1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to local government; providing for 
  1.3             consolidation of towns; amending Minnesota Statutes 
  1.4             1996, sections 379.03; and 379.04; Minnesota Statutes 
  1.5             1997 Supplement, section 379.02. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1997 Supplement, section 
  1.8   379.02, is amended to read: 
  1.9      379.02 [TOWNS, CHANGE OF BOUNDARIES AND NAMES; 
  1.10  CONSOLIDATION.] 
  1.11     Subdivision 1.  [BOUNDARY AND NAME CHANGES.] The county 
  1.12  board may alter the boundaries of towns, or partition any town 
  1.13  among other towns within the county by attaching a part of one 
  1.14  town to another, or by dividing one town and attaching the parts 
  1.15  to other towns, or by forming a new town from the territory of 
  1.16  one or more towns, or from territory not before included in a 
  1.17  town, whenever it is made to appear necessary or expedient, by a 
  1.18  petition for that purpose signed by not less than 20 legal 
  1.19  voters residing within the territory to be affected.  The county 
  1.20  board may, upon notice as provided in section 379.03, alter the 
  1.21  boundaries or change the name of any town within the county by 
  1.22  attaching thereto unorganized territory abutting thereon within 
  1.23  the county, after a petition for that purpose, signed by not 
  1.24  less than 20 legal voters residing within the unorganized 
  1.25  territory proposed to be attached, is approved by the town board 
  2.1   of the town to which the territory is proposed to be attached.  
  2.2   No town shall be so formed, having less than 36 square miles, 
  2.3   nor have its boundaries so changed as to reduce its territory 
  2.4   below that area, unless after such division it shall have at 
  2.5   least 25 qualified voters therein, and real estate valued at the 
  2.6   last preceding assessment at $30,000 or more; and no town shall 
  2.7   be divided or have any part detached therefrom so as to make its 
  2.8   area less than 36 square miles, except upon the petition of at 
  2.9   least two-thirds of the legal voters residing in one or both 
  2.10  subdivisions or parts.  The county auditor must notify the state 
  2.11  demographer of any boundary or name changes.  The county shall 
  2.12  prepare an estimate of the population and the number of 
  2.13  households in the attached or detached area.  The estimate must 
  2.14  be certified by the state demographer.  The estimate must 
  2.15  estimate the population as of the effective date of the county 
  2.16  board's resolution and must be so dated. 
  2.17     Subd. 2.  [CONSOLIDATION OF TOWNS.] The question of whether 
  2.18  to consolidate two or more contiguous organized towns may be 
  2.19  initiated by a petition signed by voters in each town equal in 
  2.20  number to 20 percent of the votes cast at the last general 
  2.21  election in each town.  Petitions must be filed with the auditor 
  2.22  of the county containing the affected towns.  Within 30 days of 
  2.23  receiving the petition, the county auditor shall mail notice of 
  2.24  the petition to the town board of each affected town.  The 
  2.25  question of consolidation may also be initiated by a resolution 
  2.26  of the town board of each affected town.  Once the question of 
  2.27  consolidation has been properly initiated, each town board shall 
  2.28  submit the question by ballot to the electors for a vote at the 
  2.29  next annual town election.  The town clerk in each town shall 
  2.30  include notice of the ballot question in the notice of the town 
  2.31  election.  Each town shall certify the results of the vote to 
  2.32  the county auditor with the other results of the election.  If a 
  2.33  majority of the electors voting on the question in each town 
  2.34  vote in favor of consolidation, the county auditor shall provide 
  2.35  notice of the combined results to each affected town board and 
  2.36  the county board.  After providing 30 days' posted notice and 
  3.1   two weeks' published notice, the county board shall conduct a 
  3.2   hearing within the bounds of the affected territory to order the 
  3.3   consolidation.  The county board order shall provide for the 
  3.4   consolidation of the territory of the less populous towns into 
  3.5   the territory of the most populous town unless a different 
  3.6   consolidation plan was specifically requested in the petition or 
  3.7   joint resolution.  The population shall be determined by the 
  3.8   federal decennial census or population estimate by the state 
  3.9   demographer, whichever has the latest stated date of count or 
  3.10  estimate.  The office of elected and appointed officials of the 
  3.11  towns to be consolidated into another shall terminate on the 
  3.12  effective date of the consolidation.  Unless otherwise provided 
  3.13  in the petition or joint resolution, at the same time the 
  3.14  officers of the town into which the towns are being consolidated 
  3.15  shall become officers of the combined town for the balance of 
  3.16  their terms of office.  All money, claims, or properties, 
  3.17  including real estate owned, held, or possessed by the 
  3.18  consolidated towns and any proceeds or taxes levied by the 
  3.19  consolidated towns, collected or uncollected, become the 
  3.20  property of the remaining consolidated town with authority to 
  3.21  sue and dispose of the property for public purposes as the 
  3.22  remaining town board considers best, subject to the rights of 
  3.23  creditors.  Any outstanding indebtedness of the consolidated 
  3.24  towns shall be assumed and secured by the remaining consolidated 
  3.25  town. 
  3.26     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 379.03, is 
  3.27  amended to read: 
  3.28     379.03 [NOTICE OF HEARING.] 
  3.29     Before acting on any petition mentioned in section 379.02, 
  3.30  subdivision 1, the county board shall cause 30 days' posted 
  3.31  notice of the time of hearing the same to be given within the 
  3.32  bounds of the territory proposed to be partitioned, altered, or 
  3.33  formed into a new town.  Such notice shall include a copy of the 
  3.34  petition, and be served on the clerk of each town whose 
  3.35  territory may be affected.  
  3.36     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 379.04, is 
  4.1   amended to read: 
  4.2      379.04 [ACTION OF BOARD.] 
  4.3      If such application as provided in section 379.02, 
  4.4   subdivision 1, is granted, the county board shall forthwith fix 
  4.5   and determine the boundaries of such town or towns, and make and 
  4.6   file with the county auditor a full report of its proceedings in 
  4.7   the matter.