Virginia Code 10.1-1197.3: Purposes of Fund; loans to small businesses; administrative costs
A. Moneys in the Fund shall be used to make loans or to guarantee loans to small businesses for the purchase and installation of environmental pollution control and prevention equipment certified by the Department as meeting the following requirements:
Terms Used In Virginia Code 10.1-1197.3
- Department: means the Department of Environmental Quality. See Virginia Code 10.1-1182
- Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
- Fund: means the Small Business Environmental Compliance Assistance Fund. See Virginia Code 10.1-1197.1
- Small business: means a business located in Virginia that (i) employs 100 or fewer people and (ii) is a small business concern as defined in the federal Small Business Act (15 U. See Virginia Code 10.1-1197.1
- State: when applied to a part of the United States, includes any of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the United States Virgin Islands. See Virginia Code 1-245
- Voluntary pollution prevention measures: means operational or equipment changes that meet the definition of pollution prevention contained in § 10. See Virginia Code 10.1-1197.1
1. The air pollution control equipment is needed by the small business to comply with the federal Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. § 7401 et seq.); or
2. The pollution control equipment will allow the small business to implement voluntary pollution prevention measures.
Moneys in the Fund may also be used to make loans or to guarantee loans to small businesses for the installation of voluntary agricultural best management practices, as defined in § 58.1-339.3.
B. The Department or its designated agent shall determine the terms and conditions of any loan. All loans shall be evidenced by appropriate security as determined by the Department or its designated agent. The Department, or its agent, may require any documents, instruments, certificates, or other information deemed necessary or convenient in connection with any loan from the Fund.
C. A portion of the Fund balance may be used to cover the reasonable and necessary costs of administering the Fund. Unless otherwise authorized by the Governor or his designee, the costs of administering the Fund shall not exceed a base year amount of $65,000 per year, using fiscal year 2000 as the base year, adjusted annually by the Consumer Price Index.
D. The Fund shall not be used to make loans to small businesses for the purchase and installation of equipment needed to comply with an enforcement action by the Department, the State Air Pollution Control Board, the State Water Control Board, or the Virginia Waste Management Board.