Reverse referendum for local government levies that increase by a certain amount authorization provision

A bill for an act

relating to taxation; property; allowing a reverse referendum for local government

levies that increase by a certain amount; amending Minnesota Statutes 2024,

sections 275.065, subdivision 3; 275.07, subdivision 1; 276.04, subdivisions 1, 2;

proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 275.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 275.065, subdivision 3, is amended to read:

Subd. 3.

Notice of proposed property taxes.

(a) The county auditor shall prepare and

the county treasurer shall deliver after November 10 and on or before November 24 each

year, by first class mail to each taxpayer at the address listed on the county's current year's

assessment roll, a notice of proposed property taxes. Upon written request by the taxpayer,

the treasurer may send the notice in electronic form or by electronic mail instead of on paper

or by ordinary mail.

(b) The commissioner of revenue shall prescribe the form of the notice.

(c) The notice must inform taxpayers that it contains the amount of property taxes each

taxing authority proposes to collect for taxes payable the following year. In the case of a

town, or in the case of the state general tax, the final tax amount will be its proposed tax.

The notice must clearly state for each city that has a population over 500, county, school

district, regional library authority established under section
134.201
, metropolitan taxing

districts as defined in paragraph (i), and fire protection and emergency medical services

special taxing districts established under section
144F.01
, the time and place of a meeting

for each taxing authority in which the budget and levy will be discussed and public input

allowed, prior to the final budget and levy determination. The taxing authorities must provide

the county auditor with the information to be included in the notice on or before the time it

certifies its proposed levy under subdivision 1. The public must be allowed to speak at that

meeting, which must occur after November 24 and must not be held before 6:00 p.m. It

must provide a website address and a telephone number for the taxing authority that taxpayers

may call if they have questions related to the notice and an address where comments will

be received by mail, except that no notice required under this section shall be interpreted

as requiring the printing of a personal telephone number or address as the contact information

for a taxing authority. If a taxing authority does not maintain a website or public offices

where telephone calls can be received by the authority, the authority may inform the county

of the lack of a public website or telephone number and the county shall not list a website

or telephone number for that taxing authority.

(d) The notice must state for each parcel:

(1) the market value of the property as determined under section
273.11
, and used for

computing property taxes payable in the following year and for taxes payable in the current

year as each appears in the records of the county assessor on November 1 of the current

year; and, in the case of residential property, whether the property is classified as homestead

or nonhomestead. The notice must clearly inform taxpayers of the years to which the market

values apply and that the values are final values;

(2) the items listed below, shown separately by county, city or town, and state general

tax, agricultural homestead credit under section
273.1384
, school building bond agricultural

credit under section
273.1387
, voter approved school levy, other local school levy, and the

sum of the special taxing districts, and as a total of all taxing authorities:

(i) the actual tax for taxes payable in the current year; and

(ii) the proposed tax amount.

If the county levy under clause (2) includes an amount for a lake improvement district

as defined under sections
103B.501
to
103B.581
, the amount attributable for that purpose

must be separately stated from the remaining county levy amount.

In the case of a town or the state general tax, the final tax shall also be its proposed tax

unless the town changes its levy at a special town meeting under section
365.52
. If a school

district has certified under section
126C.17, subdivision 9
, that a referendum will be held

in the school district at the November general election, the county auditor must note next

to the school district's proposed amount that a referendum is pending and that, if approved

by the voters, the tax amount may be higher than shown on the notice. In the case of the

city of Minneapolis, the levy for Minneapolis Park and Recreation shall be listed separately

from the remaining amount of the city's levy. In the case of the city of St. Paul, the levy for

the St. Paul Library Agency must be listed separately from the remaining amount of the

city's levy. In the case of Ramsey County, any amount levied under section
134.07
may be

listed separately from the remaining amount of the county's levy. In the case of a parcel

where tax increment or the fiscal disparities areawide tax under chapter 276A or 473F

applies, the proposed tax levy on the captured value or the proposed tax levy on the tax

capacity subject to the areawide tax must each be stated separately and not included in the

sum of the special taxing districts;
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and
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(3) the increase or decrease between the total taxes payable in the current year and the

total proposed taxes, expressed as a percentage
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.
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; and
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(4) a statement at the top of the notice stating the following "If a county's or city's

proposed levy for next year is greater than its actual levy for the current year, the voters

may have the right to petition for a referendum on next year's levy certification, according

to Minnesota Statutes, section 275.80, provided that the final levy the county or city certifies

is also greater than its levy for the current year."

