Amendment 207

Budget Amendment ID: FY2014-S3-207

ENV 207

Coastal and Shorefront Infastructure Fund

Messrs. Hedlund and Tarr and Ms. Clark moved that the proposed new text be amended by inserting after section ___, the following new section:-

SECTION ___. There shall be established and set upon the books of the commonwealth a fund to be known as the Coastal and Shorefront Infrastructure Fund (“CASIF”). This account shall initially be funded with a total of $10 million.

(a)The Coastal and Shorefront Infrastructure Fund.

(i)The Executive Office of Environmental Affairs shall apply monies in CASIF for the purpose of providing financial assistance to local governmental units and other eligible borrowers as provided herein, as beneficiaries of the fund, to finance or refinance costs of eligible coastal and shorefront infrastructure projects including but not limited to seawalls, revetments, “sea surge” control and other means of flood control.

(ii) The Executive Office of Environmental Affairs shall receive hold, administer and disburse without further appropriation or allotment by the Commonwealth in and from the Coastal and Shorefront Infrastructure Fund exclusively for the benefit of the beneficiaries thereof the following monies: (A) amounts appropriated by the Massachusetts Legislature for purposes of the fund; (B) proceeds allocated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency to the Commonwealth for coastal flood prevention, shorefront protection, disaster assistance, or purposes consistent with the CASIF; (C) proceeds allocated by the Water Pollution Abatement Trust consistent with its mission to protect drinking water supplies and with the purposes of the CASIF; (D) applicable proceeds from the Department of Conservation and Recreation consistent with the purposes of the CASIF; (E) applicable proceeds from the Seaport Council consistent with the purposed of the CASIF; (F) investment earnings on monies in the fund; and (G) any other amounts required to be credited to the fund by any law or by any resolution, loan agreement or trust agreement.

(iii) Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs or its applicable designee within the Department of Conservation and Recreation (“Department”), may apply and disburse monies and revenues of the Coastal and Shorefront Infrastructure Fund: (A) to make, and enter into binding commitments to make, loans and other forms of financial assistance authorized by the Department to local governmental units and other eligible borrowers for the purpose of financing or refinancing costs of flood control and coastal protection projects or portions thereof which have been approved by the Department, including approval of the costs of such projects or portion thereof eligible to receive financial assistance as provided in this section, and completed, as determined by the Department, after the promulgation date of the Department’s regulations implementing its powers under this section and to provide for all or any part of the debt service costs on loans and other forms of financial assistance made during the construction of such projects and for such period thereafter as the Department shall determine; (B) to provide reserves for or otherwise secure bonds and to provide insurance and letters or lines of credit or other credit enhancement which it deems reasonable and appropriate for bonds; (C) to provide, and enter into binding commitments to provide, a subsidy for, or to otherwise assist local governmental units and other eligible borrowers in the payment of, debt service costs on loans and other forms of financial assistance made pursuant to this section and to provide any other subsidization authorized by the Department in addition to the subsidy or other assistance authorized by this section; (D) to provide reserves for, or to otherwise secure, amounts payable by local governmental units and other eligible borrowers on, loans and other forms of financial assistance made by the Department pursuant to this section; and (E) to provide payment from any available source for reasonable and necessary professional and financial services incident to the conduct of the programs of EOEA, including costs of issuance of its bonds.

(iv) The Coastal and Shorefront Infrastructure Fund shall initially be funded with five million dollars appropriated by the Legislature.

(v) The Department of Conservation and recreation shall establish standards, guidelines, criteria and other rules and regulations for the administration and implementation of their powers under this section including, without limitation, a priority system and priority list for the approval of projects, the determination of eligible borrowers and eligible costs of projects and the terms and conditions of loans and/or grants by the Department. As an aid in determining the priority list for the CASIF the Department shall utilize the Massachusetts Coastal Infrastructure Inventory and Assessment Report completed by the Commonwealth’s Department of Conservation and Recreation in October of 2009, and any update to said Report. Other factors which the Department shall consider when prioritizing loans and or grants through the CASIF include:

(A) affirmative steps taken by local communities to identify future infrastructure needs as sea level rises.

(B) applicable data from FEMA, or the National Flood Insurance Program demonstrating areas in the Commonwealth that are subject to repetitive property damage and are therefore a priority for coastal and shorefront infrastructure projects.

(vi) Issuing contracts for the CASIF shall be issued through EOEA or through its designee, the Division of Waterways within the Department of Conservation and Recreation, which currently administers grants and loans under Ch. 91 with the Rivers and Harbors Program.

(vii) EOEA or the Department shall be permitted to loan monies for the CASIF for eligible projects at interest rates no greater than 2%.

(viii) EOEA or the Department are also expressly permitted to provide grants to communities from said Coastal and Shorefront Infrastructure Fund. Grants from said CASIF shall require matching funds from the applicant community. To demonstrate a local commitment for receiving a Coastal and Shorefront infrastructure improvement grant an applicant/community must appropriate matching funds equal to 50% of the CASIF grant. Matching funds under this section shall be defined to be expenditures from communities commencing in July of 2010 to present day for coastal and shorefront infrastructure projects.