1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to lake improvement districts; providing a 
  1.3             procedure for election of the board of directors; 
  1.4             requiring certain notices; amending Minnesota Statutes 
  1.5             2002, sections 103B.535; 103B.571, subdivisions 2, 3; 
  1.6             proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, 
  1.7             chapter 103B. 
  1.8   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.9      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 103B.535, is 
  1.10  amended to read: 
  1.11     103B.535 [ORDER ESTABLISHING DISTRICT.] 
  1.12     An order establishing a district must state the:  
  1.13     (1) name of the district; 
  1.14     (2) boundaries of the district, which are encouraged to be 
  1.15  as consistent as practical with natural hydrologic boundaries; 
  1.16     (3) water and related land resources management programs 
  1.17  and services to be undertaken; 
  1.18     (4) manner of financing programs and services; and 
  1.19     (5) number, qualifications, terms of office, and method of 
  1.20  ~~election,~~ removal~~,~~ and filling of vacancies of the board of 
  1.21  directors~~, including a method for property owners not present at~~ 
  1.22  ~~the annual meeting to participate in the election of the~~ 
  1.23  ~~district board~~.  
  1.24     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 103B.571, 
  1.25  subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
  1.26     Subd. 2.  [NOTICE.] (a) The annual meeting shall be 
  2.1   preceded by two weeks' published notice and written notice 
  2.2   mailed at least ten days in advance of the meeting to the county 
  2.3   board or joint county authority, town boards and statutory and 
  2.4   home rule charter cities wholly or partially within the 
  2.5   district, the pollution control agency, and the commissioner of 
  2.6   natural resources~~, and if there is a proposed project by the~~ 
  2.7   ~~district having a cost in excess of $5,000, all property owners~~ 
  2.8   ~~within the assessment area~~. 
  2.9      (b) In addition to the notice required by paragraph (a), at 
  2.10  least 70 days before the meeting, written notice must be mailed 
  2.11  to all property owners within the assessment area as provided by 
  2.12  section 103B.573, subdivision 1, if: 
  2.13     (1) one or more directors will be elected at the annual 
  2.14  meeting; or 
  2.15     (2) there is a proposed project by the district having a 
  2.16  cost in excess of $5,000. 
  2.17     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 103B.571, 
  2.18  subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  2.19     Subd. 3.  [AGENDA.] (a) At the annual meeting the district 
  2.20  property owners present shall: 
  2.21     (1) elect one or more directors to fill any midterm 
  2.22  vacancies in the board of directors; 
  2.23     (2) approve a budget for the fiscal year; 
  2.24     (3) approve or disapprove proposed projects by the district 
  2.25  having a cost to the district in excess of $5,000; and 
  2.26     (4) take up and consider other business that comes before 
  2.27  them.  
  2.28     (b) At the annual meeting all district property owners~~,~~ 
  2.29  ~~including absent members as provided in the order establishing~~ 
  2.30  ~~the district,~~ shall elect one or more directors for board 
  2.31  positions with expiring terms. 
  2.32     Sec. 4.  [103B.573] [PROCEDURE FOR ELECTION OF DIRECTORS.] 
  2.33     Subdivision 1.  [NOTICE OF ELECTION.] Not later than 70 
  2.34  days before the annual meeting, the district must mail every 
  2.35  owner of property within the assessment area a notice that 
  2.36  nominations for director are being accepted.  The notice must 
  3.1   explain the qualifications of a board member, the term of 
  3.2   office, how many full terms or vacancies are to be filled, and 
  3.3   how to nominate a candidate, including the deadline for 
  3.4   nomination and the mailing address to send nominations.  The 
  3.5   notice must also contain the substance of subdivision 4, 
  3.6   paragraph (a), on voting absentee for director. 
  3.7      Subd. 2.  [DIRECTOR QUALIFICATION.] A nominee for director 
  3.8   must be an owner of property within the assessment area as of 
  3.9   the date nominations close. 
