 7; 82B.06; 116L.361, subdivision 2; and 116L.363, are repealed.