AN ACT to create a fund for resiliency and disaster preparedness for local disaster response.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  Article 4 of Chapter 143C of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new section to read:

§ 143C‑4‑4.1.  State Critical Infrastructure and Construction Resiliency Fund.

(a)        Purpose. – There is established a State Critical Infrastructure and Construction Resiliency Fund within the General Fund and shall be administered by the Governor. This fund shall contain funds appropriated from the General Assembly and diverted funds from units of local government in accordance with subsection (b) of this section.

(b)        Diversion of Funds. – Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Department of Revenue shall reserve five percent (5%) of the highway use tax collected from a county each year if that county was within an emergency area for a Type I, II, or III disaster as declared by the Governor. Counties that have been included in an emergency area under a declared Type I, II, or III disaster by the Governor in the previous three fiscal years shall be eligible counties to deposit monies into the Fund.

(c)        Use of Funds. – The Governor shall be able to use the Fund to pay for new construction and infrastructure within counties affected by a disaster and within the emergency area of the Type I, II, or III disaster declaration for specific resiliency and disaster preparedness purposes. The Governor may also use the Fund to pay for State and local disaster response activities following a major disaster declaration by the President of the United States under the Stafford Act (P.L. 93‑288) in the area affected by the disaster.

SECTION 2.  This act becomes effective July 1, 2025.