This bill contains a variety of changes related to the development and format of the state budget, the development of long-range plans for the State, and the management of state agencies. It limits each executive branch department to no more than one deputy commissioner and strikes authority for assistant commissioners to serve in the unclassified service.

Section 1 [Budget Development.] authorizes the Legislative Commission on Planning and Fiscal Policy to develop budget recommendations and requires state agencies to provide information as requested by the Commission.

Section 2 [Fiscal Note Procedure.] requires the Commissioner of Finance to prescribe a uniform procedure for posting the date a fiscal note was requested, the requested completion date, and the estimated completion date, as well as the display of those dates on the front page of each completed fiscal note.

Section 3 [Local Impact Notes.] adds the chairs of the Senate and House Finance Committees and the House Committee on Ways and Means to the list of those who can request a local impact note. It also requires a copy of the local impact note to be given to the chair and ranking minority member of all committees to which a bill is referred.

Section 4 [Strategic and Long-Range Planning.] abolishes the Office of Strategic and Long-Range Planning as a separate agency and makes the Commissioner of Administration the state planning officer. The Commissioner must develop a long-range plan by September 15, 2010, and every five years thereafter and report to the Governor and the Legislature by January 15 of each year economic, social, environmental, and demographic information to assist public officials with long-term management decisions over two-, ten-, and 50-year periods.

Section 5 [State Demographer.] provides for the state demographer to be appointed by the Commissioner of Administration and requires the demographer to release a demographic forecast in conjunction with the November budget forecast.

Section 6 [Milestones Report.] requires the Commissioner of Administration to provide recommendations to the Commissioner of Finance for use of Minnesota Milestones in budget documents.

Section 7 [List.] requires the Commissioner of Finance to monitor and oversee implementation of recommendations made to state agencies by the Legislative Auditor, to disseminate training materials and policies on internal controls, and to ensure that executive branch employees are regularly trained in internal controls and financial management.

Section 8 [Web Site with Searchable Database on State Expenditures.]

Subdivision 1 [Web Database Requirement.] requires the Commissioner of Finance, in consultation with the Commissioners of Administration and Revenue, to maintain a Web site with a searchable database with information on state contracts, appropriations expenditures, and tax expenditures. Specifies the capabilities of the database, including allowing users to perform a search using particular fields as those fields are defined in this bill. The capabilities would include: a search using a particular field, a sort by that field; obtaining information grouped or aggregated by that field, if feasible; and making information available by fiscal year or years.

Subdivision 2 [Contracts.] specifies the particular data fields required for state contracts, including the parties to the contract and the subject of the contract. Defines "grant" as a contract between a state agency and a recipient, which transfers cash or a thing of value to the recipient to support a public purpose. The definition specifically excludes payments to local units of government, state employees, or payments made under laws providing assistance to individuals.

Subdivision 3 [Appropriation.] specifies the particular data fields on state appropriations that are required under this bill, including the name of the entity receiving the appropriation and the object of the expenditure.

Subdivision 4 [State Expenditures.] requires the following data fields for the database on state expenditures: the agency making the expenditure, the agency program, the agency activity, an item within an activity, the fund from which the expenditure is made, and the object of the expenditure.

Subdivision 5 [Tax Expenditures.] requires a searchable database of state tax expenditures, including data fields showing the estimated impact on state revenues of each tax expenditure item listed in the report prepared under Minnesota Statutes, section 270C.11 (the tax expenditure budget).

Subdivision 6 [Audits.] requires the Web site to include a link to audits by the Legislative Auditor that have been released to the public.

Subdivision 7 [Retention of Data.] requires the database to include information beginning with fiscal year 2010 and contains a requirement that the database must retain the data for at least ten years.

Subdivision 8 [Consultation.] requires the Commissioner of Finance to consult with the chair of the House of Representative Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee before encumbering any money appropriated on or after July 1, 2009, for planning, development, and implementation of state accounting or procurement systems, and requires the commissioner to certify that those systems comply with the requirements of this bill before spending any money for that purpose.

[Effective Date.] makes the section effective the day following certification by the Commissioner of Finance that a new statewide accounting and procurement system has been implemented.

