AN ACT to Protect, preserve, and fund the preservation and enhancement of North Carolina's coastal resources and ecosystems.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

 

part I. Policy changes

SECTION 1.  G.S. 143‑135.37 reads as rewritten:

§ 143‑135.37.  Energy and water use standards for public major facility construction and renovation projects; verification and reporting of energy and water use.

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(c2)      Stormwater Management Standard. – Whenever practicable, every major facility construction project or major facility renovation project of a public agency shall be designed to maintain or restore the predevelopment hydrology to the maximum amount feasible to reduce the rate and volume of stormwater runoff.

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Part II. Investments

SECTION 2.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Environmental Quality the nonrecurring sum of eight million five hundred thousand dollars ($8,500,000) and the recurring sum of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) for the 2022‑2023 fiscal year. The Department shall use these funds to provide a directed grant to the Coastal Federation, a nonprofit corporation, to be allocated as follows:

(1)        One million dollars ($1,000,000) in nonrecurring funds to provide matching funds for federal grants in support of oyster sanctuary development.

(2)        Five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) in nonrecurring funds for a pilot project to help farms adjacent to Lake Mattamuskeet with cover crops and other best management practices to reduce agricultural runoff and soil erosion. These funds may also be used to match federal grant funding for similar purposes.

(3)        Five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) in nonrecurring funds for the Lux Farms wetlands restoration project in Hyde County.

(4)        Six million dollars ($6,000,000) in nonrecurring funds for living shoreline projects in the coastal area (as that term is defined in G.S. 113A‑103) to protect public lands, facilities owned or occupied by nonprofit entities, or publicly owned commercial fishing infrastructure. These funds may also be used to provide matches for federal and other non‑State living shorelines funding.

(5)        Five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) in nonrecurring funds to provide matching funds for federal coastal debris cleanup funding, to support the Lost Gear Recovery Program for crab pot cleanup, and for other coastal debris removal activities.

(6)        One hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) in recurring funds for support and promotion of the North Carolina Oyster Trail.

SECTION 3.  Section 1 of this act becomes effective July 1, 2022. The remainder of this act is effective when it becomes law.