FISCAL NOTE
FUND(S):
Sources of Revenue:
Special Fund
Legislation creates:
A New Fund
Fiscal Note Summary
Effect this measure will have on costs and revenues of state government.
This legislation should be budget neutral or only slightly increase costs for state government. The only current anticipated cost would be for minor funds administration and operation performed by current staff. However, the legislation is expected to increase funds available for use by the West Virginia National Guard Counterdrug Program. Specifically, this bill will allow the WVNG Counterdrug Program to participate in federal asset sharing programs. This bill will provide a source of income to support counterdrug activities within the State and National Guard. These funds will not be mixed with federal funds and any items purchased will remain state property. A determination of the possible income is difficult to determine. Many variables exist and, in part, any income received will be dependent on WVNG Counterdrug’s participation, the amount of funds forfeited and a determination on WVNG Counterdrug program’s equitable share. Additionally, most funds will need to be expended within two years. One of the primary goals of the program is to enhance cooperation between federal law enforcement agencies on the one hand, and state and local law enforcement agencies on the other.
Fiscal Note Detail
| Effect of Proposal |
Fiscal Year |
2012
Increase/Decrease
(use"-") |
2013
Increase/Decrease
(use"-") |
Fiscal Year
(Upon Full
Implementation) |
| 1. Estmated Total Cost |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Personal Services |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Current Expenses |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Repairs and Alterations |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Assets |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Other |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| 2. Estimated Total Revenues |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Explanation of above estimates (including long-range effect):
See Memorandum Section
Memorandum
An estimate of income is difficult to determine because it relies on many different variables and conformance with program guidelines. Generally, under Department of Justice Equitable Sharing guidelines, a state or local agency may request an equitable share of forfeited property by submitting an Application for Transfer of Federally Forfeited Property to the appropriate field office of the federal investigative agency with primary responsibility for the investigation leading to the seizure. That field office will then make a recommendation regarding the application. The field office recommendation reported must bear a reasonable relationship to the degree of direct participation of the requesting agency in the total law enforcement effort leading to the forfeiture. As a general rule, that recommendation should reflect an equitable sharing allocation based on a comparison of the work-hours each federal, state, and local law enforcement agency contributed to the investigation resulting in the forfeiture. Departure from an allocation based solely on workhours may be warranted in two situations: where the resulting equitable share would not adequately reflect the relative value of an agency’s participation, or where an agency participates in a task force with previously determined sharing arrangements consistent with Department of Justice policy. Finally, depending on the amount and circumstances, the appropriate deciding official from the Department of Justice or U.S. Attorney General’s Office will make a determination for the appropriate share. As such, depending on the circumstances, the income could be zero for one year, and then the next year it could be substantial, varying from seizure to seizure.
Person submitting Fiscal Note: CPT C. Scott Applegate
Email Address: christopher.applegate@us.army.mil