  3.10     Subd. 3.  [NOMINATIONS FOR DIRECTOR; CANDIDATE STATEMENTS.] 
  3.11  (a) Nominations for director must be accepted during the period 
  3.12  between 70 and 35 days before the annual meeting.  Nominations 
  3.13  received later than 35 days before the meeting do not qualify to 
  3.14  be placed on the ballot or absentee ballot for the annual 
  3.15  meeting and election.  The district must send a copy of the Fair 
  3.16  Campaign Practices Act, chapter 211B, to individuals whose 
  3.17  nominations are accepted by the district. 
  3.18     (b) Nominees for director may submit a candidate statement 
  3.19  to the district.  The statement must be not more than 150 words 
  3.20  in length.  It may contain biographical information on the 
  3.21  nominee, reasons for seeking office, positions on issues 
  3.22  affecting the district, and any other information the nominee 
  3.23  considers relevant.  Statements received by the district not 
  3.24  later than the 22nd day before the annual meeting must be 
  3.25  provided to the county auditor to be mailed out with absentee 
  3.26  ballots.  Copies of all statements received by the time of the 
  3.27  annual meeting must be posted for review by the electors at the 
  3.28  annual meeting. 
  3.29     Subd. 4.  [ABSENTEE VOTING.] (a) Any property owner who 
  3.30  will not be present at the annual meeting may obtain an absentee 
  3.31  ballot by requesting it before the annual meeting from the 
  3.32  county auditor at the address stated in the notice of election 
  3.33  and annual meeting. 
  3.34     (b) The county auditor, at the request of the district, 
  3.35  must prepare ballots for the director election, including both 
  3.36  ballots to be used at the annual meeting and absentee ballots, 
  4.1   ballot envelopes, instructions, and return envelopes.  The 
  4.2   county auditor must have absentee ballots and other materials 
  4.3   for absentee voting available to fulfill requests from property 
  4.4   owners beginning 21 days before the annual meeting.  The county 
  4.5   auditor must include with the absentee ballot materials any 
  4.6   candidate statements received from the district under 
  4.7   subdivision 3.  The return envelopes must provide for the 
  4.8   ballots to be returned to the county auditor, who must forward 
  4.9   them to the district not later than the date and time set for 
  4.10  the commencement of the annual meeting. 
  4.11     (c) A ballot voted and returned before the close of voting 
  4.12  at the annual meeting is valid and must be counted at the 
  4.13  meeting.  It is the sole responsibility of the absentee voter to 
  4.14  ensure timely delivery of the absentee ballot.  A property owner 
  4.15  who receives an absentee ballot and subsequently attends the 
  4.16  annual meeting may bring the ballot in its sealed envelope to 
  4.17  the meeting and vote by delivering the ballot at the time of the 
  4.18  election. 
  4.19     Subd. 5.  [VOTING AT ANNUAL MEETING.] At least two election 
  4.20  judges who meet the qualifications of section 204B.19 and have 
  4.21  been trained by the county auditor must be present at the annual 
  4.22  meeting to count ballots cast in person and absentee ballots 
  4.23  received by the close of voting at the annual meeting.  Ballots 
  4.24  must be counted and returns delivered to the county auditor as 
  4.25  provided by chapter 204C, so far as practicable. 
  4.26     The judges must announce the vote for each nominee before 
  4.27  the close of the annual meeting.  Totals must be reported for 
  4.28  each nominee, indicating the number of votes cast by absentee 
  4.29  ballots separate from those cast in person. 
  4.30     Subd. 6.  [RECOUNTS.] Recounts for the office of director 
  4.31  are governed by section 204C.36. 
  4.32     Subd. 7.  [ELECTION EXPENSES; PAYMENT.] The district must 
  4.33  reimburse the county auditor for the cost of preparing all 
  4.34  ballots and ballot materials, for mailing absentee ballot 
  4.35  materials and candidate statements, and for the compensation of 
  4.36  election judges.