Explanation: Capitals indicate matter added to existing law.
[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
* Warning: This is an unofficial, introductory copy of the bill.
The official copy considered by the City Council is the first reader copy.
Introductory*
City of Baltimore
Council Bill
(Charter Amendment)
Introduced by: Councilmember Burnett
A Resolution Entitled
A Resolution of the Mayor and City Council concerning
title
Charter Amendment - Forest Preservation Fund
For the purpose of establishing a continuing, nonlapsing Forest Preservation Fund, to be used exclusively to fund and administer activities related to forest management, including natural area preservation and restoration, wildlife management, maintenance of paths in forests and natural areas, and tree maintenance; providing for certain modes of appropriation to the Fund; authorizing the Mayor and City Council, by Ordinance, to provide for the oversight, governance, and administration of the Fund; and submitting this amendment to the qualified voters of the City for adoption or rejection.
body
By proposing to add
Article 1 - General Provisions
Section 17
Baltimore City Charter
(1996 Edition)
Section 1. Be it resolved by the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, That the City Charter is proposed to be amended to read as follows:
Baltimore City Charter
Article 1. General Provisions
§ 17. Forest Preservation Fund.
(a) Authorization.
(1) By Ordinance, the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore may establish a continuing, nonlapsing fund for purposes of supporting activities related to the management and preservation of the City’s forests and natural areas.
(2) These purposes include funding, administering, supporting, and augmenting programs and activities that are designed to:
(i) manage, preserve, and restore forests and natural areas in the City;
(ii) manage wildlife;
(iii) maintain natural paths in forested and natural areas in the City;
and
(iv) maintain trees in forests and natural areas in the City.
(b) Revenue sources.
The fund established under this section may consist of:
(1) a mandatory annual appropriation in the Ordinance of Estimates of an amount equal to 3% of any revenues generated by the City’s tax on energy delivered through pipes, wires, or conduits;
(2) grants or donations made to the fund; and
(3) proceeds from fines, fees, surcharges, or other revenues dedicated to the fund by Ordinance.
(c) Continuing nature of fund.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this Charter, unspent portions of the fund established under this section:
(1) remain in the fund to be used exclusively for their ordained purposes;
(2) do not revert to the general revenues of the City; and
(3) their appropriations do not lapse.
(d) Implementation.
By Ordinance, the Mayor and City Council shall provide for the oversight, governance, and administration of the Forest Preservation Fund, including:
(1) methods and criteria for identifying specific programs and services eligible for funding by the Fund;
(2) methods and criteria for allocating available funds among eligible programs and services; and
(3) the establishment of any other legislative or administrative rules, regulations, or standards, consistent with this section, governing the Fund, its operations, and programs and services funded by it.
Section 2. And be it further resolved, That this proposed amendment to the City Charter be submitted to the legal and qualified voters of Baltimore City, for adoption or rejection, in accordance with Article XI-A, § 5 of the Maryland Constitution, in the form specified by the City Solicitor.