2006 Minnesota Statutes

116P.09 ADMINISTRATION.
    Subdivision 1. Administrative authority. The commission may appoint legal and other
personnel and consultants necessary to carry out functions and duties of the commission.
Permanent employees shall be in the unclassified service. In addition, the commission may
request staff assistance and data from any other agency of state government as needed for the
execution of the responsibilities of the commission and an agency must promptly furnish it.
    Subd. 2. Liaison officers. The commission shall request each department or agency head
of all state agencies with a direct interest and responsibility in any phase of environment and
natural resources to appoint, and the latter shall appoint for the agency, a liaison officer who shall
work closely with the commission and its staff.
    Subd. 3. Appraisal and evaluation. The commission shall obtain and appraise information
available through private organizations and groups, utilizing to the fullest extent possible studies,
data, and reports previously prepared or currently in progress by public agencies, private
organizations, groups, and others, concerning future trends in the protection, conservation,
preservation, and enhancement of the state's air, water, land, forests, fish, wildlife, native
vegetation, and other natural resources. Any data compiled by the commission shall be made
available to any standing or interim committee of the legislature upon the request of the chair of
the respective committee.
    Subd. 4. Personnel. Persons who are employed by a state agency to work on a project and
are paid by an appropriation from the trust fund are in the unclassified civil service, and their
continued employment is contingent upon the availability of money from the appropriation. When
the appropriation has been spent, their positions must be canceled and the approved complement
of the agency reduced accordingly. Part-time employment of persons for a project is authorized.
The use of classified employees is authorized when approved as part of the work program required
by section 116P.05, subdivision 2, paragraph (c).
    Subd. 5. Administrative expense. The prorated expenses related to commission
administration of the trust fund may not exceed an amount equal to four percent of the amount
available for appropriation of the trust fund for the biennium.
    Subd. 6. Conflict of interest. A commission member, a technical advisory committee
member, a peer review panelist, or an employee of the commission may not participate in or
vote on a decision of the commission, advisory committee, or peer review panel relating to an
organization in which the member, panelist, or employee has either a direct or indirect personal
financial interest. While serving on the commission, technical advisory committee, or peer review
panel, or being an employee of the commission, a person shall avoid any potential conflict of
interest.
    Subd. 7. Report required. The commission shall, by January 15 of each odd-numbered
year, submit a report to the governor, the chairs of the house appropriations and senate finance
committees, and the chairs of the house and senate committees on environment and natural
resources. Copies of the report must be available to the public. The report must include:
(1) a copy of the current strategic plan;
(2) a description of each project receiving money from the trust fund during the preceding
biennium;
(3) a summary of any research project completed in the preceding biennium;
(4) recommendations to implement successful projects and programs into a state agency's
standard operations;
(5) to the extent known by the commission, descriptions of the projects anticipated to be
supported by the trust fund during the next biennium;
(6) the source and amount of all revenues collected and distributed by the commission,
including all administrative and other expenses;
(7) a description of the assets and liabilities of the trust fund;
(8) any findings or recommendations that are deemed proper to assist the legislature in
formulating legislation;
(9) a list of all gifts and donations with a value over $1,000;
(10) a comparison of the amounts spent by the state for environment and natural resources
activities through the most recent fiscal year; and
(11) a copy of the most recent compliance audit.
    Subd. 8. Technical advisory committees. The commission shall make use of available
public and private expertise on environment and natural resource issues by appointing necessary
technical advisory committees to review funding proposals and evaluate project outcomes.
Compensation for technical advisory committee members is governed by section 15.059,
subdivision 6.
History: 1988 c 690 art 1 s 13; 1991 c 254 art 2 s 44-46; 1991 c 343 s 7-10; 1994 c 580 s 4;
2003 c 128 art 1 s 148-150; 2006 c 243 s 11-13