North Carolina § 106-860 - Community Conservation Assistance Program.

§ 106-860. Community Conservation Assistance Program.

Program Established. - There is established the Community Conservation Assistance Program. The Program shall be implemented and supervised by the Soil and Water Conservation Commission of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Purposes. - The purpose of the Program shall be to reduce the input of nonpoint source pollution into the waters of the State. The Program shall be subject to the following requirements and limitations: Subject to subdivision (5) of this subsection, priority designations for inclusion in the Program for State funding shall be established by the Soil and Water Conservation Commission. The Soil and Water Conservation Commission shall allocate the cost share and technical assistance funds under the Program. Areas shall be included in the Program as the funds are appropriated and technical assistance becomes available from the local Soil and Water Conservation District. Funding may be provided to assist community conservation practices approved by the Soil and Water Conservation Commission. State funding shall be limited to seventy-five percent (75%) of the average cost for each practice with the assisted applicant providing twenty-five percent (25%) of the cost, which may include in-kind support of the practice, with a maximum of seventy-five thousand dollars ($75,000) per year to each applicant. Priority designation for inclusion in the Program for State funding shall be given to projects that improve water quality. To be eligible for cost-share funds under this subdivision, a project shall be evaluated before funding is awarded and after the project is completed to determine the impact on water quality. Participation in the Program shall be voluntary. Availability of Funds. - State funds for the Program shall remain available until expended. Advisory Committee. - The Program shall be reviewed, prior to implementation, by the Community Conservation Assistance Program Advisory Committee. The Advisory Committee shall meet quarterly to review the progress of the Program. The Advisory Committee shall consist of the following members: The Director of the Division of Soil and Water Conservation of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services or the Director's designee, who shall serve as the Chair of the Advisory Committee. The President of the North Carolina Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts or the President's designee. The Director of the Cooperative Extension Service at North Carolina State University or the Director's designee. The Executive Director of the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners or the Executive Director's designee. The Executive Director of the North Carolina League of Municipalities or the Executive Director's designee. The State Conservationist of the Natural Resources Conservation Service of the United States Department of Agriculture or the State Conservationist's designee. The Executive Director of the Wildlife Resources Commission or the Executive Director's designee. The President of the North Carolina Conservation District Employees Association or the President's designee. The President of the North Carolina Association of Resource Conservation and Development Councils or the President's designee. Repealed by Session Laws 2013-413, s. 57(e). For effective date, see note. The Assistant Commissioner of the North Carolina Forest Service of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services or the Assistant Commissioner's designee. The Director of the Division of Energy, Mineral, and Land Resources of the Department of Environmental Quality or the Director's designee. The Director of the Division of Coastal Management of the Department of Environmental Quality or the Director's designee. The Director of the Division of Water Resources of the Department of Environmental Quality or the Director's designee. The President of the Carolinas Land Improvement Contractors Association or the President's designee. Report. - The Soil and Water Conservation Commission shall report no later than January 31 of each year to the Environmental Review Commission, the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, and the Fiscal Research Division. The report shall include a summary of projects that received State funding pursuant to the Program, the results of the evaluation conducted pursuant to subdivision (5) of subsection (b) of this section, findings regarding the effectiveness of each project to accomplish its primary purpose, and any recommendations to assure that State funding is used in the most cost-effective manner and accomplishes the greatest improvement in water quality. This report shall be submitted to the Environmental Review Commission and the Fiscal Research Division as a part of the report required by G.S. 106-850(e). History (2006-78, s. 1; 2011-145, ss. 13.22A(x)-(z), (aa), 13.25(vv), (xx); 2012-143, s. 1(f); 2013-155, s. 10; 2013-413, s. 57(e); 2015-241, s. 14.30(u); 2017-10, s. 4.18(b).) Cross References. - As to powers of districts and supervisors, see G.S. 139-8 . Editor's Note. - This Article is former Part 11 of Article 21 of Chapter 143 , as recodified by Session Laws 2011-145, s. 13.22A(x), effective July 1, 2011. The historical citations to the sections in the former Part have been added to the corresponding sections in this Article as recodified. This section was formerly codified as G.S. 143-215.74 M. It was recodified as G.S. 106-860 by Session Laws 2011-145, s. 13.22A(x), effective July 1, 2011. Session Laws 2006-78, s. 6, effective July 10, 2006, provides: "The first report required pursuant to G.S. 143-215.74 M(e) [now G.S. 106-860 ], as enacted by Section 1 of this act, is