2006 Minnesota Statutes

197.608 VETERANS SERVICE OFFICE GRANT PROGRAM.
    Subdivision 1. Grant program. A veterans service office grant program is established to be
administered by the commissioner of veterans affairs consisting of grants to counties to enable
them to enhance the effectiveness of their veterans service offices.
    Subd. 2. Rule development. The commissioner shall consult with the Minnesota Association
of County Veterans Service Officers in formulating rules to implement the grant program.
    Subd. 2a. Grant cycle. Counties may become eligible to receive grants on a three-year
rotating basis according to a schedule to be developed and announced in advance by the
commissioner. The schedule must list no more than one-third of the counties in each year of the
three-year cycle. A county may be considered for a grant only in the year of its listing in the
schedule.
    Subd. 3. Eligibility. (a) To be eligible for a grant under this program, a county must employ
a county veterans service officer as authorized by sections 197.60 and 197.606, who is certified to
serve in this position by the commissioner.
(b) A county that employs a newly hired county veterans service officer who is serving an
initial probationary period and who has not been certified by the commissioner is eligible to
receive a grant under subdivision 2a.
(c) Except for the situation described in paragraph (b), a county whose veterans service
officer does not receive certification during any year of the three-year cycle is not eligible to
receive a grant during the remainder of that cycle or the next three-year cycle.
    Subd. 4. Grant process. (a) The commissioner shall determine the process for awarding
grants. A grant may be used only for the purpose of enhancing the operations of the County
Veterans Service Office.
(b) The commissioner shall provide a list of qualifying uses for grant expenditures as
developed in subdivision 5 and shall approve a grant only for a qualifying use and if there are
sufficient funds remaining in the grant program to cover the full amount of the grant.
    Subd. 5. Qualifying uses. The commissioner shall consult with the Minnesota Association of
County Veterans Service Officers in developing a list of qualifying uses for grants awarded under
this program. The commissioner is authorized to use any unexpended funding for this program to
provide training and education for county veterans service officers.
    Subd. 6. Grant amount. The amount of each grant must be determined by the commissioner
and may not exceed:
(1) $1,400, if the county's veteran population is less than 1,000;
(2) $2,800, if the county's veteran population is 1,000 or more but less than 3,000;
(3) $4,200, if the county's veteran population is 3,000 or more but less then 10,000; or
(4) $5,600, if the county's veteran population is 10,000 or more.
The veteran population of each county shall be determined by the figure supplied by the
United States Department of Veterans Affairs, as adopted by the commissioner.
    Subd. 7. Recapture. If a county fails to use the grant for the qualified use approved by
the commissioner, the commissioner shall seek recovery of the grant from the county and the
county must repay the grant amount.
History: 1993 c 192 s 79; 1993 c 366 s 5; 1Sp2003 c 1 art 2 s 65; 2005 c 156 art 4 s 8