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For purposes of this section, the amount of the tax on homesteads qualifying under the

senior citizens' property tax deferral program under chapter 290B is the total amount of

property tax before subtraction of the deferred property tax amount.

(e) The notice must clearly state that the proposed or final taxes do not include the

following:

(1) special assessments;

(2) levies approved by the voters after the date the proposed taxes are certified, including

bond referenda and school district levy referenda;

(3) a levy limit increase approved by the voters by the first Tuesday after the first Monday

in November of the levy year as provided under section
275.73
;

(4) amounts necessary to pay cleanup or other costs due to a natural disaster occurring

after the date the proposed taxes are certified;

(5) amounts necessary to pay tort judgments against the taxing authority that become

final after the date the proposed taxes are certified; and

(6) the contamination tax imposed on properties which received market value reductions

for contamination.

(f) Except as provided in subdivision 7, failure of the county auditor to prepare or the

county treasurer to deliver the notice as required in this section does not invalidate the

proposed or final tax levy or the taxes payable pursuant to the tax levy.

(g) If the notice the taxpayer receives under this section lists the property as

nonhomestead, and satisfactory documentation is provided to the county assessor by the

applicable deadline, and the property qualifies for the homestead classification in that

assessment year, the assessor shall reclassify the property to homestead for taxes payable

in the following year.

(h) In the case of class 4 residential property used as a residence for lease or rental

periods of 30 days or more, the taxpayer must either:

(1) mail or deliver a copy of the notice of proposed property taxes to each tenant, renter,

or lessee; or

(2) post a copy of the notice in a conspicuous place on the premises of the property.

The notice must be mailed or posted by the taxpayer by November 27 or within three

days of receipt of the notice, whichever is later. A taxpayer may notify the county treasurer

of the address of the taxpayer, agent, caretaker, or manager of the premises to which the

notice must be mailed in order to fulfill the requirements of this paragraph.

(i) For purposes of this subdivision and subdivision 6, "metropolitan special taxing

districts" means the following taxing districts in the seven-county metropolitan area that

levy a property tax for any of the specified purposes listed below:

(1) Metropolitan Council under section
473.132
,
473.167
,
473.249
,
473.325
,
473.446
,

473.521
,
473.547
, or
473.834
;

(2) Metropolitan Airports Commission under section
473.667
,
473.671
, or
473.672
; and

(3) Metropolitan Mosquito Control Commission under section
473.711
.

For purposes of this section, any levies made by the regional rail authorities in the county

of Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, Scott, or Washington under chapter 398A

shall be included with the appropriate county's levy.

(j) The governing body of a county, city, or school district may, with the consent of the

county board, include supplemental information with the statement of proposed property

taxes about the impact of state aid increases or decreases on property tax increases or

decreases and on the level of services provided in the affected jurisdiction. This supplemental

information may include information for the following year, the current year, and for as

many consecutive preceding years as deemed appropriate by the governing body of the

county, city, or school district. It may include only information regarding:

(1) the impact of inflation as measured by the implicit price deflator for state and local

government purchases;

(2) population growth and decline;

(3) state or federal government action; and

(4) other financial factors that affect the level of property taxation and local services

that the governing body of the county, city, or school district may deem appropriate to

include.

The information may be presented using tables, written narrative, and graphic

representations and may contain instruction toward further sources of information or

opportunity for comment.

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EFFECTIVE DATE.

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This section is effective for property taxes payable in 2027 and

thereafter.

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Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 275.07, subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

Certification of levy.

(a) Except as provided under paragraph (b), the

taxes voted by cities, counties, school districts, and special districts shall be certified by the

proper authorities to the county auditor on or before five working days after December 20

in each year. A town must certify the levy adopted by the town board to the county auditor

by September 30 each year. If the town board modifies the levy at a special town meeting

after September 30, the town board must recertify its levy to the county auditor on or before

five working days after December 20.
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If a city or county levy is subject to a referendum

under section 275.80 and the referendum was approved by the voters, the maximum levy

certified under this section is the proposed levy certified under section 275.065. If the

referendum was not approved, the maximum levy that a city or county may approve under

this section is the amount allowed in section 275.80, subdivision 4. The city or county may

choose to certify a levy less than the allowed maximum amount.
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If a city, town, county,

school district, or special district fails to certify its levy by that date, its levy shall be the

amount levied by it for the preceding year.

