Article 1. Reimbursement Aid

Section 1. Deputy Registrar and Driver’s License Agent Reimbursement.

Subdivision 1.  Definition. Defines “account balance.”

Subdivision 2.  Program established.  Requires the commissioner of public safety (“commissioner”) to establish a deputy registrar and driver’s license agent reimbursement program.  Offices operated by the state are not eligible to receive funds under this section.

Subdivision 3.  Aid funds; transfers; appropriation.  Each quarter, the commissioner must identify the amounts in the driver services operating account and the vehicle service operating account. The amount of each account is calculated by taking the account balance, less the reserve amount, and less a 15 percent set-aside of the reserve amount. The identified amounts must be transferred into the appointed officials reimbursement account. Funds in the appointed officials reimbursement account are annually appropriated to the commissioner to distribute as provided in subdivision 4.

Subdivision 4. Aid distribution. Each quarter, the commissioner must notify the deputy registrars and driver’s license agents and distribute the aid. The aid is distributed as follows: 1) 10 percent of available funds allocated equally among all deputy registrars; 2) 60 percent is distributed proportionally to deputy registrars based on shares of vehicle transactions handled by each deputy registrar in the previous calendar quarter (using filing fees as the measure for what constitutes a transaction); and 3) 30 percent is distributed proportionally to driver’s license agents based on shares of licensing transactions handled by each driver’s license agent in the previous calendar quarter.

This section is effective July 1, 2019.

Section 2.  Appointed officials reimbursement account.  Establishes the appointed officials reimbursement account in the special revenue fund. Money in this account is used exclusively for the reimbursements required in section 1.  This section is effective July 1, 2019.

Section 3.  Prohibited expenditures.  Prohibits the commissioner from spending money out of the appointed officials reimbursement account for any purpose that is not specifically authorized.  This section is effective July 1, 2019.

Section 4.  Reserves. The commissioner may establish a policy governing reserve funds in the operating accounts. The commissioner must provide electronic copies of the policy to the legislature. This section is effective the day following final enactment.

Article 2. Motor Vehicle Fees

Section 1.  Plate or sticker fee.  Deputy registrars are authorized to keep 40 percent of the fees for plates or stickers. Makes technical and clarifying changes, including to centralize the plate fee schedule into this section of statutes. The fee amounts are unchanged from current law.  Eliminates language on graphic design plates that is reproduced later in the bill. This section is effective July 1, 2019.

Section 2.  Dealer’s licenses; location change notice; fee.  The application and annual fees for motor vehicle dealer licenses are deposited as follows: $50 into the vehicle services operating account and the remainder into the appointed officials reimbursement account. Under current law, the remainder of the fee is deposited in the general fund.

Section 3.  Expedited driver and vehicle services; fee.  Allows deputy registrars or driver’s license agents to retain the entire expedited service fee. Expedited service fees collected by the commissioner must be paid into the driver services operating account or the vehicle services operating account. This section is effective July 1, 2019.

Section 4.  Filing fees; allocations.  The $3.50 from filing fees on non-renewal transactions collected by Driver and Vehicle Services is deposited in the appointed officials reimbursement account, instead of the general fund. This section is effective July 1, 2019.

Section 5.  Allocation of proceeds.  The $3 title transfer fee is deposited in the appointed officials reimbursement account, instead of the general fund. This section is effective July 1, 2019.

Section 6.  Fund distribution.  Unless otherwise specified, all vehicle title fees collected under chapter 168A are deposited into the appointed officials reimbursement account, instead of the general fund. This section is effective July 1, 2019.

Section 7.  Repealer. Minnesota Statutes 168A.31, subdivision 2, is repealed.  This subdivision is a statutory appropriation to the Department of Public Safety for the costs of administering vehicle titles. This section is effective July 1, 2019.

Article 3. Conforming Changes

This article makes various conforming and technical changes, which primarily consist of clarifying and centralizing the fee setting provisions for various special plates.

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