1.1                          A bill for an act
  1.2             relating to county economic development; increasing 
  1.3             county appropriation authority for economic 
  1.4             development; requiring county approval for use of the 
  1.5             county tax rate in tax increment financing; amending 
  1.6             Minnesota Statutes 1994, sections 375.83; 469.175, by 
  1.7             adding a subdivision; and 469.177, subdivision 1a. 
  1.8   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.9      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 375.83, is 
  1.10  amended to read: 
  1.11     375.83 [ECONOMIC AND AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT.] 
  1.12     A county board may appropriate ~~not more than $50,000~~ 
  1.13  ~~annually~~ money out of the general revenue fund of the county to 
  1.14  be paid to any incorporated development society or organization 
  1.15  of this state which, in the board's opinion, will use the money 
  1.16  for the best interests of the county in promoting, advertising, 
  1.17  improving, or developing the economic and agricultural resources 
  1.18  of the county.  ~~The limitation on appropriations in this section~~ 
  1.19  ~~does not prohibit accumulation of amounts in excess of $50,000~~ 
  1.20  ~~in a fund to be used for the purposes of this section.  The~~ 
  1.21  ~~total amount accumulated in the fund must not exceed $300,000.~~ 
  1.22     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 469.175, is 
  1.23  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  1.24     Subd. 3a.  [COUNTY APPROVAL.] (a) The authority may submit 
  1.25  the tax increment financing plan and the proposed district to 
  1.26  the county board for its approval. 
  2.1      (b) Before approving the tax increment plan and district, 
  2.2   the county board shall, by resolution, make the following 
  2.3   findings. 
  2.4      (1) The county board does not expect the proposed 
  2.5   development to occur within the county solely through private 
  2.6   investment in the reasonably foreseeable future without using 
  2.7   the county tax rate in computing the tax increment and does not 
  2.8   expect another development of the site of equal or greater value 
  2.9   (after deducting the estimated cost of the county tax increment 
  2.10  assistance) to occur within the reasonably foreseeable future 
  2.11  without using tax increment financing.  If the proposed district 
  2.12  is a redevelopment or renewal and renovation district, the 
  2.13  county may instead find that the social or economic benefits 
  2.14  outweigh the costs of the county's share of the tax increment. 
  2.15     (2) The tax increment financing plan conforms to the 
  2.16  general plan for the development or redevelopment of the county 
  2.17  as a whole. 
  2.18     (c) If the county neither approves nor disapproves of a 
  2.19  submitted plan within 45 days after it is submitted, the plan is 
  2.20  deemed approved. 
  2.21     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 469.177, 
  2.22  subdivision 1a, is amended to read: 
  2.23     Subd. 1a.  [ORIGINAL LOCAL TAX RATE.] At the time of the 
  2.24  initial certification of the original net tax capacity for a tax 
  2.25  increment financing district, the county auditor shall certify 
  2.26  the original local tax rate that applies to the district.  The 
  2.27  original local tax rate is the sum of all the local tax rates 
  2.28  that apply to a property in the district.  The original local 
  2.29  tax rate does not include the county tax rate, unless the county 
  2.30  board approves the district under section 469.175, subdivision 
  2.31  3a.  The local tax rate to be certified is the rate in effect 
  2.32  for the same taxes payable year applicable to the tax capacity 
  2.33  values certified as the district's original tax capacity.  The 
  2.34  resulting tax capacity rate is the original local tax rate for 
  2.35  the life of the district. 
  2.36     Sec. 4.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  3.1      Section 1 is effective the day following final enactment.  
  3.2   Sections 2 and 3 are effective for districts for which the 
  3.3   request for certification is made after July 1, 1995.