Section 99-99-218 - Project financing; terms; conditions; restrictions on sale of water; loan acceleration(a) Subject to the conditions in subsection (b) of this section, the construction of the project shall be financed as follows:(i) A grant to the district through the department not to exceed four million five hundred fifteen thousand dollars ($4,515,000.00), of which two million three hundred thirty thousand dollars ($2,330,000.00) shall be expended only for dam repair and outlet works and two million one hundred eighty-five thousand dollars ($2,185,000.00) for canal repairs. The department shall release grant funds as it deems necessary;(ii) A loan to the district through the department as authorized in W.S. 9-2-206 [repealed] in an amount not to exceed one million nine hundred seventy-five thousand dollars ($1,975,000.00) to construct the project for a term of fifty (50) years to commence as provided in subparagraph (D) of this paragraph at an annual interest rate of four percent (4%) provided: (A) No principal or interest is due and payable during the first five (5) years of the term of the loan;(B) Interest shall not accrue on the principal during the first five (5) years of the term of the loan;(C) The department shall establish a repayment schedule amortized over the remaining forty-five (45) years of the loan term in accordance with the conditions in this act; and(D) The loan funds shall be released to the district upon execution of the loan agreement, but the term of the loan for purposes of repayment shall not commence until the project is substantially completed as determined by the department.(iii) Authorization to the game and fish commission to expend not more than one hundred seventy thousand dollars ($170,000.00) for necessary public facilities for the public recreation area in consultation with the department and the recreation commission [parks and cultural resources commission];(iv) Authorization to the department to expend not more than sixty thousand dollars ($60,000.00) for a geological and hydrological review of the project under W.S. 41-2-217(a)(iv).(b) The department shall not release any funds to the district authorized under paragraphs (a)(i) and (ii) of this section until:(i) An independent geological and hydrological review under W.S. 41-2-217(a)(iv) has been completed;(ii) The department and the district have entered into a project agreement providing the district shall undertake construction of all project components concurrently containing the following provisions and terms:(A) The department shall review and approve all design and construction plans prior to construction;(B) The district shall supervise design and construction and submit all requests for payment to the department;(C) The department shall directly make necessary payments in response to requests for payment;(D) The district shall provide security to the department as deemed sufficient by the attorney general to include a mortgage on the dam and canals and an assignment of water rights;(E) The district shall grant to the department for the state, ownership of the storage in Hawk Springs Reservoir from elevation 4,446.9 feet to elevation 4,461.9 feet according to the 1982 United States soil conservation service survey, approximately one thousand seven hundred seventy-nine (1,779) acre-feet of water;(F) The district shall operate the reservoir to provide a pool depth of twenty (20) feet by January 1 in those years when sufficient water is available;(G) The district shall grant public access in perpetuity to the Hawk Springs Reservoir proper and to all adjacent lands owned by the district or the state for the purposes of hunting, fishing and general recreation including the construction of such facilities as deemed necessary by the game and fish commission to maximize the public enjoyment;(H) The district shall pay all the costs including manpower for all operation, maintenance and repairs to the dam and water delivery system after the project is completed;(J) The department shall determine an amount to be assessed annually by the district against district members and the district shall place the funds so collected into a separate account as a sinking fund adequate to meet future maintenance costs for the project;(K) The department may contract with the district for maintenance of public facilities constructed under this project.(c) There shall be no sale or transfer of ownership of water by the district to other than agricultural users without prior approval of the state board of control. In the event that such a sale or transfer is approved, the balance of the loan associated with the sale is immediately due and payable.Laws 1983, Ch. 70, § 1; 1993, Ch. 89, § 8; Renumbered from 41-2-218 by Laws 2009, Ch. 168, § 401.