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2000 SESSION
000302216Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That § 38.2-401 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:
§ 38.2-401. Fire Programs Fund.
A. 1. There is hereby established in the state treasury a special nonreverting
fund to be known as the Fire Programs Fund which , hereinafter referred to as
"the Fund." The Fund shall be administered by the Department of Fire Programs
under policies and definitions established by the Virginia Fire Services
Board.The Fund, which includes grants noted herein, shall be created in the
state treasury as a special nonreverting fund and shall be established on the books
of the Comptroller. All moneys collected pursuant to the assessment made by the
Commission pursuant to subdivision 2 of this subsection shall be paid into the
state treasury and credited to the Fund. The Fund shall also consist of any
moneys appropriated thereto by the General Assembly and any grants or other
moneys received by the Virginia Fire Services Board or Department of Fire
Programs for the purposes set forth in this section. Any moneys deposited to or
remaining in such Fund during or at the end of each fiscal year or biennium,
including interest thereon, shall not revert to the general fund but shall
remain in the Fund.Moneys shall be deposited or transferred to the account as
collected by the State Corporation Commission and as coordinated with the
Department. Interest earned on all moneys in the Fund and interest earned on
moneys held by the Commission pursuant to subdivision 2 of this
subsection prior to the deposit of such moneys into the Fund, including
interest earned on such moneys during any period when the Commission is
reconciling payments from insurers, shall remain in or be deposited into the
Fund, as the case may be, and be credited to it. Interest earned from the Fund
Such interest shall be set aside to be used for fire service
purposes as defined by in accordance with policies developed by the Virginia
Fire Services Board. The Fund shall consist of any moneys appropriated for this
purpose by the General Assembly and any other moneys received for such purpose by
the Board or Department. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the
contrary, policies established by the Virginia Fire Services Board for the
administration of the Fund, and any grants provided from the Fund, that are not
inconsistent with the purposes set out in this section shall be binding upon any locality
that accepts such funds or related grants. The Commission shall be reimbursed
from the Fund for all expenses necessary for the administration of this
section. The balance of moneys in the Fund shall be allocated
periodically as provided in this section. Expenditures and
disbursements from the Fund shall be made by the State Treasurer on warrants issued by the Comptroller upon
written request signed by the Executive Director of the Department of Fire
Programs or his designee.
In order to maintain the Fund, the 2. The Commission shall annually assess
against all licensed insurance companies doing business in this Commonwealth by writing any type of insurance as defined in
§§ 38.2-110, 38.2-111, 38.2-126, 38.2-130 and 38.2-131 and those combination
policies as defined in § 38.2-1921 that contain insurance as defined in §§
38.2-110, 38.2-111 and 38.2-126, an assessment in the amount of one percent of the total
direct gross premium income for such insurance. Such assessment shall be apportioned, assessed
and paid as prescribed by § 38.2-403. In any year in which a company has no
direct gross premium income or in which its direct gross premium income is
insufficient to produce at the rate of assessment prescribed by law an amount equal
to or in excess of $100, there shall be so apportioned and assessed against
such company a contribution of $100. The Commission shall be reimbursed from
the Fund for all expenses necessary for the administration of this section.
B. After reserving funds for the grants noted herein Fire Services Grant Fund
Program pursuant to subsection D, seventy-five percent of the remaining amount
collected annually pursuant to this section moneys available for allocation
from the Fund shall be allocated to the several counties, cities and towns of
the Commonwealth providing fire service operations to be used for the
improvement of volunteer and career fire services in each of the receiving
localities. Funds allocated to the counties, cities and towns pursuant to this
subsection shall not be used directly or indirectly to supplant or replace any
other funds appropriated by the counties, cities and towns for fire service
operations. Such funds shall be used solely for the purposes of training
volunteer or career firefighting personnel in each of the receiving localities;
funding fire prevention and public safety education programs; constructing,
improving and expanding regional or local fire service training facilities; or
for purchasing personal protective equipment, vehicles, equipment and supplies
for use in the receiving locality specifically for fire service purposes.
Notwithstanding any other provision of the Code, when localities use such funds
to construct, improve or expand fire service training facilities, fire-related
training provided at such training facilities shall be by instructors certified
or approved according to policies developed by the Department of Fire Programs
and approved by the Virginia Fire Services Board. Distribution of this
seventy-five percent of the Fund shall be made on the basis of population as provided
for in §§ 4.1-116 and 4.1-117; however, no county or city eligible for such
funds shall receive less than $10,000, nor eligible town less than $4,000. In order to
remain eligible for such funds, each receiving locality shall report annually to the
Department on the use of the funds allocated to it for the previous year and
shall provide a completed Fire Programs Fund Disbursement Agreement form. Each
receiving locality shall be responsible for certifying the proper use of the
funds. If, at the end of any annual reporting period, a satisfactory report and
a completed agreement form have not been submitted by a receiving locality, any
funds due to that locality for the next year shall be retained until said
documents are submitted to the Department.
C. The remainder of this the moneys available for allocation from the Fund
shall be used for the purposes of underwriting the costs of the operation of
carrying out the powers and duties assigned to the Department of Fire
Programs under Chapter 25 (§ 9-153 et seq.) of Title 9, which shall include
providing funded training and administrative support services for non-funded training to
localities.
D. The Fire Services Grant Fund Program is hereby established and will be used
as grants to provide regional fire services training facilities, to finance the
Virginia Fire Incident Reporting System and to build or repair burn buildings
as determined by the Virginia Fire Services Board. Beginning January 1, 1996,
one million dollars from the assessments made pursuant to this section shall be
distributed each year for the Fire Services Grant Fund to be used as herein
provided, and $100,000 shall be distributed annually for continuing the
statewide Dry Fire Hydrant Grant Program. All grants provided from this Fund
shall be administered by the Department according to the policies and
procedures established by the Virginia Fire Services Board.
E. Moneys in the Fund shall not be diverted or expended for any purpose not authorized by this section.