Ohio § 5502.68

§ 5502.68.

(A) There is hereby created in the state treasury the drug law enforcement fund.  Ninety-seven per cent of three dollars and fifty cents out of each ten-dollar court

cost imposed pursuant to section 2949.094 of the Revised Code shall be credited to the fund.  Money in the fund shall be used only in accordance with this section to award grants

to counties, municipal corporations, townships, township police districts, and joint

police districts to defray the expenses that a drug task force organized in the county,

or in the county in which the municipal corporation, township, or district is located,

incurs in performing its functions related to the enforcement of the state's drug

laws and other state laws related to illegal drug activity. The division of criminal justice services shall administer all money deposited into

the drug law enforcement fund and, by rule adopted under Chapter 119. of the Revised

Code, shall establish procedures for a county, municipal corporation, township, township

police district, or joint police district to apply for money from the fund to defray

the expenses that a drug task force organized in the county, or in the county in which

the municipal corporation, township, or district is located, incurs in performing

its functions related to the enforcement of the state's drug laws and other state

laws related to illegal drug activity, procedures and criteria for determining eligibility

of applicants to be provided money from the fund, and procedures and criteria for

determining the amount of money to be provided out of the fund to eligible applicants. (B) The procedures and criteria established under division (A) of this section for applying

for money from the fund shall include, but shall not be limited to, a provision requiring

a county, municipal corporation, township, township police district, or joint police

district that applies for money from the fund to specify in its application the amount

of money desired from the fund, provided that the cumulative amount requested in all

applications submitted for any single drug task force may not exceed more than two

hundred fifty thousand dollars in any calendar year for that task force. (C) The procedures and criteria established under division (A) of this section for determining

eligibility of applicants to be provided money from the fund and for determining the

amount of money to be provided out of the fund to eligible applicants shall include,

but not be limited to, all of the following: (1) Provisions requiring that, in order to be eligible to be provided money from the

fund, a drug task force that applies for money from the fund must provide evidence

that the drug task force will receive a local funding match of at least twenty-five

per cent of the task force's projected operating costs in the period of time covered

by the grant; (2) Provisions requiring that money from the fund be allocated and provided to drug task

forces that apply for money from the fund in accordance with the following priorities: (a) Drug task forces that apply, that are in existence on the date of the application,

and that are determined to be eligible applicants, and to which either of the following

applies shall be given first priority to be provided money from the fund: (i) Drug task forces that received funding through the division of criminal justice services

in calendar year 2007; (ii) Drug task forces in a county that has a population that exceeds seven hundred fifty

thousand. (b) If any moneys remain in the fund after all drug task forces that apply, that are

in existence on the date of the application, that are determined to be eligible applicants,

and that satisfy the criteria set forth in division (C)(2)(a)(i) or (ii) of this section

are provided money from the fund as described in division (C)(2)(a) of this section,

the following categories of drug task forces that apply and that are determined to

be eligible applicants shall be given priority to be provided money from the fund

in the order in which they apply for money from the fund: (i) Drug task forces that are not in existence on the date of the application; (ii) Drug task forces that are in existence on the date of the application but that do

not satisfy the criteria set forth in division (C)(2)(a)(i) or (ii) of this section. (D) The procedures and criteria established under division (A) of this section for determining

the amount of money to be provided out of the fund to eligible applicants shall include,

but shall not be limited to, a provision specifying that the cumulative amount provided

to any single drug task force may not exceed more than two hundred fifty thousand

dollars in any calendar year. (E) Any drug task force for which a grant is awarded by the division of criminal justice

services under this section shall comply with all grant requirements established by

the division, including a requirement that the drug task force report its activities

through the El Paso intelligence center information technology systems. (F) As used in this section, “ drug task force ” means a drug task force organized in any county by the sheriff of the county, the

prosecuting attorney of the county, the chief of police of the organized police department

of any municipal corporation or township in the county, and the chief of police of

the police force of any township police district or joint police district in the county

to perform functions related to the enforcement of state drug laws and other state

laws related to illegal drug activity.