§ 19-13-117 — Lifesaver programs; process for grants; administration; account established; rules; grant criteria

(a) The office of homeland security shall administer a
lifesaver program to provide grants to counties for search and
rescue designed to quickly find a person suffering from Down
syndrome, brain injuries, autism, Alzheimer's or other dementia
related disorders who wanders and becomes lost and missing. The
program shall operate on a county basis, under which
participants wear transmitters to allow the county sheriff's
departments to electronically locate participants if necessary.
(b) The office of homeland security shall establish by
rule and regulation an application procedure and calendar for
grants under this section and adopt other rules as necessary to
implement this section.
(c) In administering this program, the office of homeland
security and counties shall establish a policy of including
private sector participants to the fullest extent possible
unless a viable private sector solution does not exist.
(d) Grant applications shall include, but not be limited
to:
(i) An estimate of the number of people who might
qualify for assistance in the county;
(ii) An estimate of the startup cost;
(iii) A statement of the number of personnel
available for tracking lost persons; and
(iv) A statement of the local resources available to
support ongoing operation of a lifesaver program.
(e) The office of homeland security shall provide grants,
subject to the following:
(i) Grants to any one (1) county shall not exceed
twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000.00) of state funds in any
calendar year;
(ii) The director of the office of homeland security
shall prioritize the grant awards in accordance with the
respective needs of each county for tracking services and the
availability of local funding sources, as documented in the
applications submitted.
(f) A grant recipient under this section shall use the
grant monies only for startup costs associated with the
contracting or purchasing of emergency response kits or services
which shall include equipment and services necessary to track
and triangulate searches, as well as transmitters or any other
related equipment.
(g) The lifesaver program account is created. The account
shall consist of those funds appropriated to the account by the
legislature and all monies received from federal grants and
other contributions, grants, gifts, transfers, bequests and
donations to the account. The office of homeland security is
specifically empowered to accept grants, gifts, transfers,
bequests and donations to the account. Funds in the account
shall only be expended by the office of homeland security for
the purpose of providing grants under this section.