1.1 A bill for an act
1.2 relating to government data practices; modifying data protection requirements in
1.3 certain property tax proceedings; amending Minnesota Statutes 2024, sections
1.4 13.51, subdivisions 2, 4; 271.06, subdivision 6; 278.05, subdivisions 3, 6.
1.5BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
1.6 Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 13.51, subdivision 2, is amended to read:
1.7 Subd. 2.Income property assessment data.The following data collected by political
1.8subdivisions and the state from individuals or business entities concerning income properties
1.9are classified as private or nonpublic data pursuant to section 13.02, subdivisions 9 and 12:
1.10 (a) detailed income and expense figures;
1.11 (b) average vacancy factors rates;
1.12 (c) verified net rentable areas or net usable areas, whichever is appropriate;
1.13 (d) (c) anticipated income and expenses;
1.14 (e) (d) projected vacancy factors rates; and
1.15 (f) (e) lease information.
1.16 Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 13.51, subdivision 4, is amended to read:
1.17 Subd. 4.Request for legal discovery of income property assessment data.Upon
1.18request by a party to a responsible authority or designee for legal discovery of income
1.19property assessment data, as defined in subdivision 2, the requesting party shall notify the
1.20owner of record of the property. (a) Notwithstanding section 13.03, subdivision 6, a
1.21responsible authority or designee must not deny a request for legal discovery of income
1Sec. 2.
REVISOR VH/DD 25-0512303/26/25
State of Minnesota
This Document can be made available
in alternative formats upon request
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
H. F. No. 2959
NINETY-FOURTH SESSION
Authored by Scott04/01/2025
The bill was read for the first time and referred to the Committee on Judiciary Finance and Civil Law 2.1property assessment data classified by subdivision 2 that is made by a party in a legal
2.2proceeding on the grounds that the data is classified as private or nonpublic data.
2.3 (b) Subject to a protective order or other order issued by the court in the underlying legal
2.4proceeding, a party receiving access to income property assessment data under paragraph
2.5(a), as well as any person directly involved in the legal proceeding through which the data
2.6was requested who properly receives income property assessment data from that party, must
2.7not:
2.8 (1) use the data for any purpose unrelated to the legal proceeding; or
2.9 (2) disseminate the data to a person not directly involved in the legal proceeding.
2.10 (c) A party in a Tax Court proceeding must not use, file, offer, or move to admit into
2.11evidence any income property assessment data classified by subdivision 2 unless the Tax
2.12Court first issues a protective order protecting the data from public disclosure, dissemination,
2.13access, and use.
2.14 Sec. 3. Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 271.06, subdivision 6, is amended to read:
2.15 Subd. 6.Hearings; protective orders required; determination of issues; default.(a)
2.16The Tax Court shall hear, consider, and determine without a jury every appeal de novo. A
2.17Tax Court judge may empanel an advisory jury upon the judge's motion. The Tax Court
2.18shall hold a public hearing in every case. The Tax Court must issue protective orders to
2.19protect private or nonpublic income property assessment data classified by section 13.51,
2.20subdivision 2, from public disclosure, dissemination, access, and use, and may review the
2.21data at issue in camera. All such parties shall have an opportunity to offer evidence and
2.22arguments at the hearing; provided, that the order of the commissioner or the appropriate
2.23unit of government in every case shall be prima facie valid. When an appeal to the Tax
2.24Court has been taken from an order or determination of the commissioner or from the
2.25appropriate unit of government, the proceeding shall be an original proceeding in the nature
2.26of a suit to set aside or modify the order or determination. In case no appellant shall appear
2.27the Tax Court shall enter its order affirming the order of the commissioner of revenue or
2.28the appropriate unit of government from which the appeal was taken. If the Department of
2.29Revenue's sales ratio study is introduced in Tax Court as evidence, the sales ratio data from
2.30the study shall be admissible as evidence only as provided in section 278.05, subdivision
2.314.
2Sec. 3.
REVISOR VH/DD 25-0512303/26/25 3.1 (b) The commissioner, the taxpayer, and any other party to an appeal to the Tax Court
3.2may file all necessary notices, documents, and other necessary information with the Tax
3.3Court in a manner approved by the Tax Court.
