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Municipal Revenue & Taxation <br />can have implicationsforlocallanduseplansandrequirementsandcanresultinunexpected and <br />significant fiscal impacts on local communities. The current process also does not require the <br />repaymentofunpaidutilitycharges orbuildinganddevelopmentfees. <br />MetroCitiessupportsstatutory changesthatbalancerepaymentofunpaidtaxesand <br />assessments, utility charges and other fees and that more equitably allocates the <br />distributionofproceeds betweencountiesandcities. <br />1-YVehicleTitleandRegistrationSystem(VTRS) <br />Issues associatedwiththerolloutofthestateMNLicensingandRegistrationSystem <br />(MNLARS) have caused significant unanticipated and ongoing disruptions to services provided <br />by local deputy registrars. Some registrar offices have relied on other local revenues, such as the <br />property tax, to manage normal expenses due to unresolved glitches in the system and a shift <br />from the state to the local level for additional processing time. These challenges have also <br />created a high potential for negative public perceptions on local government services, on an issue <br />overwhichlocalgovernmentshavenoabilitytocontrol. <br />In 2019, state officials elected to replace the MNLARS system with the Vehicle Title and <br />Registration System (VTRS). Metro Cities supports state funding to compensate local <br />deputyregistrarsforunanticipated,increasedcostsassociatedwithimplementationofthe <br />new system, and the shifting of per-transaction processing burdens that may result from <br />the implementationofVTRS. <br />Asthestateworkstoidentify efficienciesinthevehicleregistrationprocessandsystem,policy <br />makers must consider the effects of changes on the financial viability of deputy registrars <br />resultingfromdecreasesintransactionfeescollectedbylocalregistrars. <br />MetroCitiessupportsincreasesto existingtransactionfeelevelsthataresetby statelaw,to <br />ensure that local deputy registrars can sufficiently function and meet continually evolving <br />local registrar service needs and address any necessary modifications to registrar <br />operationstoensurethese servicescanbe providedsafelytothepublic. <br />1-ZSpecialAssessments <br />When property owners challenge special assessments based on application of the special benefit <br />test, some courts have interpreted Ðbenefits receivedÑ to mean the one-year increase in property <br />value thatis directlyattributabletoaconstructionproject. There is currentlynoconsistency <br />between state laws and rulings by some courts on the term Ðbenefits receivedÑ. Metro Cities <br />supportsmodificationstostatelawsgoverningspecialassessmentsforconstruction projects <br />or other improvementsarisingfromlegislativeauthoritytoclarifythe definitionof <br />Ðbenefits receivedÑ. The modified definition should more closely align with how special <br />assessments are calculated and recognizes that the benefit of the improvement to a propertymay <br />be realizedovertimeandnotwithinoneyear. <br />2022 Legislative Policies <br />10 <br /> <br />