224
. Moneys transferred by the Controller to the Department of Food
and Agriculture Fund from the Motor Vehicle Fuel Account pursuant to
Section 8352.5 of the Revenue and Taxation Code shall be expended by
the Secretary of Food and Agriculture as follows:
(a) Of the amount transferred each fiscal year, nine million
dollars ($9,000,000) is hereby appropriated to the Department of Food
and Agriculture for payment to the counties for pesticide use
enforcement programs supervised by the Director of Pesticide
Regulation. Reimbursement shall be apportioned to the counties in
relation to each county's expenditures to the total amount expended
by all counties for the preceding fiscal year for pesticide use
enforcement programs, as determined by the director, or with the
collective agreement of the agricultural commissioners, disbursement
to counties for a current fiscal year according to criteria developed
in work plans, or any combination of reimbursement and disbursement
as agreed upon by the director and the commissioners. The amount to
be transferred to any county for a fiscal year may be increased or
decreased by the director to compensate for incorrect previous
transfers to that county, or adjusted based on evaluations of annual
county Pesticide Enforcement Workplans conducted by the Department of
Pesticide Regulation.
(b) Of the amount transferred each fiscal year, two hundred fifty
thousand dollars ($250,000) is hereby appropriated to the Department
of Food and Agriculture for state and county liaison activities and
for departmental expenses directly related to administration of this
section.
(c) Of the amount transferred each fiscal year, one million five
hundred thousand dollars ($1,500,000) is hereby appropriated to the
department for divisional and departmental overhead charges to the
Department of Food and Agriculture.
(d) Of the amount transferred each fiscal year in excess of the
amount transferred in the 2006-07 fiscal year, 7 percent is hereby
appropriated to the department for full disbursement to individual
counties, in proportion to the distribution each county is to receive
pursuant to subdivision (g) to offset expenses associated with
programs, personnel, and materials that ensure the uniform
application of state agricultural policy or administer programs
supervised by the secretary.
(e) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, of the amount
transferred each fiscal year, three million dollars ($3,000,000) is
hereby appropriated for distribution to counties in a manner
prescribed by the secretary for pest detection or trapping programs.
These funds are intended to supplement funds available for pest
detection or trapping in the annual Budget Act. As a condition of
receiving these funds, counties shall not reduce their level of
support from any other funds for pest detection or trapping programs.
If a county declines to participate in a pest detection or trapping
program, or fails to conduct the program to the state's satisfaction,
the secretary shall reduce, by the amount that would otherwise be
allocated to the county, funds available pursuant to this subdivision
and any state allocations from the annual Budget Act. Those
forfeited funds are hereby appropriated to the Department of Food and
Agriculture for purposes of operating the pest detection or trapping
programs in those counties.
(f) (1) Of the amount transferred each fiscal year, three million
dollars ($3,000,000) is hereby appropriated to the Department of Food
and Agriculture to be used for emergency detection, investigation,
or eradication of agricultural plant or animal pests or diseases
during the fiscal year, upon approval of the Director of Finance. At
the end of each fiscal year, any unencumbered balance of these funds
shall be carried over to the next fiscal year, or at the discretion
of the secretary, may be used for planning and research involving
detection, investigation, eradication, and methods of quarantine
compliance for agricultural plant or animal pests or diseases.
(2) The department shall develop policies, in consultation with
the agricultural commissioners and in compliance with any
requirements of the annual Budget Act, to guide the ongoing use of
these funds.
(g) The total amount transferred during each fiscal year less the
amounts provided in subdivisions (a) to (f), inclusive, is hereby
appropriated to be paid to the counties for agricultural programs
authorized by this code that are supervised by the department and
administered by agricultural commissioners. Reimbursement shall be
apportioned to the counties in relation to each county's expenditures
to the total amount expended by all counties for the preceding
fiscal year for agricultural programs, as determined by the
secretary, or with the collective agreement of the agricultural
commissioners, disbursement to counties according to criteria
developed in work plans for a current fiscal year, or any combination
of reimbursement and disbursement as agreed upon by the secretary
and the commissioners. The amount to be transferred to any county for
a fiscal year may be increased or decreased by the secretary to
provide that, insofar as those transferred unclaimed refundable gas
tax funds for apportionment to the counties are available, no county
shall receive smaller combined apportionments of gas taxes and
unclaimed refundable gas taxes than that county would have received
had the gas taxes been apportioned without the transfer required by
Section 8352.5, as determined by the secretary, except that the
amount of unclaimed refundable gas tax funds to be transferred to any
county for a fiscal year may be increased or decreased by the
secretary to compensate for incorrect previous transfers to that
county, and to account for any failure to meet the criteria listed in
Section 224.5.
(h) This section shall become operative on July 1, 2008.