26:2C-8.53 "Diesel Risk Mitigation Fund"; money credited, use.

28. a. There is established in the Department of the Treasury a special, nonlapsing fund to be known as the "Diesel Risk Mitigation Fund." The fund shall be administered by the State Treasurer and shall be credited with:

(1) constitutionally dedicated moneys;

(2) such moneys as are appropriated by the Legislature; and

(3) any return on investment of moneys deposited in the fund.

b. Moneys in the fund may be used by the Department of the Treasury solely for:

(1) reimbursements to owners of regulated vehicles or regulated equipment to reimburse the cost of required retrofit devices and the installation thereof;

(2) the administrative costs incurred by the Department of Environmental Protection to implement the provisions of P.L.2005, c.219 (C.26:2C-8.26 et al.) up to $900,000 per year; and

(3) the administrative costs incurred by the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission to implement the provisions of P.L.2005, c.219 (C.26:2C-8.26 et al.) up to $250,000 per year.

c. No moneys in the fund may be made available for any costs associated with requirements imposed by P.L.2005, c.219 (C.26:2C-8.26 et al.), unless the State Treasurer certifies that the constitutionally dedicated moneys have been deposited in the fund in that year.

If the moneys provided for the administrative costs of the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission are not required by the commission in a given year because they exceed the amount of the administrative costs of the commission in that year, the State Treasurer shall provide those moneys unexpended for that purpose to the Department of Environmental Protection for administrative costs, provided that the administrative costs paid from the constitutionally dedicated moneys deposited in the fund do not exceed $1,150,000.

d. Any owner of a regulated vehicle or piece of regulated equipment is eligible for reimbursement from the fund. Notwithstanding the provisions of the "Local Budget Law" (N.J.S.40A:4-1 et seq.) to the contrary, a county, municipality, or an authority as defined in section 3 of P.L.1983, c.313 (C.40A:5A-3) required to comply with the provisions of P.L.2005, c.219 (C.26:2C-8.26 et al.) may anticipate in its annual budget or any amendments or supplements thereto those sums to be reimbursed from the fund for the costs of retrofit devices and their installation that are required to be used in or on any regulated vehicle or piece of regulated equipment in a given year in which the county, municipality, or authority incurs the cost. For the purposes of subsection 1. of section 3 of P.L.1976, c.68 (C.40A:4-45.3) and subsection g. of section 4 of P.L.1976, c.68 (C.40A:4-45.4), the costs of retrofit devices and their installation shall be considered an amount to be received from State funds in reimbursement for local expenditures and therefore exempt from the limitation on local budgets imposed pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1976, c.68 (C.40A:4-45.2).

L.2005,c.219,s.28.