§ 7054. Funding

(a) The Enhanced 911 Fund is created as a special fund subject to the provisions of 32 V.S.A. chapter 7, subchapter 5. Balances in the Fund on June 30 of each year shall carry forward and shall not revert to the General Fund.

(b) The General Assembly shall annually review and approve an amount to be transferred by the universal service fiscal agent to the Enhanced 911 Fund and shall appropriate some or all of that amount for expenditures related to providing Enhanced 911 services.

(c) Into the Enhanced 911 Fund shall be deposited monies transferred from the universal service fiscal agent, any State or federal funds appropriated to the Fund by the General Assembly, any taxes specifically required by law to be deposited into the Fund, and any grants or gifts received by the State for the benefit of the Enhanced 911 system.

(d) Disbursements from the Enhanced 911 Fund shall be made by the State Treasurer on warrants drawn by the Director solely for the purposes specified in this chapter. The Director may issue such warrants pursuant to contracts or grants.

(e) Disbursements may be made for:

(1) nonrecurring costs, including establishing public safety answering points, purchasing network equipment and software, developing databases, and providing for initial training and public education;

(2) recurring costs, including network access fees and other telephone charges, software, equipment, database management and improvement, public education, ongoing training, and equipment maintenance;

(3) expenses of the Board and the Department of Public Service incurred under this chapter;

(4) costs solely attributable to statewide public safety answering point operations; and

(5) costs attributable to demonstration projects designed to enhance the delivery of emergency 911 and other emergency services.

(f) Disbursements may not be made for:

(1) personnel costs for emergency dispatch answering points;

(2) construction, purchase, renovation, or furnishings for buildings at emergency dispatch points;

(3) two-way radios; and

(4) vehicles and associated equipment. (Added 1993, No. 197 (Adj. Sess.), § 2; amended 1999, No. 62, § 82; 2007, No. 192 (Adj. Sess.), § 6.025, eff. June 7, 2008; 2011, No. 64, § 1, eff. June 2, 2011.)