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(b)(i)
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(b)(1)
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The taxes voted by counties under sections
103B.241
,
103B.245
, and

103B.251
shall be separately certified by the county to the county auditor on or before five

working days after December 20 in each year. The taxes certified shall not be reduced by

the county auditor by the aid received under section
273.1398, subdivision 3
. If a county

fails to certify its levy by that date, its levy shall be the amount levied by it for the preceding

year.

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(ii)
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(2)
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For purposes of the proposed property tax notice under section
275.065
and the

property tax statement under section
276.04
, for the first year in which the county implements

the provisions of this paragraph, the county auditor shall reduce the county's levy for the

preceding year to reflect any amount levied for water management purposes under clause
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(i)
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(1)
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included in the county's levy.

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EFFECTIVE DATE.

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This section is effective for property taxes payable in 2027 and

thereafter.

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Sec. 3.

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[275.80] LEVY INCREASE; REVERSE REFERENDUM AUTHORIZED.

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Subdivision 1.

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Citation.

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This section shall be known as the "Property Tax Payers'

Empowerment Act."

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Subd. 2.

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Definitions.

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(a) For purposes of this section, the following terms have the

meanings given.

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(b) "General levy" means the total levy certified under section 275.07 by a local

governmental unit, excluding any levy approved by the voters at a general or special election.

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(c) "Local governmental unit" means a county or a statutory or home rule charter city.

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(d) "Maximum alternative levy" means, for taxes levied in a current year by a local

governmental unit, the sum of (1) the local governmental unit's nondebt levy certified two

years prior to the current year, and (2) the amount of the local governmental unit's proposed

levy for the current year levied for the purposes listed in section 275.70, subdivision 5,

clauses (1) to (5).

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(e) "Nondebt levy" means the total levy certified under section 275.07 by the local

governmental unit, minus any amount levied for the purposes listed in section 275.70,

subdivision 5, clauses (1) to (5).

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Subd. 3.

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Levy increase; reverse referendum authority.

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If a general levy exceeds the

general levy from the previous year, the voters may petition for a referendum on the levy

a local governmental unit will certify in the following year. The county auditor must publish

information on the right to petition for a referendum as provided in section 276.04,

subdivisions 1 and 2. If by June 30 a petition signed by a number of voters equal to ten

percent of the votes cast in the last general election requesting a vote on the levy is filed

with the county auditor, a question on the levy a local governmental unit will certify for the

current year must be placed on the ballot at either the general election or at a special election

held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of the current calendar year.

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Subd. 4.

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Prohibition against new debt before the election.

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Notwithstanding any other

provision of law, ordinance, or local charter provision, a local governmental unit must not

issue any new debt or obligation from the time the petition for referendum is filed with the

county auditor under subdivision 3 until the day after the referendum required under this

section is held, except as allowed in this subdivision. Refunding bonds and bonds that have

already received voter approval are exempt from the prohibition in this subdivision. For

purposes of this subdivision, "obligation" has the meaning given in section 475.51,

subdivision 3.

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Subd. 5.

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Ballot question; consequence of the vote.

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(a) The question submitted to the

voters as required under subdivision 3 must take the following form:

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"The governing body of ..... has imposed the following property tax levy in the last two

years and is proposing the following maximum levy increase for the coming year:

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(previous payable year)

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(current payable year)

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(coming payable year)

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Total levy

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Total levy

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Maximum proposed levy

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$.......

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$.......

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$.......

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Shall the governing body of ..... be allowed to impose the maximum proposed levy listed

above?

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Yes

.

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No

.

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"

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(b) If the majority of votes cast on the question are "no," the maximum allowed levy for

the coming year is reduced to the maximum alternative levy of ....... If a city is subject to

this provision, by September 30 the city must provide the county auditor with information

on the city's proposed levy that is necessary to calculate the maximum alternative levy under

subdivision 2.

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(c) If the majority of votes cast on the question are "yes," the levy certified by the local

governmental unit under section 275.07 must be less than or equal to the local governmental

unit's proposed levy under section 275.065. If the question does not receive sufficient

affirmative votes, the levy amount that the local governmental unit certifies under section

275.07 in the current year must be less than or equal to the local governmental unit's

maximum alternative levy as defined in subdivision 2.

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EFFECTIVE DATE.

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This section is effective for property taxes payable in 2027 and

thereafter.

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Sec. 4.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 276.04, subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

Auditor to publish rates.

