This bill seeks to enhance transportation laws in Minnesota by implementing new requirements for highway project development and improving the analysis of cumulative impacts on transportation projects. A key feature is the establishment of a community-preferred alternative analysis for federally funded projects, which necessitates the creation of a policy advisory committee made up of local officials to approve alternative designs for highway construction, reconstruction, or rehabilitation. Additionally, the bill mandates a transportation cumulative impacts analysis to evaluate the effects of transportation pollutants on environmental justice areas, ensuring that projects do not negatively impact the health and environment of residents in these communities.

Furthermore, the bill amends existing statutes to clarify definitions related to highway purposes and restricts the use of highway user tax distribution funds and trunk highway funds for non-highway-related expenditures. It removes certain entities, such as the Minnesota Safety Council and driver education programs, from eligibility for funding while introducing new definitions that encompass multimodal infrastructure and environmental considerations. The bill also establishes a new environmental justice ombudsperson position, responsible for advocating for environmental justice within the department and overseeing transportation cumulative impacts analyses, with a focus on prioritizing mitigation actions in relevant environmental justice areas.

Statutes affected:
Introduction: 116.065, 161.045, 174.02