2017 -- S 0445

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2017

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION -- UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND

     Introduced By: Senators Sosnowski, Jabour, Algiere, Gee, and Kettle

     Date Introduced: March 02, 2017

     Referred To: Senate Finance

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Sections 16-32-3, 16-32-4, 16-32-5 and 16-32-6 of the General Laws in

Chapter 16-32 entitled "University of Rhode Island [See Title 16 Chapter 97 - The Rhode Island

Board of Education Act]" are hereby amended to read as follows:

     16-32-3. Purposes of university.

     The board, as now constituted, and their successors, for the terms for which they have

been or for which they hereafter may be appointed regents, shall continue to be a body politic and

corporate for the purpose of continuing and maintaining the University of Rhode Island as a

university where the leading object shall be, without excluding other scientific and classical

studies, and including military tactics, to teach any branches of learning as are related to

agriculture and the mechanic arts, in order to promote the liberal and practical education of the

industrial classes in the several pursuits and professions of life, as provided in the act of the

congress of the United States, approved July 2, 1862, entitled "An Act Donating Public Lands to

the Several States and Territories Which May Provide Colleges for the Benefit of Agriculture and

the Mechanic Arts," (hereafter the "Morrill Act of 1862"), and for the purpose of continuing and

maintaining an agricultural experiment station (hereafter the "station") as a department of the

college university under and in accordance with, and to carry out the purposes of, the act of

congress approved March 2, 1887, entitled "An Act to Establish Agricultural Experiment Stations

in Connection with the Colleges Established in the Several States Under the Provisions of An Act

Approved July 2, 1862, and of the Acts Supplementary Thereto. ," (hereafter the "Smith-Lever

Act of 1914"), and as provided in all subsequent acts of the Congress of the United States which

modify the Morrill Act of 1862, the Hatch Act of 1887, and/or the Smith-Lever Act of 1914. The

Station and Cooperative Extension are hereafter collectively referred to as the "land grant

programs.)

     16-32-4. Location -- Application of federal funds.

     The university, and experiment station agricultural experiment station, and administrative

headquarters for cooperative extension shall, until ordered, continue to be located in the town of

South Kingstown upon the estate now occupied by them, and all money received after this under

the act of congress, approved March 2, 1887, and under the act of congress approved August 30,

1890, entitled "An Act to Apply a Portion of the Proceeds of the Public Lands to the More

Complete Endowment and Support of the Colleges for the Benefit of Agriculture and the

Mechanic Arts, Established Under the Provisions of an Act of Congress Approved July Second,

Eighteen Hundred Sixty-two," "land grant programs" and all other money which shall be received

by the state for the promotion of agriculture or the mechanic arts at land grant colleges under or

by virtue of an act of congress shall, as and when received, be paid over to the treasurer of the

university, to be used and applied and accounted for by the trustees council for higher education

and officers of the university, with the approval of the state controller, as required by the

respective acts of congress under which the money is received.

     16-32-5. Authority over experiment station Authority over agricultural experiment

station and cooperative extension.

     The board of governors council for higher education shall have authority over the

agricultural experiment station, chapter 2 of title 2, "agricultural experiment station", and

cooperative extension, chapter 3 of title 2, "cooperative extension" of the university located in the

town of South Kingstown.

     16-32-6. Activities of experiment station Activities of the land grant programs.

     The agricultural experiment station, and cooperative extension, at the University of

Rhode Island shall continue to expend sums of money received from the United States

government for experimental work and agricultural extension service extension outreach, in

compliance with the Hatch Act 1887, and the Smith-Lever Act of 1914, as amended, and shall

also continue to promote and encourage the work of farm bureaus agriculturalists (including

aquaculturalists), their professional organizations, environmental organizations, conservation

districts and other agencies of government concerned with agriculture, fisheries and other marine

industries, the environment, or the purposes of the station or cooperative extension, other units of

the university and the private sector in cooperation, consistent with the requirements of the Hatch

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Act of 1887, and the Smith-Lever Act of 1914, as amended and expend sums of money received

from federal and state appropriations, subject to budgetary control provided by chapter 3 of title

35.

     SECTION 2. Chapter 16-32 of the General Laws entitled "University of Rhode Island

[See Title 16 Chapter 97 - The Rhode Island Board of Education Act]" is hereby amended by

adding thereto the following sections:

     16-32-4.1. Appropriation of state funds for the land grant programs.

     Beginning in the fiscal year commencing July 1, 2017, the general assembly shall

annually appropriate a sum to the council on postsecondary education for the exclusive purpose

of defraying the expenses of the land grant programs as defined in §16-32-3, to provide state

funds to meet federal mandates that federal funds be matched by state funds, such funds to be

expended under the direction of the council on postsecondary education and officers of the

university. The required match will be based on the full amount of federal funds awarded to the

station under the Hatch, McIntire-Stennis, and Animal Health formula allocations of the

preceding year and on the full amount of federal funds awarded to cooperative extension under

the Smith-Lever formula allocations of the preceding year.

     16-32-4.2. Use of funds to enhance land grant programs.

     The annual appropriation of funds for the land grant and sea grant programs shall be in

addition to, and separately accounted for from any funds regularly appropriated to the university

under §16-32-9, and there shall be no reduction of appropriations to the university pursuant to

§16-32-9. Funds appropriated for land grant programs shall be used exclusively to enhance the

activities and capacities of the station, and cooperative extension programs, and are not to be used

to replace normal salaries for academic faculty or staff, or operating funds for academic

departments, or for normal maintenance operations of the university, or for any other purpose not

in accord with the purpose of enhancement of the land grant programs. The use of funds may be

used for summer salary recontracting of faculty on academic year appointments to participate in

land grant programs, for technical staff conducting land grant program activities, support of

undergraduate or graduate students collaborating in land grant program activities, and for capital

acquisitions and physical plant improvements directly in support of the land grant programs, and

for all other expenditures directly in support of the land grant programs, including use as a state

matching contribution to grants received from federal agencies to support research or outreach

conducted and administered conjointly with activities of the station, or cooperative extension. The

expenditure of funds shall follow rules promulgated in the official federal manuals of the station,

and cooperative extension, including rules governing approval for projects and activities and

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expenditure of funds for approved projects and activities.

     SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION -- UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND

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     This act would promote the capability of the University of Rhode Island in the areas of

environmental and agricultural research and extension education by authorizing the appropriation

and separate accounting of additional state funds to provide a dedicated state match required to

receive annual federal funds from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, without a reduction of

other appropriations by the general assembly as otherwise provided for in the university's general

operating budget.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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