1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to taxation; requiring use of money from the 
  1.3             property tax reform account to reduce or eliminate the 
  1.4             levy for metropolitan transit expenditures; amending 
  1.5             Minnesota Statutes 1997 Supplement, section 16A.1521. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1997 Supplement, section 
  1.8   16A.1521, is amended to read: 
  1.9      16A.1521 [PROPERTY TAX REFORM ACCOUNT.] 
  1.10     (a) A property tax reform account is established in the 
  1.11  general fund. 
  1.12     (b) Amounts in the account are available for and may only 
  1.13  be spent to reform the property tax system by: 
  1.14     (1) as the first priority for expenditures from the account 
  1.15  each year, eliminating the levy for the metropolitan transit 
  1.16  system under section 473.446, or, if there is insufficient money 
  1.17  in the account to eliminate the levies for a year, to reduce the 
  1.18  levies proportionately; 
  1.19     (2) reducing the class rates to the target rates specified 
  1.20  in section 273.13, subdivision 32, or to further reduce the 
  1.21  ratio of the highest class rate to lowest class rate; 
  1.22     ~~(2)~~ (3) increasing state education aids to reduce property 
  1.23  taxes; 
  1.24     ~~(3)~~ (4) increasing the state share of education funding to 
  1.25  70 percent; 
  2.1      ~~(4)~~ (5) increasing the education homestead credit; or 
  2.2      ~~(5)~~ (6) increasing the property tax refund. 
  2.3   As provided by section 273.13, subdivision 32, to the extent 
  2.4   that money remains in the account after meeting the requirements 
  2.5   of clause (1), the governor shall recommend to the legislature 
  2.6   uses of money in the account to compress class rate ratios, 
  2.7   while mitigating the shifting of relative property tax burdens 
  2.8   from one class to another through the mechanisms listed in 
  2.9   clauses ~~(2) through (5)~~ (3) to (6).  
  2.10     (c) The balance in the account does not cancel and remains 
  2.11  in the account until appropriated for property tax reform.  
  2.12  Investment earnings on the account are credited to the account. 
  2.13     Sec. 2.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  2.14     Section 1 is effective for taxes levied in 1998, payable in 
  2.15  1999, and thereafter.