10.1-2202.2 - Preservation Easement Fund established; uses.
§ 10.1-2202.2. Preservation Easement Fund established; uses.
A. There is hereby created in the state treasury a special nonreverting fundto be known as the Preservation Easement Fund, hereafter referred to as "theFund." The Fund shall be established on the books of the Comptroller. TheFund shall consist of general funds appropriated by the General Assembly andfunds received as gifts, endowments, or grants from the United StatesGovernment, its agencies and instrumentalities, and funds from any otheravailable sources, public or private. All such funds shall be paid into thestate treasury and credited to the Fund. Interest earned on moneys in theFund shall remain in the Fund and be credited to it. Any moneys remaining inthe Fund, including interest thereon, at the end of each fiscal year shallnot revert to the general fund but shall remain in the Fund.
Moneys in the Fund shall be used solely for the purposes of: (i) supportingand promoting a broad-based easement program and (ii) providing grants inaccordance with this section to persons who convey a perpetual easement tothe Board pursuant to the Open-Space Land Act (§ 10.1-1700 et seq.) and, ifapplicable, the Virginia Conservation Easement Act (§ 10.1-1009 et seq.) forthe purposes of preserving real property which is important for itshistorical, architectural or archaeological aspects. Expenditures anddisbursements from the Fund shall be made by the State Treasurer on warrantsissued by the Comptroller upon written request signed by the Director.
B. The Director shall establish, administer, manage, and make expendituresand allocations from the Fund.
C. Grants from the Fund may be made to persons conveying a perpetual easementto the Board to pay some or all of the costs associated with such conveyance,which may include the cost of registering the property with the VirginiaLandmarks Register and the National Register of Historic Places, and legal,survey, appraisal and other costs.
D. The Director shall establish guidelines for the submittal and evaluationof grant applications and for the award of grants from the Fund. Theguidelines shall authorize the Director to give priority to applications thatdemonstrate the applicant's financial need for a grant.
(1998, c. 479.)