H259 - 2023 Appropriations Act. (SL 2023-134)

Overview: Section 12.16 of S.L. 2023-134 allocates, from funds appropriated to the North Carolina Megasite Fund, $1 million in nonrecurring funds for the 2023-2024 fiscal year to the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to develop a Regional Water and Wastewater Infrastructure Master Plan (Plan) in the geographic area surrounding US Route 421 between I-85 in Greensboro and I-95 in Dunn, which was designated a high-priority corridor in the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021. DEQ is authorized to contract with a third party for all or part of the development of the Plan, which must prioritize a study of options for the regionalization of water and wastewater systems in the region. This report is due to the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Agriculture and Natural and Economic Resources and the Fiscal Research Division no later than May 1, 2024. In contracting with a third party, DEQ is exempt from the requirements of Articles 3 and 3C of Chapter 143, governing public purchasing, contracting, and obtaining consultant services.

This section became effective July 1, 2023.