Sec 36-1693. Risk assessment fund; purpose; sources

A. The risk assessment fund is established. The director of the department of health services shall administer the fund. The fund consists of monies from the following sources:

1. Legislative appropriations.

2. Risk assessment fees collected pursuant to section 36-1692.

3. Gifts, grants and donations.

B. Monies in the risk assessment fund shall be used for the following purposes:

1. Performing health effect studies and risk assessments.

2. Evaluating and calculating cleanup standards.

3. Assisting in communicating health and risk issues to the public.

4. Providing for the reasonable and necessary costs for administering this article, including the reasonable and necessary costs of administering the fund.

C. The director of environmental quality and the director of the department of health services shall enter into an agreement for determining the assessment and evaluation services that the department of health services shall provide to the department of environmental quality and the method for determining reimbursement for those services for which the cost exceeds the amount of monies transferred pursuant to this section. The assessment and evaluation services provided by agreement with the department of environmental quality may include services not related to the water quality assurance revolving fund and may include any of the following:

1. Performing health effect studies and risk assessments.

2. Evaluating and calculating cleanup standards.

3. Assisting in communicating health and risk issues to the public.

D. On July 1 in fiscal years 2000-2001, 2001-2002 and 2002-2003, the director of environmental quality shall transfer two hundred sixteen thousand dollars from the water quality assurance revolving fund established by section 49-282 to the department of health services for deposit in the risk assessment fund for purposes of the risk assessment program established pursuant to this article.

E. On notice from the director of the department of health services, the state treasurer shall invest and divest monies in the fund as provided by section 35-313 and monies earned from investment shall be credited to the fund. Monies in the fund are exempt from the provisions of section 35-190 relating to lapsing of appropriations, except that at the end of the fiscal year the director of the department of health services shall return for deposit in the water quality assurance revolving fund all unexpended and unencumbered monies from the previous fiscal year's transfer.