HF2959

HF2959 (Legislative Session 94 (2025-2026))

Data protection requirements in certain property tax proceedings modified.

AI Generated Summary

Purpose of the Bill

This bill aims to modify how data related to income property assessments is handled during property tax proceedings in Minnesota. The bill focuses on ensuring that specific data is protected from public disclosure while allowing necessary access during legal proceedings.

Main Provisions

Data Classification: The bill classifies certain data about income properties as private or nonpublic. This includes detailed income and expense figures, vacancy rates, net rentable areas, anticipated income and expenses, and lease information.
Legal Discovery Requests: It outlines that parties involved in legal disputes can request this private data for discovery purposes, but must notify property owners. The data cannot be withheld simply because it is classified as private.
Use and Dissemination Restrictions: Accessed data must not be used outside the legal proceedings or shared with unauthorized individuals.
Protective Orders: The Tax Court is required to issue protective orders to prevent the public disclosure of sensitive data. These orders limit how the data can be accessed and used during court proceedings.
Access to Assessor Records: Assessor records, including real estate value certificates and appraisal cards, are to be made available for discovery and trial without being restricted as private or confidential.
Information Submission for Petitioners: Petitioners must provide specific financial information related to income-producing properties to the county assessor by August 1 of the taxes payable year. Failure to provide this information may result in dismissal of the petition unless justified.

Significant Changes to Existing Law

Increased Data Protection: The bill intensifies the protection of sensitive property data by stipulating how it can be accessed and ensuring it is not publicly disclosed during court proceedings.
Procedural Requirements for Petitioners: It imposes stricter requirements on what financial information property owners must supply, and establishes deadlines and consequences for non-compliance.

Relevant Terms

Data protection
Nonpublic data
Legal discovery
Protective order
Income property assessment
Tax Court proceedings
Assessor records
Financial data submission

Bill text versions

Introduction PDF file

Past committee meetings

Judiciary Finance and Civil Law on: April 03, 2025 10:15
Judiciary Finance and Civil Law on: April 03, 2025 16:30

Actions

Date	Chamber	Where	Type	Name	Committee Name
March 31, 2025	House	Floor	Action	Introduction and first reading, referred to	Judiciary Finance and Civil Law

Citations

[
  {
    "analysis": {
      "added": [
        "Clarification on the types of data classified as private or nonpublic."
      ],
      "removed": [
        "Previous classification of certain income data has been altered."
      ],
      "summary": "This bill modifies data protection classifications for income property assessment data under section 13.51.",
      "modified": [
        "Updated to specify detailed categories of data affected."
      ]
    },
    "citation": "13.51",
    "subdivision": "subdivision 2"
  },
  {
    "analysis": {
      "added": [
        "Requirement for notifying owners of record when data is requested."
      ],
      "removed": [],
      "summary": "This amendment provides guidelines for legal discovery of income property data as defined in 13.51 subdivision 4.",
      "modified": [
        "Conditions for legal discovery access updated."
      ]
    },
    "citation": "13.51",
    "subdivision": "subdivision 4"
  },
  {
    "analysis": {
      "added": [
        "Requirement for protective orders to prevent public disclosure."
      ],
      "removed": [],
      "summary": "This bill requires protective orders for income data in Tax Court proceedings as per 271.06 subdivision 6.",
      "modified": [
        "Procedures for handling sensitive data in court hearings refined."
      ]
    },
    "citation": "271.06",
    "subdivision": "subdivision 6"
  },
  {
    "analysis": {
      "added": [
        "Clarification on admissibility of assessors' records in trials."
      ],
      "removed": [],
      "summary": "This bill addresses the use of assessors' records in legal proceedings as per 278.05 subdivision 3.",
      "modified": [
        "Requirements for accessing and using assessors' records."
      ]
    },
    "citation": "278.05",
    "subdivision": "subdivision 3"
  },
  {
    "analysis": {
      "added": [
        "Requirement for submission of specific financial and lease data."
      ],
      "removed": [],
      "summary": "This modification concerns dismissal of petitions in property valuation disputes under 278.05 subdivision 6.",
      "modified": [
        "Conditions under which petitions may be dismissed due to data non-compliance."
      ]
    },
    "citation": "278.05",
    "subdivision": "subdivision 6"
  }
]