§ 2OOOOO — Healthy Soils Program Fund

Section 2OOOOO. (a) There shall be established and set upon the books of the commonwealth a separate fund to be known as the Healthy Soils Program Fund. The secretary of energy and environmental affairs shall administer the fund. Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, there shall be credited to the fund any revenue subject to appropriations or other money authorized by the general court and specifically designated to be credited to the fund, including monies appropriated from the Gaming Economic Development Fund, established under section 2DDDD of chapter 29, and any gifts, grants, private contributions, investment income earned by the fund's assets and any designated funds from other sources. No expenditures from the fund shall cause the fund to be in deficiency at the close of the fiscal year. Any money in the fund at the end of the fiscal year shall not revert to the General Fund, shall be available for expenditure in the subsequent year and shall not be subject to section 5C of chapter 29.(b) Amounts credited to the fund shall be expended, without further appropriation, for the purpose to implement, administer and develop healthy soils practices under the healthy soils program, including, but not limited to, program research and development, education and training in program practices and policies and to provide grants on a competitive basis to individuals, public and private entities and charitable organizations to implement healthy soils practices; provided, however, that no loans shall be made from said fund. Expenditures made from the fund shall complement and not replace existing local, state, private or federal funding for related training and educational programs for healthy soils practices.