Section 5502.68. Drug law enforcement fund

(A) There is hereby created in the state treasury the drug law enforcement fund. Ninety-seven per cent of three dollars and fifty cents out of each ten-dollar court cost imposed pursuant to section 2949.094 of the Revised Code shall be credited to the fund. Money in the fund shall be used only in accordance with this section to award grants to counties, municipal corporations, townships, township police districts, and joint police districts to defray the expenses that a drug task force organized in the county, or in the county in which the municipal corporation, township, or district is located, incurs in performing its functions related to the enforcement of the state's drug laws and other state laws related to illegal drug activity.

The division of criminal justice services shall administer all money deposited into the drug law enforcement fund and, by rule adopted under Chapter 119. of the Revised Code, shall establish procedures for a county, municipal corporation, township, township police district, or joint police district to apply for money from the fund to defray the expenses that a drug task force organized in the county, or in the county in which the municipal corporation, township, or district is located, incurs in performing its functions related to the enforcement of the state's drug laws and other state laws related to illegal drug activity, procedures and criteria for determining eligibility of applicants to be provided money from the fund, and procedures and criteria for determining the amount of money to be provided out of the fund to eligible applicants.

(B) The procedures and criteria established under division (A) of this section for applying for money from the fund shall include, but shall not be limited to, a provision requiring a county, municipal corporation, township, township police district, or joint police district that applies for money from the fund to specify in its application the amount of money desired from the fund, provided that the cumulative amount requested in all applications submitted for any single drug task force may not exceed more than two hundred fifty thousand dollars in any calendar year for that task force.

(C) The procedures and criteria established under division (A) of this section for determining eligibility of applicants to be provided money from the fund and for determining the amount of money to be provided out of the fund to eligible applicants shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following:

(1) Provisions requiring that, in order to be eligible to be provided money from the fund, a drug task force that applies for money from the fund must provide evidence that the drug task force will receive a local funding match of at least twenty-five per cent of the task force's projected operating costs in the period of time covered by the grant;

(2) Provisions requiring that money from the fund be allocated and provided to drug task forces that apply for money from the fund in accordance with the following priorities:

(a) Drug task forces that apply, that are in existence on the date of the application, and that are determined to be eligible applicants, and to which either of the following applies shall be given first priority to be provided money from the fund:

(i) Drug task forces that received funding through the division of criminal justice services in calendar year 2007;

(ii) Drug task forces in a county that has a population that exceeds seven hundred fifty thousand.

(b) If any moneys remain in the fund after all drug task forces that apply, that are in existence on the date of the application, that are determined to be eligible applicants, and that satisfy the criteria set forth in division (C)(2)(a)(i) or (ii) of this section are provided money from the fund as described in division (C)(2)(a) of this section, the following categories of drug task forces that apply and that are determined to be eligible applicants shall be given priority to be provided money from the fund in the order in which they apply for money from the fund:

(i) Drug task forces that are not in existence on the date of the application;

(ii) Drug task forces that are in existence on the date of the application but that do not satisfy the criteria set forth in division (C)(2)(a)(i) or (ii) of this section.

(D) The procedures and criteria established under division (A) of this section for determining the amount of money to be provided out of the fund to eligible applicants shall include, but shall not be limited to, a provision specifying that the cumulative amount provided to any single drug task force may not exceed more than two hundred fifty thousand dollars in any calendar year.

(E) As used in this section, "drug task force" means a drug task force organized in any county by the sheriff of the county, the prosecuting attorney of the county, the chief of police of the organized police department of any municipal corporation or township in the county, and the chief of police of the police force of any township police district or joint police district in the county to perform functions related to the enforcement of state drug laws and other state laws related to illegal drug activity.

Amended by 129th General AssemblyFile No.28, HB 153, §101.01, eff. 9/29/2011.

Amended by 128th General Assemblych.28, HB 2, §101.01, eff. 7/1/2009.

Effective Date: 2008 HB562 (vetoed provisions) 09-22-2008