2004-08-25 WS & CC Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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Page 5 of 6 accordance with section 411.59, two or more municipalities may jointly appoint a tree inspector for the purpose of administering the rules or ordinances in their communities. If a municipality has not appointed a tree inspector by January 1 in any year, the commissioner may assign a qualified employee of the Department of Agriculture to perform the duties of the tree inspector. The expense of a tree inspector appointed by the commissioner must be paid by the municipality. If an employee of the Department of Agriculture performs those duties, the expense must be billed to the municipality and paid into the state treasury and credited to the nursery and phytosanitary account. (b) upon a determination by the commissioner that a candidate for the position of tree inspector is qualified, the commissioner shall issue a certificate of qualification to the tree inspector. The certificate is valid for one year. A person certified as a tree inspector by the commissioner is authorized upon prior notification to enter and inspect any public or private property that might harbor diseased or infested shade trees. (c) The commissioner may, upon notice and hearing, decertify a tree inspector if it appears that the tree inspector has failed to act competently or in the public interest in the performance of duties. Notice must be provided and a hearing conducted according to the provisions of chapter 14 governing contested case proceedings. Nothing in this paragraph limits or otherwise affects the authority of a municipality to dismiss or suspend a tree inspector in its discretion. Subd. 11. Financing. (a) A municipality may collect the amount assessed against the property under subdivision 1 as a special assessment and may issue obligations as provided in section 429.101, subdivision 1. The municipality may, at its option, make any assessment levied payable with interest in installments not to exceed five years from the date of the assessment. (b) After a contract for the sanitation or approved treatment of trees on private property has been approved or the work begun, the municipality may issue obligations to defray the expense of the work financed by special assessments imposed upon private property. Section 429.091 applies to those obligations with the following modifications: (1) the obligations must be payable not more than five years from the date of issuance; and (2) no election is required. The certificates must not be included in the net debt of the issuing municipality. Subd. 12. Deposit of proceeds in separate fund. Proceeds of taxes, assessments, and interest collected under this section, bonds or certificates of indebtedness issued under subdivision 10, and grants received under subdivision 7 must be deposited in the municipal treasury in a separate fund and spent only for the purposes authorized by this section. http://www.revisor.leg.state.mn.us:8181/SEARCHIBASIS/mnstat/publidwww/DDD/l8G.... 8/25/2004