Adopted by House 3-5-08
SB501 HFIN AM
The Committee on Finance moved to amend the bill on page two,
following the enacting clause, by striking out the remainder of the
bill and inserting in lieu thereof the following:
"That §20-13-3, §20-13-4, §20-13-5 and §20-13-6 of the Code of
West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read
as follows:
ARTICLE 13. WEST VIRGINIA STREAM PARTNERS PROGRAM.
§20-13-3. West Virginia Stream Partners Program created; executive
committee identified; program coordination.
There is hereby created The West Virginia stream partners
program and within the division of natural resources there is
hereby created the West Virginia stream partners program fund.
Subject to annual appropriation of the Legislature into the West
Virginia Stream Partners Program Fund, the program shall be jointly
administered by the Division of Natural Resources, the division
Department of Environmental Protection, the Division of Forestry
and the West Virginia State Soil Conservation Agency. The
director, secretary or commissioner of each of these administering
agencies, or his or her designee, shall collectively constitute an
executive committee to oversee the program. The Governor shall
designate a member of the executive committee to serve as chair.
The committee may designate a staff member from the existing staff of one of the administering agencies to coordinate the program on
behalf of the executive committee. Pursuant to the provisions of
article ten, chapter four of this code, the stream partners program
and stream partners program fund shall continue to exist until the
first day of July, two thousand six, unless sooner terminated,
continued or reestablished by act of the Legislature.
.
§20-13-4. Stream partners program.
Money from the general revenue may be annually appropriated
into the West Virginia stream partners program fund. The West
Virginia stream partners program fund shall be used solely to
provide grants to groups comprised of representatives located in
the immediate area of the stream or streams being addressed that
are dedicated to achieving the purpose stated in section two of
this article. The grants shall be awarded by consensus of the
executive committee in accordance with legislative rules
promulgated by the division of environmental protection pursuant to
article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code. Each grant
shall be matched by the group of representatives with cash or
in-kind services in, at least, an amount equal to twenty percent of
the grant: Provided, That no grant shall exceed the amount of five
thousand dollars.
§20-13-5. Grant qualifications.
In order to qualify for grants from the West Virginia stream
partners program fund, a group of representatives located in the
immediate area of a stream or streams which qualify under section two of this article shall apply to the executive committee in
accordance with the following requirements and in accordance with
any other provision of this article or any applicable rule. The
application shall:
(a) Identify the stream or streams to be restored, protected,
utilized or enhanced;
(b) Identify the representatives of groups applying for funds
and the financially responsible entity to receive funds, all from
the geographic area immediately surrounding the stream or streams.
These identified individuals shall represent the general public,
industry, environmental groups, sportsmen, forestry, agriculture,
local government, tourism, recreation and affected landowners, all
located in the geographic area immediately surrounding the stream
or streams;
(c) Demonstrate an ability to achieve within the grant year a
specific improvement project that enhances the identified stream or
streams; and
(d) Evidence a commitment to educate the citizens in the area
of the identified stream or streams about the benefits of
restoring, protecting and enhancing the stream or streams in a
responsible manner.
§20-13-6. Administering agency support.
The administering agencies may provide staff and other
resources as necessary to address the technical assistance and
administrative needs of the West Virginia stream partners program and West Virginia stream partners program fund. This support may
include the utilization of resources and formulation of policies to
achieve the purpose set forth in section two of this article."