1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to taxation; providing a production tax on 
  1.3             wind energy in lieu of property tax; proposing coding 
  1.4             for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 273; 
  1.5             repealing Minnesota Statutes 2000, sections 272.02, 
  1.6             subdivision 22; 273.37, subdivision 3. 
  1.7   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.8      Section 1.  [273.355] [WIND ENERGY CONVERSION SYSTEMS.] 
  1.9      Subdivision 1.  [IN LIEU TAX.] A tax is imposed on 
  1.10  production of electricity from a wind energy conversion system 
  1.11  as defined in section 216C.06, subdivision 12, used as an 
  1.12  electric power source that is installed after January 1, 1995.  
  1.13  The tax is in lieu of ad valorem taxes. 
  1.14     Subd. 2.  [RATE OF TAX.] The purchaser of energy generated 
  1.15  by a wind energy conversion system shall pay .3 cents per 
  1.16  kilowatt-hour of electricity produced by the wind energy 
  1.17  conversion system described in subdivision 1, and shall recover 
  1.18  the cost of the tax in the rates charged to customers. 
  1.19     Subd. 3.  [REPORTS.] A person or company subject to tax 
  1.20  under this section shall file a report with the commissioner of 
  1.21  revenue annually on or before March 1 detailing the amount of 
  1.22  electricity in kilowatt-hours that was purchased by the person 
  1.23  or company and that was produced by a wind energy conversion 
  1.24  system.  The commissioner shall prescribe the form of the 
  1.25  report.  The report must contain the information required by the 
  1.26  commissioner to determine the tax due to each county under this 
  2.1   section for the current year.  If a company fails to file the 
  2.2   report by the due date, the commissioner of revenue shall 
  2.3   determine the tax based upon the nameplate capacity of the 
  2.4   system multiplied by a capacity factor of 25 percent.  On or 
  2.5   before March 31, the commissioner of revenue shall notify the 
  2.6   owner of the wind energy conversion systems of the tax due to 
  2.7   each county for the current year and shall certify to the county 
  2.8   auditor of each county in which the systems are located the tax 
  2.9   due from each owner for the current year. 
  2.10     Subd. 4.  [PAYMENT OF TAX; COLLECTION.] The taxes as 
  2.11  determined by the commissioner of revenue must be contained on 
  2.12  the lists of taxes due delivered by the county auditor to the 
  2.13  county treasurer.  The taxes must be paid to the county 
  2.14  treasurer at the time and in the manner provided for payment of 
  2.15  personal property taxes and, if unpaid, are subject to the same 
  2.16  enforcement, collection, and interest and penalties as 
  2.17  delinquent personal property taxes.  Except to the extent 
  2.18  inconsistent with this section, the provisions of sections 
  2.19  277.01 to 277.24 and 278.01 to 278.13 apply to the taxes imposed 
  2.20  under this section, and for purposes of those provisions the 
  2.21  taxes imposed under this section are considered personal 
  2.22  property taxes. 
  2.23     Subd. 5.  [DISTRIBUTION OF REVENUES.] Revenues from the 
  2.24  taxes imposed under this section must be part of the settlement 
  2.25  between the county treasurer and the county auditor under 
  2.26  section 276.09 and apportioned and distributed by the county 
  2.27  auditor and the county treasurer to the county, school district, 
  2.28  city or town, and special taxing districts in which the property 
  2.29  is located, in the same manner and in the same proportion as the 
  2.30  other property taxes are apportioned and distributed. 
  2.31     Sec. 2.  [REPEALER.] 
  2.32     Minnesota Statutes 2000, sections 272.02, subdivision 22; 
  2.33  and 273.37, subdivision 3, are repealed.