2007 Minnesota Statutes

123B.63 CAPITAL PROJECT REFERENDUM.
    Subdivision 1. Creation of a capital project referendum account. A district may create
a capital project referendum account as a separate account in its general fund or its building
construction fund. All proceeds from the capital project levy must be deposited in the capital
project referendum account in its general fund. The portion of the proceeds to be used for
building construction must be transferred to the capital project referendum account in its building
construction fund. Interest income attributable to the capital project referendum account must
be credited to the account.
    Subd. 2. Uses of the account. Money in the capital project referendum account must be used
only for the purposes specified in section 126C.10, subdivision 14, for operating capital revenue,
including the costs of acquisition and betterment for a project that has been reviewed under
section 123B.71 and has been approved according to subdivision 3.
    Subd. 3. Capital project levy referendum. A district may levy the local tax rate approved
by a majority of the electors voting on the question to provide funds for an approved project. The
election must take place no more than five years before the estimated date of commencement of
the project. The referendum must be held on a date set by the board. A referendum for a project
not receiving a positive review and comment by the commissioner under section 123B.71 must be
approved by at least 60 percent of the voters at the election. The referendum may be called by
the school board and may be held:
    (1) separately, before an election for the issuance of obligations for the project under
chapter 475; or
    (2) in conjunction with an election for the issuance of obligations for the project under
chapter 475; or
    (3) notwithstanding section 475.59, as a conjunctive question authorizing both the capital
project levy and the issuance of obligations for the project under chapter 475. Any obligations
authorized for a project may be issued within five years of the date of the election.
    The ballot must provide a general description of the proposed project, state the estimated
total cost of the project, state whether the project has received a positive or negative review and
comment from the commissioner, state the maximum amount of the capital project levy as a
percentage of net tax capacity, state the amount that will be raised by that local tax rate in the
first year it is to be levied, and state the maximum number of years that the levy authorization
will apply.
    The ballot must contain a textual portion with the information required in this section and a
question stating substantially the following:
    "Shall the capital project levy proposed by the board of .......... School District No. ..........
be approved?"
    If approved, the amount provided by the approved local tax rate applied to the net tax
capacity for the year preceding the year the levy is certified may be certified for the number of
years, not to exceed ten, approved.
    In the event a conjunctive question proposes to authorize both the capital project levy and
the issuance of obligations for the project, appropriate language authorizing the issuance of
obligations must also be included in the question.
    The district must notify the commissioner of the results of the referendum.
    Subd. 4. Excess levy proceeds. Any funds remaining in the capital project referendum
account that are not applied to the payment of the costs of the approved project before its final
completion must be transferred to the district's debt redemption fund.
History: 1988 c 718 art 8 s 18; 1988 c 719 art 5 s 84; 1989 c 329 art 13 s 4; 1Sp1989 c
1 art 2 s 11; 1Sp1995 c 3 art 16 s 13; 1998 c 397 art 7 s 95,96,164; art 11 s 3; 1999 c 241 art
4 s 29; 2000 c 464 art 3 s 9; 2000 c 489 art 5 s 19,27; 1Sp2003 c 9 art 4 s 13-16; 1Sp2005
c 5 art 4 s 8; 2007 c 146 art 4 s 8