House Bill No. 7

Introduced By bergsagel

By Request of the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation and the Office of Budget and Program Planning



A Bill for an Act entitled: "An Act appropriating money to the department of natural resources and conservation for grants for designated projects under the reclamation and development grants program; prioritizing grants and amounts; establishing conditions for grants; AMENDING SECTION 2, CHAPTER 454, LAWS OF 1995; and providing an effective date."



Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Montana:



NEW SECTION. Section 1.  Appropriations for reclamation and development grants. (1) The amounts listed in [section 2] are THE AMOUNT OF $3 MILLION IS appropriated to the department of natural resources and conservation from the reclamation and development grants special revenue account from funds allocated for appropriation from the interest income of the resource indemnity trust fund set forth in Title 15, chapter 38.

(2) The funds appropriated in this section must be awarded by the department to the entities listed in [section 2] for the prescribed purposes and in the prescribed grant amounts, subject to the conditions provided in [sections 2 through 4].



NEW SECTION. Section 2.  Approved grant projects. (1) The legislature approves the grants listed in subsection (2), to be made in the order of priority as indicated within the following list of projects and activities. If the conditions in [sections 3 and 4] are met, funds must be awarded up to the amounts approved in this section in order of priority until available funds are expended. Funds not accepted by grantees or funds not used by higher-ranked projects and activities must be provided for projects and activities lower on the priority list that would otherwise not receive funding. Descriptions of the various projects and activities and specific conditions established for each project and activity are contained within the department of natural resources and conservation reclamation and development grants program report to the 55th legislature for the 1999 biennium.

(2) The following are the grants program prioritized projects and activities:

Applicant/Project Grant Amount

MONTANA BOARD OF OIL AND GAS CONSERVATION

Balco Disposal Facility, Plug and Abandonment

and Site Restoration $600,000

NATURAL RESOURCES AND CONSERVATION, DEPARTMENT OF

Reliance Refinery Soils and Sludge Cleanup #1 300,000

NATURAL RESOURCES AND CONSERVATION, DEPARTMENT OF

Reliance Refinery Soils and Sludge Cleanup #2 282,300

ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY - ABANDONED, DEPARTMENT OF

Nancy Lee Mine Complex Reclamation 286,914

ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY - ABANDONED, DEPARTMENT OF

Nellie Grant Mine Reclamation Project 288,040

POWELL COUNTY

Charter Oak Mine and Mill Reclamation 300,000

MILE HIGH CONSERVATION DISTRICT

Highland Mill Reclamation 258,070

BUTTE-SILVER BOW LOCAL GOVERNMENT*

Upper Clark Fork Basin: Superfund Technical

Assistance 91,532

MONTANA BOARD OF OIL AND GAS CONSERVATION*

1996 "A" Orphaned Well Plug and Abandonment

and Site Restoration 164,222

CARBON COUNTY

Dry Hydrant Demonstration Project 157,579

TOOLE COUNTY*

North Toole County Reclamation Project 40,000

MONTANA BOARD OF OIL AND GAS CONSERVATION*

1996 "B" Orphaned Well Plug and Abandonment

and Site Restoration 190,000 0

THE BOARD OF OIL AND GAS CONSERVATION IS AUTHORIZED TO EXPEND REMAINING FUNDS FROM GRANTS TO THE BOARD IN THIS SUBSECTION (2) AND REMAINING FUNDS FROM GRANTS PREVIOUSLY AWARDED TO THE BOARD TO PAY FOR THE PROPER PLUGGING OF ADDITIONAL ABANDONED OIL AND GAS WELLS. THIS MAY INCLUDE FUNDING THE SEVEN PRIORITY WELLS IDENTIFIED IN THE 1996 "B" ORPHANED WELL PLUG AND ABANDONMENT PROJECT. IN DETERMINING WHICH WELLS TO PLUG, ABANDONED WELLS THAT REPRESENT THE GREATEST THREAT TO THE ENVIRONMENT AND PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY SHOULD BE GIVEN PRIORITY OVER ALL OTHERS.

