Section 35WW. There shall be established and set up on the books of the commonwealth a separate fund, to be known as the Homeless Animal Prevention and Care Fund. The fund shall be used by the department of agricultural resources to offset costs associated with the vaccination, spaying and neutering of homeless dogs and cats, to offset costs associated with the vaccination, spaying and neutering of dogs and cats owned by low-income residents and to assist with the training of animal control officers consistent with section 151C of chapter 140. The department may use the fund for necessary and reasonable administrative and personnel costs related to the specific purposes of the fund. The commissioner of agricultural resources shall establish rules and regulations relating to the fund.

Terms Used In Massachusetts General Laws ch. 10 sec. 35WW

  • Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
  • 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.
  • Interest rate: The amount paid by a borrower to a lender in exchange for the use of the lender's money for a certain period of time. Interest is paid on loans or on debt instruments, such as notes or bonds, either at regular intervals or as part of a lump sum payment when the issue matures. Source: OCC

The fund shall consist of all revenues received by the commonwealth pursuant to the voluntary check-off donation indicated on the department of revenue’s annual income tax return authorized by section 6L of chapter 62 and from public and private sources as gifts, grants and donations to further reduce the population of homeless animals. Funds deposited and expended from the fund shall not be assessed any indirect costs.

The state treasurer shall deposit amounts in the fund in accordance with section 34 of chapter 29 in a manner that will secure the highest interest rate available consistent with the safety of the fund and with the requirement that all amounts on deposit shall be available for immediate withdrawal at any time. The fund may be expended by the commissioner of agricultural resources without further appropriation for the purposes stated in this section and any funds remaining at the end of any fiscal year shall not revert to the General Fund and shall be available for use in subsequent fiscal years.

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