Lawns To Legumes Program Phase 2

$118,000 the second year is from the trust fund to the Board of Water and Soil Resources for demonstration projects that provide grants or payments to plant residential lawns with native vegetation and pollinator-friendly forbs and legumes to protect a diversity of pollinators. The board must establish criteria for grants or payments awarded under this section. Grants or payments awarded under this section may be made for up to 75 percent of the costs of the project, except that in areas identified by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service as areas where there is a high potential for rusty patched bumble bees to be present, grants may be awarded for up to 90 percent of the costs of the project.

The following amounts, estimated to be $880,000, are transferred to the Board of Water and Soil Resources for demonstration projects that provide grants or payments to plant residential lawns with native vegetation and pollinator-friendly forbs and legumes to protect a diversity of pollinators. The board must establish criteria for grants or payments awarded under this clause. Grants or payments awarded under this clause may be made for up to 75 percent of the costs of the project, except that in areas identified by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service as areas where there is a high potential for rusty patched bumble bees to be present, grants may be awarded for up to 90 percent of the costs of the project:
(1) the unencumbered amount, estimated to be $380,000, in Laws 2016, chapter 186, section 2, subdivision 9, paragraph (b), Minnesota Point Pine Forest Scientific and Natural Area Acquisition; and
(2) the unencumbered amount, estimated to be $500,000, in Laws 2018, chapter 214, article 4, section 2, subdivision 6, paragraph (d), Developing RNA Interference to Control Zebra Mussels.

(d) Transfers and Availability
The transfers under this subdivision are effective June 30, 2021, and the transferred amounts are available until June 30, 2023.