On receiving the tax lists from the county

auditor, the county treasurer shall, if directed by the county board, give three weeks' published

notice in a newspaper specifying the rates of taxation for all general purposes and the

amounts raised for each specific purpose.
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If a city or county is subject to a petition of the

voters due to a general levy increase as provided in section 275.80, the published notice

must also include the general levy for the current year and the previous year for that city or

county along with the statement in the following form:
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"Because the governing body of ....... increased its nonvoter approved levy in the current

year, the voters in that jurisdiction have the right to petition for a referendum under Minnesota

Statutes, section 275.80, on that jurisdiction's levy amount. To invoke the referendum, a

petition signed by a number of voters that is equal to ten percent of the votes cast in the last

general election on this issue must be filed with the county auditor by June 30 of the current

year."

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EFFECTIVE DATE.

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This section is effective for property taxes payable in 2027 and

thereafter.

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Sec. 5.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 276.04, subdivision 2, is amended to read:

Subd. 2.

Contents of tax statements.

(a) The treasurer shall provide for the printing of

the tax statements. The commissioner of revenue shall prescribe the form of the property

tax statement and its contents. The tax statement must not state or imply that property tax

credits are paid by the state of Minnesota. The statement must contain a tabulated statement

of the dollar amount due to each taxing authority and the amount of the state tax from the

parcel of real property for which a particular tax statement is prepared. The dollar amounts

attributable to the county, the state tax, the voter approved school tax, the other local school

tax, the township or municipality, and the total of the metropolitan special taxing districts

as defined in section
275.065, subdivision 3
, paragraph (i), must be separately stated. The

amounts due all other special taxing districts, if any, may be aggregated except that any

levies made by the regional rail authorities in the county of Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin,

Ramsey, Scott, or Washington under chapter 398A shall be listed on a separate line directly

under the appropriate county's levy. If the county levy under this paragraph includes an

amount for a lake improvement district as defined under sections
103B.501
to
103B.581
,

the amount attributable for that purpose must be separately stated from the remaining county

levy amount. In the case of Ramsey County, if the county levy under this paragraph includes

an amount for public library service under section
134.07
, the amount attributable for that

purpose may be separated from the remaining county levy amount. The amount of the tax

on homesteads qualifying under the senior citizens' property tax deferral program under

chapter 290B is the total amount of property tax before subtraction of the deferred property

tax amount. The amount of the tax on contamination value imposed under sections
270.91

to
270.98
, if any, must also be separately stated. The dollar amounts, including the dollar

amount of any special assessments, may be rounded to the nearest even whole dollar. For

purposes of this section whole odd-numbered dollars may be adjusted to the next higher

even-numbered dollar.

(b) The property tax statements for manufactured homes and sectional structures taxed

as personal property shall contain the same information that is required on the tax statements

for real property.

(c) Real and personal property tax statements must contain the following information

in the order given in this paragraph. The information must contain the current year tax

information in the right column with the corresponding information for the previous year

in a column on the left:

(1) the property's estimated market value under section
273.11, subdivision 1
;

(2) the property's homestead market value exclusion under section
273.13
, subdivision

35;

(3) the property's taxable market value under section
272.03, subdivision 15
;

(4) the property's gross tax, before credits;

(5) for agricultural properties, the credits under sections
273.1384 and 273.1387
;

(6) any credits received under sections
273.119
;
273.1234
or
273.1235
;
273.135
;

273.1391
;
273.1398, subdivision 4
;
469.171
; and
473H.10
, except that the amount of credit

received under section
273.135
must be separately stated and identified as "taconite tax

relief"; and

(7) the net tax payable in the manner required in paragraph (a).

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(d) If a city or county is subject to a petition of the voters due to a general levy increase

as provided in section 275.80, the tax statement must include the general levy for the current

year and the previous year for that city or county along with the following statement:

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"Because the governing body of ....... increased its nonvoter approved levy in the current

year, the voters in that jurisdiction have the right to petition for a referendum on that

jurisdiction's levy amount under Minnesota Statutes, section 275.80. To invoke the

referendum, a petition signed by a number of voters that is equal to ten percent of the votes

cast in the last general election on this issue must be filed with the county auditor by June

30 of the current year."

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(d)
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(e)
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If the county uses envelopes for mailing property tax statements and if the county

agrees, a taxing district may include a notice with the property tax statement notifying

taxpayers when the taxing district will begin its budget deliberations for the current year,

and encouraging taxpayers to attend the hearings. If the county allows notices to be included

in the envelope containing the property tax statement, and if more than one taxing district

relative to a given property decides to include a notice with the tax statement, the county

treasurer or auditor must coordinate the process and may combine the information on a

single announcement.

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EFFECTIVE DATE.

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This section is effective for property taxes payable in 2027 and

thereafter.

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