CONTENT
Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund. On December 6, 2017, the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund (MNRTF) Board adopted fiscal year (FY) 2017-18 recommendations for acquisition and development projects pursuant to Article IX, Section 35 of the Michigan Constitution and the Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act. The original recommendations included a $40.4 million appropriation from the MNRTF for 34 acquisition projects ($21.4 million) and 89 development projects ($19.0 million). Although projects are typically scored by Department of Natural Resources staff before consideration by the MNRTF Board, one project was included in the recommendation (and in Senate Bill 883) that was not formally scored before its inclusion. That project is the Ottawa Sands Acquisition, which is acquisition priority number 34 in the attached project description table.
The MNRTF Board met again on April 11, 2018, and approved cost increases for two projects: Acquisition priority number 1 in the attached table was increased from $5.0 million to $12.5 million, and development priority number 82 was increased from $225,000 to $300,000. The Board also included eight new development projects, which can be found in the attached table as priority 90 through 97. These new and increased projects increased the total for acquisition by $7.5 million and the total for development by $2.0 million. Between the two meetings at which projects were recommended, the Board recommended a total of 34 acquisition projects totaling $28.9 million, and 97 acquisition projects totaling $21.0 million.
The bill would appropriate money from the MNRTF to fund the recommended projects at those levels.
The MNRTF was capitalized through deposits of bonuses, rentals, delayed rentals, and royalties collected or reserved by the State under provisions of leases for the extraction of nonrenewable resources from State-owned land, except such revenue accruing under leases of State-owned land acquired with money from the State or Federal Game and Fish Protection Fund. Pursuant to the Michigan Constitution, annual expenditures consisted of MNRTF interest and earnings, and 33⅓% of MNRTF revenue received by the State during the previous fiscal year, until the corpus of the MNRTF reached $500.0 million. The MNRTF reached $500.0 million in 2011, thereby limiting subsequent annual expenditures to interest and investment earnings, and funding carried forward from previous years.
The Michigan Constitution provides that not less than 25% of the total amounts made available for expenditure from the Trust Fund from any State fiscal year must be spent for acquisition of land and rights in land and not more than 25% of the total amounts made available for expenditure from the Trust Fund from any State fiscal year must be spent for development of public recreation facilities.
Boilerplate
Sec. 301. Provides criteria for agreements with local units of government for administration of MNRTF grants.
Sec. 302. Provides for work project status of grants. Requires funds to be carried forward consistent with Section 248 of the Management and Budget Act.
Sec. 303. Identifies withdrawn projects so that those funds may lapse.
FISCAL IMPACT
The bill would appropriate $49,866,900 from the MNRTF for 34 acquisition projects and 97 development projects. Matching funds of $45,064,300 for local projects would result in total project costs of $94,931,200.
|
FY 2017-18 Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund (MNRTF) |
||||
|
Projects |
Number of Projects |
Trust Fund |
Match |
Total Cost |
|
Acquisition Projects |
|
|
|
|
|
State owned |
13 |
$16,514,900 |
$1,136,200 |
$17,651,100 |
|
Local Government |
21 |
12,338,000 |
6,180,800 |
18,518,800 |
|
Subtotal Acquisition Projects |
34 |
$28,852,900 |
$7,317,000 |
$36,169,900 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Development Projects |
|
|
|
|
|
State owned |
18 |
$4,117,000 |
$7,131,800 |
$11,248,800 |
|
Local Government |
79 |
16,897,000 |
30,615,500 |
47,512,500 |
|
Subtotal Development Projects |
97 |
$21,014,000 |
$37,747,300 |
$58,761,300 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
TOTAL............................................. |
131 |
$49,866,900 |
$45,064,300 |
$94,931,200 |
[Please see the PDF version of this analysis, if available, to view this image.]
This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan Senate staff for use by the Senate in its deliberations and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.