§ 1264d. Ecosystem Restoration and Water Quality Improvement Special Fund
(a) Purpose. The federal and State requirements for the permitting of Municipal Separate Storm
Sewer Systems (MS4) require certain communities to collect water flow and precipitation
data at monitoring stations on stormwater-impaired waters in order to demonstrate
compliance with stormwater Total Maximum Daily Load allocations. The costs, equipment,
and expertise to conduct monitoring can be prohibitive to individual communities.
The establishment of the Ecosystem Restoration and Water Quality Improvement Special
Fund is intended to ensure municipal compliance with the monitoring requirements for
MS4 communities while reducing the fiscal and other pressures on these communities.
(b) Creation of Fund; purpose. There is created an Ecosystem Restoration and Water Quality Improvement Special Fund,
to be managed in accordance with the requirements of 32 V.S.A. chapter 7, subchapter 5, and to be administered by the Secretary of Natural Resources. The
Ecosystem Restoration and Water Quality Improvement Special Fund shall be used to
provide assistance to municipalities in fulfilling the monitoring, education, and
other requirements of the MS4 permitting program. The Secretary is authorized to collect
monies for the Fund and to make disbursements from the Fund directly related to the
Secretary’s oversight of monitoring required under the MS4 program.
(c) Participation by municipalities.
(1) A municipality may through a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Secretary
of Natural Resources agree to contribute to the Ecosystem Restoration and Water Quality
Improvement Special Fund to perform the monitoring and other data collection that
a municipality is required to conduct under the MS4 permitting program. Under the
MOU, a municipality shall commit to contribute to the Fund the municipality’s share
of funding required by the Agency of Natural Resources to perform MS4 monitoring and
provide oversight and administration. Memoranda of understanding shall serve to coordinate
funding and work among municipalities, the State, and any entity contracted with or
by a municipality or the State for the purposes of improving water quality.
(2) At a minimum, each memorandum of understanding developed under this section shall
contain the following:
(A) the purpose of the memorandum of understanding;
(B) a description of the work to be performed under the memorandum of understanding;
(C) a description of how the coordinated work proposed under the memorandum of understanding
will improve water quality;
(D) the entities eligible to participate under the memorandum of understanding; and
(E) the amount of required contribution by the entity, based on a funding formula developed
in consultation with entities eligible to participate in the program.
(3) A memorandum of understanding developed under this section shall be posted on the
Agency website and subject to a comment period of not less than 30 days.
(4) All participating entities, and the Agency, shall sign any final memoranda of understanding.
(d) Fund proceeds.
(1) The Ecosystem Restoration and Water Quality Improvement Special Fund deposits shall
consist of:
(A) payment of costs by participating MS4 communities;
(B) monies appropriated by the General Assembly; and
(C) any other source, public or private.
(2) Unexpended balances and interest earned on the Fund shall be retained in the Fund
for use in accordance with the purposes of the Fund.
(e) Fund accounts; expenditures.
(1) The Secretary shall maintain separate accounts within the Ecosystem Restoration and
Water Quality Improvement Special Fund for each memorandum of understanding. The Secretary
may establish within the Fund an account for the purpose of conducting education and
outreach related to improvements to water quality.
(2) Expenditures from an account shall be limited to the purposes established by the memorandum
of understanding associated with that account. The Secretary is prohibited from disbursing
funds on behalf of an entity that failed to contribute its assigned allocation pursuant
to the funding formula established by the Secretary or for any purpose not associated
with that account. (Added 2013, No. 171 (Adj. Sess.), § 1.)