Section 9 [Budget Format.] requires the Governor's budget to include expenditure and revenue history for the three most recent fiscal years, rather than just the one most recent fiscal year.

Section 10 [Budget Documents.] requires documents that a state agency must file with the Commissioner of Finance in October of even-numbered years to include actual spending from the three most recent fiscal years, and budget estimates for the current fiscal years.

Section 11 [Cash Flow Forecast.] requires the Commissioner of Finance to deliver to the Governor and the Legislature a forecast of general fund cash flow within 30 days after each November budget forecast.

Section 12 [Detailed Budget.] requires the detailed budget estimates submitted to the legislature to include the agency request in addition to the Governor's recommendation. Requires that the tables listing expenditures for the next biennium must show the appropriation base for each year in column form broken down by appropriation allotments at budget activity level relative to proposed appropriation, and appropriation allotment levels by budget activity. It also requires the tables to show agency requests and requires the detailed estimates to provide a spending trend analysis by program showing at least the three most recent years of actual spending, or as many years of actual spending as are available for new programs. It requires that any appropriation change requested by an agency be submitted in writing and include information that supports the requested change.

Section 13 [Deficiency Requests.] requires that by January 15 of each year the Commissioner of Finance must notify the chairs of the senate Finance and house Ways and Means Committees of any state agency requests to eliminate budget shortfalls likely to occur before the end of the legislative session.

Section 14 [Map of Money Used to Support Children.] requires the Commissioner of Finance to design and oversee a pilot project to map all state expenditures that serve the primary function of supporting the health, safety, permanence, growth, development, and education of children in this state.

Section 15 [Duties and Rights of Classified Employees.] provides that state employees in the classified service are expected to be nonpartisan resources to elected officials and their staffs in both the executive and legislative branches. It requires workload concerns to be mediated in a manner that ensures adequate and equitable access to the knowledge and expertise of the staff by both the executive and legislators. States that this section does not authorize an employee to disclose data that is not public under the Data Practices Act.

Section 16 [Prohibited Action; Whistleblowers.] prohibits a state employer from discharging or disciplining a state employee who communicates to a legislator, the Legislative Auditor, or a constitutional officer information that the employee, in good faith, believes to be truthful and accurate regarding ways to improve state services.

Section 17 [Budget Working Group.] requires the commissioner of finance to convene a joint executive legislative working group to evaluate the usefulness and benefits of state budget documents and state budget information. Requires a progress report by December 10, 2009.

Section 18 [Repealer.] repeals section 16A.152, subdivision 1b, which required the commissioner of finance to transfer money to the budget reserve account in 2003 and 2004.

Article 2 limits each executive branch department to no more than one deputy commissioner and strikes authority for assistant commissioners to serve in the unclassified service.

Section 1 strikes a reference to Minnesota Statutes, section 43A.08, subdivision 2, which was repealed in 1982, and strikes the current authorization for a state department to have more than one deputy commissioner, if specifically authorized by statute. This is because the other sections of the article eliminate those specific authorizations.

Section 2 eliminates one of the two deputy commissioners in the Department of Administration.

Section 3 strikes authority for assistant commissioners to be in the unclassified service.

Section 4 eliminates three of the four deputy commissioners in the Department of Commerce.

Section 5 strikes an authorization for three assistant commissioners in the Department of Natural Resources to serve in the unclassified service.

Section 6 strikes authority for assistant commissioners in the Pollution Control Agency to serve in the unclassified service.

Section 7 eliminates three of the four deputy commissioners in the Department of Employment and Economic Development.

Section 8 strikes a reference to the Commissioner of Employment and Economic Development having more than one deputy commissioner.

Section 9 eliminates one of the two deputy commissioners in the Department of Transportation, and strikes authority for one assistant commissioner and an assistant to the commissioner to serve in the unclassified service.

Section 10 eliminates one of the two deputy commissioners in the Department of Corrections.

Section 11 requires the Commissioner of Finance to determine the costs of salaries and economic benefits attributable to the positions eliminated by the article and reduce the appropriation to each affected agency accordingly.

Section 12 contains a repealer:

Section 43A.08, subdivision 1b, provides that the comparable worth study required by Laws 1982, chapter 634, did not apply to employees of the legislature or legislative commissions.

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