3.4 Sec. 4. Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 278.05, subdivision 3, is amended to read:
3.5 Subd. 3.Assessor's records; protective orders required; evidence.(a) Assessor's
3.6records, including certificates of real estate value, assessor's field cards and property appraisal
3.7cards shall be made available to the petitioner for inspection and copying and may be offered
3.8at the trial subject to the applicable rules of evidence and rules governing pretrial discovery
3.9and. Assessor's records shall not be excluded from discovery or admissible evidence on the
3.10grounds that the documents and the information recorded thereon are confidential or classified
3.11as private data on individuals or nonpublic data by section 13.51, subdivision 2. Evidence
3.12of comparable sales of other property shall, within the discretion of the court, be admitted
3.13at the trial.
3.14 (b) The Tax Court must issue protective orders as required under section 271.06,
3.15subdivision 6.
3.16 (c) For purposes of this subdivision, "assessor's records" includes certificates of real
3.17estate value, assessor's field cards and property appraisal cards, and any other data classified
3.18by section 13.51, subdivision 2, regardless of whether the data:
3.19 (1) relates to the property that is the subject of the property tax petition; or
3.20 (2) is located within the assessor's file for the property that is the subject of the property
3.21tax petition.
3.22 Sec. 5. Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 278.05, subdivision 6, is amended to read:
3.23 Subd. 6.Dismissal of petition; exclusion of certain evidence.(a) In cases where the
3.24petitioner contests the valuation of income-producing property, the following information
3.25must be provided to the county assessor no later than August 1 of the taxes payable year:
3.26 (1) a year-end financial statement for the year prior to the assessment date;
3.27 (2) a year-end financial statement for the year of the assessment date;
3.28 (3) a rent roll on or near the assessment date listing the tenant name, lease start and end
3.29dates, base rent, square footage leased and vacant space;
3Sec. 5.
REVISOR VH/DD 25-0512303/26/25 4.1 (4) identification of all lease agreements not disclosed on a rent roll in the response to
4.2clause (3), listing the tenant name, lease start and end dates, base rent, and square footage
4.3leased;
4.4 (5) net rentable square footage of the building or buildings; and
4.5 (6) anticipated income and expenses in the form of a proposed budget for the year
4.6subsequent to the year of the assessment date.
4.7 (b) The information required to be provided to the county assessor under paragraph (a)
4.8does not include leases. Failure to provide the information required in paragraph (a) If the
4.9assessor has notified the petitioner in writing of a deficiency in the information provided
4.10under paragraph (a), and the petitioner fails to correct the deficiency within 30 days of
4.11receiving the notification, the deficiency shall result in the dismissal of the petition, unless
4.12(1) the failure to provide it the information was due to the unavailability of the information
4.13at the time that the information was due, or (2) the petitioner was not aware of or informed
4.14of the requirement to provide the information.
4.15If the petitioner proves that the requirements under clause (2) are met, the petitioner has an
4.16additional 30 days to provide the information from the time the petitioner became aware of
4.17or was informed of the requirement to provide the information, otherwise the petition shall
4.18be dismissed.
4.19 (c) If, after the August 1 deadline set in paragraph (a), a county assessor determines that
4.20the actual leases in effect on the assessment date are necessary to properly evaluate the
4.21income-producing property, then a county assessor may require that the petitioner submit
4.22the leases. The petitioner must provide the requested information to the county assessor
4.23within 60 days of a county assessor's request. The Tax Court shall hear and decide any
4.24issues relating to subsequent information requests by a county assessor. Failure to provide
4.25the information required in this paragraph shall be addressed under Rules of Civil Procedure,
4.26rule 37.
4.27 (d) Provided that the information as contained in paragraph (a) is timely submitted to
4.28the county assessor, the county assessor shall furnish the petitioner at least five days before
4.29the hearing under this chapter with the property's appraisal, if any, which will be presented
4.30to the court at the hearing. The petitioner shall furnish to the county assessor at least five
4.31days before the hearing under this chapter with the property's appraisal, if any, which will
4.32be presented to the court at the hearing. An appraisal of the petitioner's property done by
4.33or for the county shall not be admissible as evidence if the county assessor does not comply
4Sec. 5.
REVISOR VH/DD 25-0512303/26/25 5.1with the provisions in this paragraph. The petition shall be dismissed if the petitioner does
5.2not comply with the provisions in this paragraph.
5Sec. 5.
REVISOR VH/DD 25-0512303/26/25