A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to appropriate funds to the board of governors of the university of north carolina for north carolina state university to establish the williamsdale farm energy field laboratory in duplin county and to fund various innovative agricultural programs offered by the college of agriculture and life sciences at north carolina state university.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Board of Governors of The University of North Carolina the sum of four million one hundred sixty‑five thousand six hundred dollars ($4,165,600) for the 2006‑2007 fiscal year to be allocated to North Carolina State University, North Carolina Agricultural Research Service to establish the Williamsdale Farm Energy Field Laboratory on the site of Williamsdale Farm in Duplin County. Of the funds appropriated by this act, the sum of three million five hundred ninety thousand dollars ($3,590,000) shall be used for infrastructure and equipment for the field laboratory, and the sum of five hundred seventy‑five thousand six hundred dollars ($575,600) shall be used for recurring operational expenses of the field laboratory.
SECTION 2.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Board of Governors of The University of North Carolina the sum of five million dollars ($5,000,000) for the 2006‑2007 fiscal year to be allocated to the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at North Carolina State University to fund various innovative agricultural programs that encourage economic growth.  The funds shall be allocated as follows:
(1)	$1,000,000 to develop and promote local agricultural systems and enterprises. Economic development activity will involve expansion of small scale finishing and marketing of cattle; local production and marketing of plant and animal food products, including organic production; enhancing urban landscapes and environments; grass based meat goat and dairy systems; training and assistance in business development and management skills; and agricultural workforce preparedness in the areas of worker protection, efficient workplace management and worker benefits, especially for nontraditional workers.
(2)	$1,250,000 to support competitive cropping opportunities. These opportunities may include research and development of strategies and systems that focus on the following:  the development of methods that make it possible to convert to narrow‑row production of cotton and that optimize nitrogen fertilizer to increase cotton production; the development of intensive disease management strategies, especially in lettuce and berry production that will enable large‑scale production of fruits and vegetables for the Dole Initiative and other enterprises; the development of mechanical harvesting and stripping aids to increase production of burley tobacco; supporting a breeding position in turfgrasses research; and support of the AgBiotech initiative that applies functional genomics to systems that have potential for rapid, on‑the‑ground impacts.
(3)	$1,000,000 to be used for specialty enterprise opportunities. These developments will include expansion of the current Specialty Crops Program; development of technology and management systems for profitable production of grapes and grape products; improve the sustainability of plant production by developing transgenic plants that tolerate environmental stresses (temperature extremes, drought, disease); discovery of development of plant derived materials that benefit health, nutrition, and pest management; and enhance the health, productivity and survivability of honeybees, which are critical for sustainable agricultural systems.
(4)	$750,000 to be used for animal systems opportunities. Economic development will accrue to research and technical assistance in production systems and genetic improvement of aquaculture species, with an emphasis on hybrid striped bass and flounder; and to significantly increasing the longevity, health, and production levels of swine.
(5)	$1,000,000 to be used for value‑added bioprocessing. These opportunities will involve development of processes to enhance quality, safety and utility of foods and food products; discovering methods to convert wastes and biomass to energy; and to create profitable, viable markets for byproducts of animal systems and other waste materials.
SECTION 3. This act becomes effective July 1, 2006.