MONTANA STATE UNIVERSITY - RECLAMATION*

Reclaimed Metal Mine Lands: Agricultural Uses

and Restrictions 129,114

MINES AND GEOLOGY, MONTANA BUREAU OF*

Training for Environmentally and Economically

Sound Resource Development 49,722

WALKERVILLE, TOWN OF

Walkerville's Plan for Development of Reclaimed

Mine Properties 40,700

BUTTE-SILVER BOW LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Travona Mine Yard Preservation and Enhancement 145,280

YELLOWSTONE CONSERVATION DISTRICT*

Watershed Planning in Montana Integrating

Geospatial Information 100,000

BUTTE-SILVER BOW LOCAL GOVERNMENT

BUTTE MINE SUBSIDENCE RECLAMATION 81,250

ROSEBUD CONSERVATION DISTRICT

HYDROLOGIC & GEOLOGIC FEASIBILITY -- COAL MINE

PITS AS WATER IMPOUNDS 150,000

DEER LODGE VALLEY CONSERVATION DISTRICT

DEVELOPMENT OF ACID- AND HEAVY METAL-TOLERANT

CULTIVARS 100,000

(3) To the entities listed in this section, this appropriation constitutes a valid obligation of these funds for purposes of encumbering the funds within the 1999 biennium pursuant to 17-7-302.

(4) The funding provided to the grant projects in this section and identified by an asterisk (*) following the applicant's name is eligible for and may be designated for use as a nonfederal match for the federal funding acquired for the nonpoint source pollution control program administered by the department of environmental quality.



NEW SECTION. Section 3.  Coordination of fund sources for grants program projects. A sponsor of a grants program project who has applied for a grant for that project under both the reclamation and development grants program and the renewable resource grant and loan program may not receive duplicate funding.



NEW SECTION. Section 4.  Condition of grants. Disbursement of grant funds under [sections 1 through 6] is subject to the following conditions that must be met by the project sponsor:

(1) A scope of work and budget for the project must be approved by the department of natural resources and conservation. Reduction in a scope of work or budget may not affect priority activities or improvements.

(2) Other funds required for project completion must have been committed, and the commitment must be documented.

(3) The project sponsor shall show satisfactory completion of conditions described in the recommendations section of the project narrative of the reclamation and development grants program report for the 1999 biennium.

(4) An agreement between the department and the grant applicant must be executed in a timely manner, taking into consideration any changed conditions or circumstances that govern the administration and disbursement of funds.

(5) Any other specific requirements considered necessary by the department must be met to accomplish the purpose of the grant as evidenced from the application to the department or as defined by the legislature.



NEW SECTION. Section 5.  Other appropriations. There is appropriated to any entity of state government that receives a grant under [sections 1 through 6] the amount of the grant upon award of the grant by the department of natural resources and conservation. Grants to state entities from a prior biennium are reauthorized for completion of contract work.



SECTION 6. SECTION 2, CHAPTER 454, LAWS OF 1995, IS AMENDED TO READ:

The appropriations for reclamation and development grants on page 2158, Laws of 1995, is amended to read:

"PETROLEUM COUNTY CONSERVATION DISTRICT*

Petroleum County Artesian Basin

Ground Water Project 300,000 232,247"



NEW SECTION. Section 7.  Reversion of funds. All funds appropriated from the reclamation and development grants special revenue account under [sections 1 through 6] that are unspent and unencumbered on June 30, 1999, revert to that account.



NEW SECTION. Section 8.  Severability. If a part of [this act] is invalid, all valid parts that are severable from the invalid part remain in effect. If a part of [this act] is invalid in one or more of its applications, the part remains in effect in all valid applications that are severable from the invalid applications.



NEW SECTION. Section 9.  Effective date. [This act] is effective July 1, 1997.

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