HF1480 Summary

• Amends transit finance and reporting requirements for the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area by changing reporting frequency from annually to biennially in odd-numbered years and requiring comprehensive identification of all transit funding sources and expenditures.

• Requires the Metropolitan Council to impose a fare increase for regular route transit service by January 1, 2018, following a process that includes analysis of peer region fares, ridership impact estimation, and stakeholder input.

• Prohibits the Metropolitan Council from adopting budgets where combined operating expenditures for light rail transit and commuter rail exceed 25 percent of total transportation operating expenditures, excluding passthrough grants.

• Prohibits the Metropolitan Council from entering into full funding grant agreements with the Federal Transit Administration for the proposed Southwest light rail transit line or Bottineau light rail transit line unless specifically authorized by law.

• Recodifies Minnesota Statutes section 174.93 as section 473.4485 and applies all provisions to the seven-county metropolitan area (Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, Scott, and Washington counties).