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December 23, 2024 Clear | 10°F
The 193rd General Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Section 20: Cape Cod and Islands Water Protection Fund Management Board; annual reports; audit

Section 20. There shall be a Cape Cod and Islands Water Protection Fund Management Board that shall consist of 1 person to be appointed by each board of selectmen or town council in each municipality that is a member of the Cape Cod and Islands Water Protection Fund; provided, however, that an appointee of a board of selectmen or town council shall be a member of the respective appointing authority, a town manager, town administrator or other municipally employed professional staff. The executive director of the Cape Cod commission, the executive director of the Martha's Vineyard commission and the town manager of Nantucket shall serve as non-voting ex-officio members of the board.

Each member of the management board shall serve for a term of 3 years and until a successor is appointed and qualified and each member of the management board shall be eligible for reappointment. Each member of the management board appointed to fill a vacancy on the management board shall be appointed for the unexpired term of the vacant position. The members of the management board shall select a member to serve as chairperson and vice-chairperson for a term established by vote of the management board. The Cape Cod commission, in consultation with the Martha's Vineyard commission, shall provide administrative and technical support to the management board and may be compensated for its associated costs by vote of the management board. The management board's duties shall be limited to determining the method for subsidy allocation, including, but not limited to, an equitable distribution among participating municipalities consistent with revenue deposited from each municipality into the fund, and to ensuring that money from the Cape Cod and Islands Water Protection Fund is spent only for the purposes in section 19.

Annually, not later than June 1, the commissioner shall produce a written report to the management board with the total amount of revenue collected under section 3C of chapter 64G in the preceding fiscal year from occupancies in each municipality that is a member of the fund.

The management board shall maintain complete itemized records of all receipts, expenditures and disbursements from the fund in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles and shall produce an annual written report that shall include, but not be limited to: (i) an account of revenue generated under section 3C of chapter 64G; (ii) itemized expenses of the board; (iii) summaries of the projects funded through the Cape Cod and Islands Water Protection Fund; (iv) an account of administrative expenses of the Cape Cod commission and the Martha's Vineyard Commission; and (v) 5-year projections relative to expected revenue and upcoming projects.

The records maintained by the management board shall be audited annually by an independent certified public accountant. Annually, not later than January 15, a copy of the annual audit report and the annual written report shall be provided to the chairs of the joint committee on environment, natural resources and agriculture and to each representative and senator who represents at least 1 municipality in the county of Barnstable, the county of Dukes County or the county of Nantucket.