due on or before 31 January 2008." Session Laws 2011-145, s. 13.25(xx), provides: "The Revisor of Statutes shall make the conforming statutory changes necessary to reflect the transfers under this section. The Revisor of Statutes may correct any reference in the General Statutes to the statutes that are recodified by this section and make any other conforming changes necessitated by this section." Pursuant to that provision, conforming changes have been made in subdivision (d)(11). "Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services" was substituted for "Department of Environment and Natural Resources." Session Laws 2011-145, s. 1.1, provides: "This act shall be known as the 'Current Operations and Capital Improvements Appropriations Act of 2011.'" Session Laws 2011-145, s. 32.2, provides: "Except for statutory changes or other provisions that clearly indicate an intention to have effects beyond the 2011-2013 fiscal biennium, the textual provisions of this act apply only to funds appropriated for, and activities occurring during, the 2011-2013 fiscal biennium." Session Laws 2011-145, s. 32.5 is a severability clause. Session Laws 2011-394, s. 21, as amended by Session Laws 2013-413, s. 57(ff), provides: "In order to ensure the ongoing delivery of services by the nonpoint source pollution control programs of the Division of Forest Resources and the Division of Soil and Water Conservation, the Division of Water Resources in the Department of Environment and Natural Resources shall transfer Clean Water Act (CWA) Section 319 Nonpoint Source Management Program Base Grant funds to the Division of Forest Resources and Division of Soil and Water Conservation, where consistent with the federal grant program requirements, in an amount that is no less than the average annual amount of funding received by each of those two Divisions over the two most-recent fiscal bienniums. In the event that the level of Section 319 base grant funds received by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources by the United States Environmental Protection Agency is increased or decreased in any funding cycle, the level of funding received by the Division of Forest Resources and the Division of Soil and Water Conservation shall be adjusted proportionally. Section 319 Nonpoint Source Management Program Competitive Grant funds shall consider water quality benefit and be distributed in a fair and equitable manner based on the grant requirements and the benefit. The Division of Water Resources will establish a Workgroup of Nonpoint Source Agencies, including the Division of Forest Resources and the Division of Soil and Water Conservation, which will consider the competitive grant project proposals. The Workgroup will be given full input to the project funding decisions." Session Laws 2012-143, s. 1(f), provides: "The Revisor of Statutes shall make the conforming statutory changes necessary to reflect the renaming of the Division of Land Resources as the Division of Energy, Mineral, and Land Resources as provided in subsection (e) of this section. The Codifier of Rules shall make the conforming rule changes necessary to reflect the renaming of the Division of Land Resources as the Division of Energy, Mineral, and Land Resources as provided in subsection (e) of this section." Session Laws 2013-413, s. 61(b), provides: "Except as otherwise provided, this act is effective when it becomes law [August 23, 2013]." Session Laws 2013-413, s. 60(c), had provided that: "This act becomes effective July 1, 2015." Session Laws 2014-115, s. 17, amended Session Laws 2013-413, s. 60(c), to replace the reference to "This act" with the words "This Part." Session Laws 2013-413, s. 61(a) is a severability clause. Session Laws 2015-241, s. 1.1, provides: "This act shall be known as 'The Current Operations and Capital Improvements Appropriations Act of 2015.'" Session Laws 2015-241, s. 33.6, is a severability clause. Session Laws 2017-10, s. 4.18(d), provides that the first combined report required by Session Laws 2017-10, s. 4.18(b), which added the requirement to subsection (e) of this section, shall be submitted to the Environmental Review Commission and the Fiscal Research Division no later than January 31, 2018. Session Laws 2017-10, s. 5.1, is a severability clause. Effect of Amendments. - Session Laws 2011-145, s. 13.22A(y), (z), and (aa), effective July 1, 2011, in subsection (a) and subdivision (d)(1), inserted "of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services"; in subdivisions (d)(10) through (d)(14), inserted "of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources"; and in the second sentence in subsection (e), inserted "the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services." Session Laws 2011-145, s. 13.25(vv), effective July 1, 2011, inserted "of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services" in subdivision (d)(11). Session Laws 2012-143, s. 1(f), substituted "Division of Energy, Mineral, and Land Resources" for "Division of Land Resources" in subdivision (d)(12). Session Laws 2013-155, s. 10, effective July 1, 2013, rewrote subdivision (d)(11), which formerly read "The Director of the Division of Forest Resources of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services of the Director's designee." Session Laws 2013-413, s. 57(e), deleted subdivision (d)(10). For effective date, see editor's note. Session Laws 2015-241, s. 14.30(u), effective July 1, 2015, substituted "Department of Environmental Quality" for "Department of Environment and Natural Resources" in subdivisions (d)(12), (d)(13) and (d)(14). Session Laws 2017-10, s. 4.18(b), effective May 4, 2017, in subsection (e), added the last sentence; and made a stylistic change. §§ 106-861 through 106-869: Reserved for future codification purposes.