Article 31A.

Civil Penalty and Forfeiture Fund.

§ 115C-457.1.  Creation of Fund; administration.

(a) There is created the Civil Penalty and Forfeiture Fund. The Fund shall consist of the clear proceeds of all civil penalties, civil forfeitures, and civil fines that are collected by a State agency and that the General Assembly is authorized to place in a State fund pursuant to Article IX, Section 7(b) of the Constitution.

(b) The Fund shall be administered by the Office of State Budget and Management. The Fund and all interest accruing to the Fund shall be faithfully used exclusively for maintaining free public schools. (1997-443, s. 8.20; 2000-140, s. 93.1(a); 2001-424, s. 12.2(b); 2003-423, s. 2.)

§ 115C-457.2.  Remittance of moneys to the Fund.

The clear proceeds of all civil penalties, civil forfeitures, and civil fines that are collected by a State agency and that the General Assembly is authorized to place in a State fund pursuant to Article IX, Section 7(b) of the Constitution shall be remitted to the Office of State Budget and Management by the officer having custody of the funds within 10 days after the close of the calendar month in which the revenues were received or collected. Notwithstanding any other law, all such funds shall be deposited in the Civil Penalty and Forfeiture Fund. The clear proceeds of these funds include the full amount of all civil penalties, civil forfeitures, and civil fines collected under authority conferred by the State, diminished only by the actual costs of collection, not to exceed twenty percent (20%) of the amount collected. The collection cost percentage to be used by a State agency shall be established and approved by the Office of State Budget and Management on an annual basis based upon the computation of actual collection costs by each agency for the prior fiscal year. (1997-443, s. 8.20; 2000-140, s. 93.1(a); 2001-424, s. 12.2(b); 2003-423, s. 3; 2005-276, s. 6.37(v); 2006-66, s. 6.9(c).)

§ 115C-457.3.  Appropriation of moneys in the Fund.

(a) The General Assembly shall appropriate moneys in the Civil Penalty and Forfeiture Fund in the Current Operations Appropriations Act. These appropriations shall be made to the State Public School Fund for allotment by the State Board of Education, on behalf of the counties, to local school administrative units on a per pupil basis in accordance with Article IX, Section 7(b) of the North Carolina Constitution.

(b) In accordance with subsection (a) of this section, the State Board of Education shall allocate these funds according to the allotted average daily membership of each local school administrative unit as determined by and certified to the local school administrative units and the board of county commissioners by the State Board pursuant to G.S. 115C-430. (1997-443, s. 8.20; 2000-140, s. 93.1(a); 2001-424, s. 12.2(b); 2003-423, s. 3.2; 2005-276, s. 6.37(g).)