1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to tax increment financing; establishing tax 
  1.3             increment financing zones; providing for the duration 
  1.4             of tax increment districts within each zone. 
  1.5   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.6      Section 1.  [TAX INCREMENT ZONES; DURATION OF DISTRICTS.] 
  1.7      Subdivision 1.  [DESIGNATION OF ZONES.] The commissioner of 
  1.8   economic development shall establish four tax increment 
  1.9   financing zones within the state.  Zone 1 consists of the 
  1.10  Minneapolis and St. Paul standard metropolitan statistical 
  1.11  area.  Zone 2 includes one-third of the remaining area of the 
  1.12  state that is nearest to the geographic center of the 
  1.13  Minneapolis and St. Paul standard metropolitan statistical 
  1.14  area.  Zone 3 includes one-half of the remaining area of the 
  1.15  state that is next closest to the Minneapolis and St. Paul 
  1.16  standard metropolitan statistical area.  Zone 4 includes the 
  1.17  remaining area of the state.  A home rule charter or statutory 
  1.18  city or town must be wholly located within one zone.  The 
  1.19  designation of zones by the commissioner is not a rule for 
  1.20  purposes of Minnesota Statutes, chapter 14. 
  1.21     Subd. 2.  [CERTIFICATION OF DISTRICTS.] No districts 
  1.22  located within zone 1, or additional area in existing districts 
  1.23  within zone 1, may be certified after the date of final 
  1.24  enactment of this act. 
  1.25     Subd. 3.  [DURATION OF DISTRICTS.] Notwithstanding the 
  2.1   provisions of Minnesota Statutes, section 469.176, subdivision 
  2.2   1b, for tax increment financing districts for which requests for 
  2.3   certification are made after the day of final enactment:  
  2.4      (1) in zone 2, no tax increment shall in any event be paid 
  2.5   to the authority after five years after the receipt by the 
  2.6   authority for a renewal and renovation district; after four 
  2.7   years from approval of the tax increment financing plan for a 
  2.8   soils condition district; and after three years from the date of 
  2.9   receipt, or four years from approval of the tax increment 
  2.10  financing plan, whichever is less, for an economic development 
  2.11  district; and 
  2.12     (2) in zone 3, no tax increment shall in any event be paid 
  2.13  to the authority after ten years after receipt by the authority 
  2.14  of the first increment for a renewal and renovation district; 
  2.15  after eight years from approval of the tax increment financing 
  2.16  plan for a soils condition district; and after six years from 
  2.17  the date of receipt, or eight years from approval of the tax 
  2.18  increment financing plan, whichever is less, for an economic 
  2.19  development district. 
  2.20     Subd. 4.  [GROWING CITIES OR TOWNS; CHANGES OF 
  2.21  ZONE.] Notwithstanding subdivision 1, if the federal decennial 
  2.22  census conducted in the year 2000 indicates that the population 
  2.23  of a city or town has grown from the previous federal decennial 
  2.24  census by at least the lesser of (1) ten percent, or (2) 500 
  2.25  people, the commissioner of economic development, for purposes 
  2.26  of subdivisions 2 and 3, shall change the zone designation of 
  2.27  the city or town as follows:  cities or towns located in zone 4 
  2.28  shall be considered located in zone 3, cities or towns located 
  2.29  in zone 3 shall be considered located in zone 2, and cities or 
  2.30  towns located in zone 2 shall be considered located in zone 1.  
  2.31  The commissioner shall notify the city or town of its zone 
  2.32  change within 30 days after the results of the federal census 
  2.33  become available.  The zone change is effective for requests for 
  2.34  certification made after 30 days after the date of the 
  2.35  notification to the city.