Virginia Law

Article 1.1. Virginia Fish Passage Grant and Revolving Loan Fund.

There is a permanent revolving fund known as the Virginia Fish Passage Grant and Revolving Loan Fund, hereinafter referred to as the Fund. The Fund shall be comprised of general fund moneys, receipts by the Fund from loans made by it, all income from the investment of moneys held by the Fund, and any other sums designated for deposit to the Fund from any source, public or private. The Fund shall be administered and managed by the Department and shall be used solely for the administration and management of the Fund and the Fish Passage Program. Moneys may be expended (i) as provided for in §§ 29.1-101.5 and 29.1-101.6 and (ii) for the costs incurred by the Department in the management of the Fund and operation of the Fish Passage Program.

1989, c. 5, § 10.1-1214; 1992, cc. 464, 887.

All money belonging to the Fund shall be recorded on the books of the State Comptroller and deposited in an account or accounts in banks or trust companies organized under the laws of the Commonwealth or in national banking associations located in Virginia or in savings institutions located in Virginia organized under the laws of the Commonwealth or the United States. Money in the Fund not needed for immediate use or disbursement may be invested or reinvested by the State Treasurer in obligations or securities that are considered lawful investments for public funds under the laws of the Commonwealth.

1989, c. 5, § 10.1-1215; 1992, cc. 464, 887; 1996, c. 77.

The Department, or its designated agent, is empowered to collect amounts due to the Fund under any loan made by it including, where appropriate, taking action as required by § 15.2-2659 to obtain payment of any amounts in default. Proceedings to recover amounts due to the Fund may be instituted by the Department in the name of the Fund in any appropriate circuit court.

1989, c. 5, § 10.1-1216; 1992, cc. 464, 887.

After consultation with the Commissioner of the Virginia Marine Resources Commission, the Department may offer to finance the construction of fishways for any local government which owns a dam or other artificial impediment to the free passage of anadromous fish. The Fund will pay for seventy-five percent of the entire cost of the fishway, and will lend the balance of the cost to the local government. The loan shall be repaid over ten years at no interest or over twenty years at an annual rate of interest which shall be two percentage points below the rate for municipal bonds given in the latest Bond Buyer Twenty Bond Index appearing before the loan is made. Any balance of a loan not paid off as required by this section shall be paid off as provided in § 29.1-101.4. The Department shall approve the design of the fishway prior to the making of any grant or loan from the Fund pursuant to this section.

All local governments borrowing money from the Fund are authorized to take any action, adopt any proceedings and make and carry out any contracts that are contemplated by this chapter. Such contracts need not be identical among all local governments, but may be structured as determined by the Department according to the needs of the contracting local governments and the Fund.

1989, c. 5, § 10.1-1217; 1992, cc. 464, 887.

After consultation with the Commissioner of the Virginia Marine Resources Commission, the Department may offer to finance the construction of fishways for an owner, other than a local government, who owns a dam or other artificial impediment to the free passage of anadromous fish. The term of such loan shall not exceed twenty years and the interest rate shall be the prime rate for major money center banks, as reported by the latest edition of The Wall Street Journal appearing before the loan is made if the total loan exceeds fifty percent of the estimated project cost; if the total loan does not exceed fifty percent of the estimated cost of the project, the interest rate shall not be less than three percentage points below such prime rate. The Department shall approve the design of the fishway prior to the making of any loan from the Fund pursuant to this section.

1989, c. 5, § 10.1-1218; 1992, cc. 464, 887.

Each loan to an owner other than a local government shall be evidenced by appropriate bonds or notes of the borrower payable to the Fund. The Department may require in connection with any loan to an owner other than a local government such documents, instruments, certificates, legal opinions, and other information as it deems necessary or convenient. The Department may require such borrower to provide the Fund a security interest in the borrower's real and personal property and to procure such insurance, guarantees, letters of credit and other forms of security as the Department deems necessary to provide remedies to the Fund in case of loss or default.

1989, c. 5, § 10.1-1219; 1992, cc. 464, 887.

In the event that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issues a license for hydropower generation in connection with a dam that is the subject of a loan or grant from the Fund, that loan balance and all accrued interest and the full amount of the grant shall be due and payable one year from the date the federal license is issued or at the expiration of the term of the loan, whichever is earlier.

1989, c. 5, § 10.1-1220; 1992, cc. 464, 887.

Notwithstanding any provision of § 29.1-532, including the existence or lack thereof of an exemption pursuant to § 29.1-532, the owner of every dam or other artificial impediment to the migration of anadromous fish in any tributary of the Chesapeake Bay, including that portion of the James River downstream from the City of Lynchburg, shall be responsible to provide appropriate fishways for anadromous fish as soon as reasonably possible after being offered financing from the Fund for the estimated construction cost of the fishways as provided in this article. Any owner of such a dam or other artificial impediment who fails to provide or to maintain fishways providing substantially free passage for anadromous fish may be compelled to provide such fishways by injunction in an action initiated by the Department in an appropriate circuit court. Nothing in this section shall relieve the owner of any dam or other object in a watercourse, which obstructs navigation or the passage of anadromous and other migratory fish, of any obligations or responsibilities under § 29.1-532.

1989, c. 5, § 10.1-1221; 1992, cc. 464, 887.