Forestry Productivity Fund; disposition of funds

A. Funds equal to seventy-five percent of that portion of the severance tax on timber allocated to the state by Article VII, Section 4(D) of the Constitution of Louisiana shall be deposited immediately upon receipt into the state treasury. B. After compliance with the requirements of Article VII, Section 9(B) of the Constitution of Louisiana relative to the Bond Security and Redemption Fund, and prior to monies being placed in the state general fund, an amount equal to that deposited as required by Subsection A of this Section shall be credited to a special fund hereby created in the state treasury to be known as the Forestry Productivity Fund. The monies in this fund shall be used solely as provided in Subsection C of this Section and only in the amounts appropriated by the legislature. All unexpended and unencumbered monies in this fund at the end of the fiscal year shall remain in the fund. The monies in this fund shall be invested by the state treasurer in the same manner as monies in the state general fund and interest earned on the investment of these monies shall be credited to this fund, again, following compliance with the requirement of Article VII, Section 9(B) relative to the Bond Security and Redemption Fund. C. The monies in the Forestry Productivity Fund shall be used solely for the implementation of the forestry productivity program, including the amount representing the state's involvement in cooperative agreements between landowners and the department for the implementation of approved practices for the reforestation of forest lands in this state. However, no more than twenty-five percent of the monies in the fund shall be used for grants as provided in R.S. 3:4416, and no more than ten percent of the monies available annually in the fund shall be used to administer and provide technical assistance for the forestry productivity program.