26.37 Lake states wood utilization consortium.

(1) The department of natural resources shall develop a plan to establish a lake states wood utilization consortium to provide research, development, and demonstration grants to enhance the forest products industry in Wisconsin and other states. The plan shall do all of the following:

(a) Define the powers, duties and responsibilities of the consortium.

(b) Establish an implementation committee for the consortium. Members of the committee may include one or more representatives from the department of natural resources, the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation, and the forest products industry.

(c) Specify eligibility requirements for the grants and criteria for awarding the grants, including how the grants are to be distributed to each state participating in the consortium.

(d) Require that the grants require matching funds or in-kind contributions by industrial recipients of the grants.

(e) Require the implementation committee to identify an organization that can administer and award the grants and oversee the grant program.

(f) Require the consortium to actively pursue funding from the states of Michigan and Minnesota of $200,000 annually from each state for 3 years.

(g) Require the consortium to actively pursue federal and other funding sources.

(2) The department of natural resources may not expend moneys from the appropriations under s. 20.370 (5) (ax) or (6) (bt), 1997 stats., unless the department of natural resources and the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation first submit to the joint committee on finance the plan required under sub. (1). If the cochairpersons of the joint committee on finance do not notify the department of natural resources within 14 working days after the date of the submittal of the plan that the committee has scheduled a meeting to review the plan, the plan may be implemented and moneys may be expended as proposed by the department of natural resources. If, within 14 days after the date of the submittal of the plan, the cochairpersons of the committee notify the department of natural resources that the committee has scheduled a meeting to review the plan, moneys may be expended only after the plan has been approved by the committee.

History: 1995 a. 27 ss. 1430m, 9116 (5); 1999 a. 185; 2011 a. 32.