1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to taxation; providing for reduction of 
  1.3             property tax refunds payable to certain recipients of 
  1.4             medical assistance; providing for use of the money 
  1.5             saved by reduction of the refunds; amending Minnesota 
  1.6             Statutes 1994, section 290A.03, subdivision 8. 
  1.7   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.8      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 290A.03, 
  1.9   subdivision 8, is amended to read: 
  1.10     Subd. 8.  [CLAIMANT.] (a) "Claimant" means a person, other 
  1.11  than a dependent, as defined under sections 151 and 152 of the 
  1.12  Internal Revenue Code disregarding section 152(b)(3) of the 
  1.13  Internal Revenue Code, who filed a claim authorized by this 
  1.14  chapter and who was a resident of this state as provided in 
  1.15  chapter 290 during the calendar year for which the claim for 
  1.16  relief was filed. 
  1.17     (b) In the case of a claim relating to rent constituting 
  1.18  property taxes, the claimant shall have resided in a rented or 
  1.19  leased unit on which ad valorem taxes or payments made in lieu 
  1.20  of ad valorem taxes, including payments of special assessments 
  1.21  imposed in lieu of ad valorem taxes, are payable at some time 
  1.22  during the calendar year covered by the claim.  
  1.23     (c) "Claimant" shall not include a resident of a nursing 
  1.24  home, intermediate care facility, or long-term residential 
  1.25  facility, all of whose rent constituting property taxes is paid 
  1.26  pursuant to the supplemental security income program under title 
  2.1   XVI of the Social Security Act, the Minnesota supplemental aid 
  2.2   program under sections 256D.35 to 256D.54, the medical 
  2.3   assistance program pursuant to title XIX of the Social Security 
  2.4   Act, or the general assistance medical care program pursuant to 
  2.5   section 256D.03, subdivision 3.  If only a portion of the rent 
  2.6   constituting property taxes is paid by these programs, the 
  2.7   resident shall be a claimant for purposes of this chapter, but 
  2.8   the refund calculated pursuant to section 290A.04 shall 
  2.9   be reduced as follows: 
  2.10     (1) if a portion of the rent is paid under the supplemental 
  2.11  security income program, the Minnesota supplemental aid program, 
  2.12  or the general assistance medical care program, the refund must 
  2.13  be multiplied by a fraction, the numerator of which is income as 
  2.14  defined in subdivision 3, paragraphs (1) and (2), reduced by the 
  2.15  total amount of income from the above sources listed in this 
  2.16  paragraph other than vendor payments under the medical 
  2.17  assistance program or the general assistance medical care 
  2.18  program and the denominator of which is income as defined in 
  2.19  subdivision 3, paragraphs (1) and (2), plus vendor payments 
  2.20  under the medical assistance program or the general assistance 
  2.21  medical care program, to determine the allowable refund pursuant 
  2.22  to this chapter; and 
  2.23     (2) if a portion of the rent is paid under the medical 
  2.24  assistance program, the refund must be reduced by 1/12 for each 
  2.25  calendar month during which a portion of the rent is paid by the 
  2.26  program.  
  2.27     (d) Notwithstanding paragraph (c), if the claimant was a 
  2.28  resident of the nursing home, intermediate care facility or 
  2.29  long-term residential facility for only a portion of the 
  2.30  calendar year covered by the claim, the claimant may compute 
  2.31  rent constituting property taxes by disregarding the rent 
  2.32  constituting property taxes from the nursing home, intermediate 
  2.33  care facility, or long-term residential facility and use only 
  2.34  that amount of rent constituting property taxes or property 
  2.35  taxes payable relating to that portion of the year when the 
  2.36  claimant was not in the facility.  The claimant's household 
  3.1   income is the income for the entire calendar year covered by the 
  3.2   claim.  
  3.3      (e) In the case of a claim for rent constituting property 
  3.4   taxes of a part-year Minnesota resident, the income and rental 
  3.5   reflected in this computation shall be for the period of 
  3.6   Minnesota residency only.  Any rental expenses paid which may be 
  3.7   reflected in arriving at federal adjusted gross income cannot be 
  3.8   utilized for this computation.  When two individuals of a 
  3.9   household are able to meet the qualifications for a claimant, 
  3.10  they may determine among them as to who the claimant shall be. 
  3.11  If they are unable to agree, the matter shall be referred to the 
  3.12  commissioner of revenue whose decision shall be final.  If a 
  3.13  homestead property owner was a part-year Minnesota resident, the 
  3.14  income reflected in the computation made pursuant to section 
  3.15  290A.04 shall be for the entire calendar year, including income 
  3.16  not assignable to Minnesota. 
  3.17     (f) If a homestead is occupied by two or more renters, who 
  3.18  are not husband and wife, the rent shall be deemed to be paid 
  3.19  equally by each, and separate claims shall be filed by each.  
  3.20  The income of each shall be each renter's household income for 
  3.21  purposes of computing the amount of credit to be allowed. 
  3.22     Sec. 2.  [DEPOSIT OF PROGRAM SAVINGS.] 
  3.23     If a health care reform fund is created in a bill enacted 
  3.24  by the legislature during the 1996 legislative session as a fund 
  3.25  for deposit of savings, collections, and paybacks from various 
  3.26  activities relating to health care, the commissioner of revenue 
  3.27  shall annually estimate the amount of reduction in property tax 
  3.28  refunds attributable to section 1.  That amount shall be 
  3.29  transferred annually from the general fund to the health care 
  3.30  reform fund. 
  3.31     Sec. 3.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  3.32     Section 1 is effective for refunds based on rent paid in 
  3.33  1996 and subsequent years.