GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 1999

H	1 

HOUSE BILL 1849

Short Title:  Increase Rainy Day Fund Amount.	(Public)

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Sponsors: Representatives Ellis; Capps, Davis, Pope, Rayfield, and Walend.

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Referred to:  Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House.

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May 30, 2000

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO INCREASE THE AMOUNT IN THE RAINY DAY FUND TO EIGHT PERCENT OF THE GENERAL FUND OPERATING BUDGET FOR THE PRIOR FISCAL YEAR.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
Section 1.(a)	Notwithstanding G.S. 143-15.3(a), the State Controller shall not reserve to the Savings Reserve Account any portion of the unreserved credit balance remaining in the General Fund at the end of the 2000-2001 fiscal year.
Section 1.(b)	Effective July 1, 2001, G.S. 143-15.3 reads as rewritten:
"§ 143-15.3.  Savings Reserve Account.
(a)	There is established a Savings Reserve Account as a restricted reserve in the General Fund. It is the intent of the General Assembly that the Savings Reserve Account contain funds equal to eight percent (8%) of the amount appropriated the preceding year for the General Fund operating budget, including local government tax-sharing funds, that were directly appropriated. 
(a1)	If, on June 30 of a fiscal year, the balance in the Savings Reserve Account is below the eight percent (8%) level, the General Assembly shall appropriate funds to increase the balance to the eight percent (8%) level within four fiscal years.
(a2)	The minimum amount appropriated to the Account for each of the four fiscal years subsequent to a deficiency shall be one-fourth of the amount of the deficiency; therefore, for any fiscal year in which balance in the Savings Reserve Account is below the eight percent (8%) level, there is hereby appropriated from the General Fund to the Savings Reserve Account for each of the four subsequent fiscal years, an amount equal to one-fourth of the amount of the deficiency.
It is the intent of the General Assembly to consider the statutory appropriation set out in this subsection a minimum contribution for a fiscal year and to appropriate additional funds each fiscal year to increase the balance in the Savings Reserve Account to the eight percent (8%) level as quickly as possible.
(b)	The Director may not use funds in the Savings Reserve Account unless the use has been approved by an act of the General Assembly."
Section 2.  Effective June 30, 2001, G.S. 143-15.2 reads as rewritten:
"§ 143-15.2.  Use of General Fund credit balance; priority uses.
(a)	As used in G.S. 143-15.3, 143-15.3A, and 143-15.3B, the term "unreserved credit balance"means the credit balance amount, as determined on a cash basis, before funds are reserved by the State Controller to the Repairs and Renovations Reserve Account or the Clean Water Management Trust Fund pursuant to G.S. 143-15.3A and G.S. 143-15.3B.
	(c)	The State Controller shall transfer funds from the unreserved credit balance to the Repairs and Renovation Reserve Account in accordance with G.S. 143-15.3A(a).
(d)	The State Controller shall transfer funds from the unreserved credit balance to the Clean Water Management Trust Fund in accordance with G.S. 143-15.3B(a).
(e)	The General Assembly may appropriate that part of the anticipated General Fund credit balance not expected to be reserved only for capital improvements or other one-time expenditures."
Section 3.   This act becomes effective June 30, 2001.