The director of the safety division, under the supervision of the highway patrol superintendent, shall direct and carry on a public education and information program and assist and cooperate with all governmental or private agencies, organizations, or groups in order to encourage better and safer driving practices, better law enforcement, and more uniform penalties, for the purpose of reducing the number of motor vehicle accidents. The director shall coordinate and strengthen the highway and traffic safety activities of the state of North Dakota and its political subdivisions. The director shall specifically promote the coordination of the functions of driver licensing and control, financial responsibility, traffic law enforcement, and other highway and traffic safety activities of the state highway patrol and the department of transportation, and shall generally work and cooperate with the officials in charge of these departments and all public officials in all matters relating to motor vehicle safety. All supplies and equipment of the public safety division of the department of transportation are hereby transferred to the public safety division of the highway patrol created by section 39-03-16.
39-03-18. Highway patrol - Assets forfeiture fund - Purpose - Continuing appropriation. There is created a fund to be known as the highway patrol assets forfeiture fund. The fund consists of funds obtained from moneys, assets, and proceeds seized and forfeited pursuant to section 19-03.1-36, amounts received through court proceedings as restitution, and amounts remaining from the forfeiture of property after the payment of expenses for forfeiture and sale authorized by law. The total amount of deposits into the fund may not exceed three hundred thousand dollars within a biennium and any moneys in excess of that amount must be deposited in the general fund. The funds are appropriated as a continuing appropriation to the highway patrol for the following purposes: 1. For paying expenses necessary to inventory, safeguard, maintain, advertise, or sell property seized, detained, or forfeited, pursuant to section 19-03.1-36, or of any other necessary expenses incident to the seizure, detention, or forfeiture of the property. 2. For paying overtime compensation incurred as a result of investigations or violations of any state criminal law or law relating to the control of drug abuse. 3. For purchasing equipment related to criminal interdiction. 4. For paying matching funds required as a condition for receipt of funds from a federal government program awarding monetary grants or assistance for the investigation or apprehension of persons violating the provisions of chapter 19-03.1. The superintendent of the highway patrol, with the concurrence of the director of the office of management and budget, shall establish the necessary accounting procedures for the use of the fund and shall personally approve, in writing, all requests for the use of the fund.