Section 3. Disposition and use of proceeds.
(a) Deposit.--The proceeds from the sale of bonds and notes, except refunding bonds and replacement notes, issued pursuant to the provisions of this act shall be paid to the State Treasurer and be held in a separate fund to be known as the Disaster Relief Fund.
(b) Dedication of funds.--The moneys in the Disaster Relief Fund are hereby specifically dedicated to meeting the costs of the rehabilitation of areas affected by the blizzard of January 1996 or the resulting flood emergency, including, but not limited to, public assistance and disaster mitigation as defined in or authorized by The Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (Public Law 93-288, 88 Stat. 143) and paying the costs and expenses of issuing bonds and notes.
(c) Interest earnings.--Pending their application to the purposes authorized, moneys held or deposited by the State Treasurer may be invested and reinvested as are other funds in the custody of the State Treasurer in the manner provided by law. All earnings received from the investment or deposit of such funds shall be paid into the State Treasury to the credit of the Disaster Relief Fund.
(d) Allocation of proceeds.--Subject to the total limit of $110,000,000, the funds authorized to be borrowed by section 1 shall be allocated as follows:
(1) No more than $105,000,000 of the funds authorized to
be borrowed under this act shall be used to provide for the
State's share of all public assistance costs, including costs
for highways and bridges, except State-designated highways
and bridges, and disaster mitigation costs provided by the
Federal Government under The Robert T. Stafford Disaster
Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (Public Law 93-288, 88
Stat. 143).
(2) (i) No more than 5% of the funds borrowed under
this act shall be used for the cost of the following
projects pursuant to the disaster proclamation:
(A) Public assistance projects for the
rehabilitation, construction, reconstruction, repair,
other than normal maintenance, or the replacement of
any public facility of a political subdivision in
counties declared as disaster areas which are not
funded by the Federal Government or which are funded
by the Federal Government at a level insufficient to
meet current codes and standards.
(B) Public assistance projects for the
rehabilitation, construction, reconstruction, repair,
other than normal maintenance, or the replacement of
any nonprofit facility owned and operated by a
nonprofit organization in counties declared as
disaster areas which are not funded by the Federal
Government or which are funded at a level
insufficient to meet current codes and standards.
(C) Public assistance projects for the
rehabilitation, construction, reconstruction, repair,
other than normal maintenance, or the replacement of
a public facility or nonprofit facility in counties
not declared as disaster areas by the Federal
Government.
(D) Hazard mitigation projects in counties not
declared as disaster areas by the Federal Government.
(ii) If the funding for projects under this
paragraph is insufficient to provide assistance for all
eligible projects, the Commonwealth shall prioritize
projects by considering the following factors:
(A) The severity of disaster-related damages to
be rectified by the project.
(B) Whether the project will improve the health,
safety and welfare of the affected population.
(C) Whether the project will lead to an
effective solution to the problem to be addressed.
(D) The consistency of the project with other
State and regional resource management and economic
development plans.
(E) The financial condition of the applicant,
including revenues, expenses, debt structure, equity
position and available collateral.
(F) The economic and financial condition of the
community to be served, including the tax base,
annual budget and percentage of low-income and
moderate-income residents.
(G) The inability of the applicant to secure
funding from other sources.
(iii) Any remaining funds under this paragraph shall
be transferred to the Pennsylvania Infrastructure
Investment Authority established under the act of March
1, 1988 (P.L.82, No.16), known as the Pennsylvania
Infrastructure Investment Authority Act, to provide funds
for authority projects which were damaged by the blizzard
of January 1996 or the resulting flood emergency.
(iv) No project shall receive more than $100,000 of
the total funds available under this paragraph, except as
defined in section 14(b)(2).
(v) No project shall be funded under subparagraph
(i)(A) or (B) unless the Commonwealth determines that
there was an adequate appeal of the denial of Federal
funding or of the inadequate level of Federal funding.
(e) Transfer of unused funds.--Moneys in the Disaster Relief Fund not necessary to pay unexpired contracts or to pay potential legal obligations shall be transferred by the State Treasurer, with the approval of the Governor, to the Disaster Relief Redemption Fund and shall be used to pay debt service on the existing disaster relief bonds.