North Dakota Code 57-15-56 – Authorization of tax levy for services and programs for senior citizens – Elections to authorize or remove the levy – State bonding fund coverage – State matching program for senior citizen services and programs
1. The board of county commissioners of any county is hereby authorized to levy a tax, or if no levy is made by the board of county commissioners, the governing body of any city in the county is authorized to levy a tax, in addition to all levies now authorized by law, for the purpose of establishing or maintaining services and programs for senior citizens including the maintenance of existing senior citizen centers which will provide informational, health, welfare, counseling, and referral services for senior citizens, and assisting such persons in providing volunteer community or civic services. If the tax authorized by this section is levied by the board of county commissioners, any existing levy under this section by a city in the county becomes void for subsequent taxable years. The removal of the levy is not subject to the requirements of subsection 3. This tax may not exceed the limitation in subsection 12 of section 57-15-06.7 or subsection 11 of section 57-15-10. The proceeds of the tax must be kept in a separate fund and used exclusively for the public purposes provided for in this section. This levy must be in addition to any moneys expended by the board of county commissioners pursuant to section 11-11-58 or by the governing body of any city pursuant to section 40-05-16.
Terms Used In North Dakota Code 57-15-56
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
- Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
- following: when used by way of reference to a chapter or other part of a statute means the next preceding or next following chapter or other part. See North Dakota Code 1-01-49
- Governing body: means a board of county commissioners, city council, board of city commissioners, school board, or board of education, or the similarly constituted and acting board of any other municipality. See North Dakota Code 57-02-01
- moneys: means gold and silver coin, treasury notes, bank notes, and every deposit which any person owning the same or holding in trust and residing in this state is entitled to withdraw as money or on demand. See North Dakota Code 57-02-01
- Organization: includes a foreign or domestic association, business trust, corporation, enterprise, estate, joint venture, limited liability company, limited liability partnership, limited partnership, partnership, trust, or any legal or commercial entity. See North Dakota Code 1-01-49
- State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See North Dakota Code 1-01-49
- written: include "typewriting" and "typewritten" and "printing" and "printed" except in the case of signatures and when the words are used by way of contrast to typewriting and printing. See North Dakota Code 1-01-37
- year: means twelve consecutive months. See North Dakota Code 1-01-33
2. The levy authorized by this section may not be used to defray any expenses of any organization or agency until the organization or agency is incorporated under the laws of this state as a nonprofit corporation. Governing bodies may enter into contracts with county councils on aging or comparable representative groups in counties or cities that do not have a council on aging to determine jointly and to administer distribution of funds in accordance with the contract and the provisions of this section. To receive any funds under this section, an organization or agency must file with the governing body from which funds are being requested a report of its program for the fiscal year for which the funds are requested. The report must show all financial resources available to the organization or agency and its program, how those resources are budgeted or intended to be used in that fiscal year or in the future, and the purposes for which funds being requested under this section are to be used. An organization or agency and its program which receives funds under the provisions of this section must be reviewed or approved annually by the board of county commissioners or the governing body of the city to determine its eligibility to receive funds under the provisions of this section.
3. The levy authorized by this section may be imposed or removed only by a vote of a majority of the qualified electors of the county or city voting on the question directing the governing body to do so. The levy authorized by this section may not be increased to a levy of more than one mill under the authority of this section unless approved by a vote of a majority of the qualified electors of the county or city voting on the question. The governing body shall put the issue before the qualified electors either on its own motion or when a petition in writing, signed by qualified electors of the county or city equal in number to at least ten percent of the total vote cast in the county or city for the office of governor of the state at the last general election, is presented to the governing body.
4. The officers or employees of a nonprofit corporation under contract with the board of county commissioners or the governing body of the city, in regard to the manner in which the funds shall be expended and the services are to be provided, are authorized to receive, and shall be eligible for, bonding coverage through the state bonding fund.
5. The state treasurer shall provide matching funds as provided in this subsection for counties for senior citizen services and programs funded as required by this section.
The grants must be made on or before March first of each year to each eligible county.
A county receiving a grant under this section which has not levied a tax under this section shall transfer the amount received to a city within the county which has levied a tax under this section. A grant may not be made to any county that has not filed with the state treasurer a written report verifying that grant funds received in the previous year under this subsection have been budgeted for the same purposes permitted for the expenditure of proceeds of a tax levied under this section. The written report must be received by the state treasurer on or before February first of each year following a year in which the reporting county received grant funds under this subsection. A matching fund grant must be provided from the senior citizen services and programs fund to each eligible county equal to eighty-seven and one-half percent of the amount appropriated in dollars in the county under this section for the taxable year, but the matching fund grant applies only to an amount equal to a levy of up to one mill under this section.