Section NR 155.20 - Project selection and funding(1) SELECTION. (a) The department shall place all of the projects scored in accordance with s. NR 155.19 on a statewide list in descending rank order according to the final project score. The department shall use the statewide ranked list, available budget and funding considerations in sub. (2) to select projects for funding.(b) The projects shall be identified for funding by starting with the highest ranked projects on the statewide list and proceeding down the ranked list until available project funds have been allocated.(c) Before November 1, the department shall select projects, based on the final project scores, for funding under this chapter for the following calendar year.(d) After selecting projects for funding, the department shall notify applicants in writing of its intent to prepare grant documents for the selected projects.(2) FUNDING. (a) The department shall, where practicable, issue grants to grantees by December 31 for work in the following calendar year. The department may limit grant awards based on the amount of funding available, the funding demand in any year and the factors in pars. (b) to (h).(b) If the statewide application demand exceeds available funding, the department shall establish a maximum total amount of funding which a grantee may receive in multiple grant awards for the application year. This amount may not exceed 20 percent of the grant funds available in the grant year for projects funded under this chapter, or the amount established by the department under par. (c) for that grant year, whichever is greater.(c) The department may establish a maximum grant award amount that any single project can receive in grant awards based upon the amount of funding available in that category of grants for that grant cycle and the amount of funding demand for that period.(d) The department shall make adjustments to the requested grant amount if necessary to correct errors made by the applicant concerning eligibility of items for cost-sharing and errors in cost-share rates used in developing the application.(e) The department may offer an award of less than the amount requested if that is the only funding remaining. In these circumstances, the applicant is required to complete the project as specified in the application if funds are accepted.(f) Prior to issuing a grant, the department may require submittal of an environmental hazards site assessment for projects involving excavation. The assessment shall be submitted on a form available from the department. Note: Forms can be obtained from the department's Bureau of Watershed Management or the department's Bureau of Community Financial Assistance, 101 S. Webster St., PO Box 7921, Madison, WI 53707-7921.
(g) If the department determines, following scoring, that a project may have unacceptable impacts on endangered, threatened, or wetland resources, historic places or historic properties, or that it may expose environmental hazards at the project location, it may do any of the following: 1. Decide not to provide a grant for the project.2. Place a condition on a grant requiring that the grantee take specific actions or develop a plan to reduce or eliminate the impacts of the project.(h) The department may deny a grant for a project that otherwise scores well enough to be funded if the applicant is or has been delinquent in meeting grant commitments for previously funded projects.Wis. Admin. Code Department of Natural Resources NR 155.20
CR 00-025: cr. Register September 2002 No. 561, eff. 10-1-02; CR 09-112: r. and recr. Register December 2010 No. 660, eff. 1-1-11.In addition, s. NR 154.04(2) (k) states that all required permits, including those mandated by the department, shall be obtained prior to installing a best management practice listed in this chapter.