A N A C T
RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT -- ART FOR PUBLIC FACILITIES
It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
SECTION 1. Sections 42-75.1-2 and 42-75.1-3 of the General Laws in Chapter 42-75.1 entitled "Voluntary Support of Arts and Tourism" are hereby repealed.
42-75.1-2. Arts and tourism development fund -- (a) Monies appropriated to the Rhode Island arts and tourism subcommittee shall be for the purpose of the subcommittee's provision of grants to tax exempt organization or associations to encourage the development of high quality and artistically significant acts, cultural, and tourism related activities and functions in state and local areas including institutions of learning that pertain to the arts. The funds shall be supplemental to any and all other appropriations made to the Rhode Island council on the arts.
(b) The Rhode Island arts and tourism subcommittee shall be authorized to distribute those funds only for the purposes of this chapter. The state auditor general shall provide for the annual auditing of all funds distributed in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.
42-75.1-3. Rhode Island arts and tourism subcommittee. -- (a) The Rhode Island arts and tourism subcommittee is created within the Rhode Island Council on the Arts and shall have access to and control of the monies appropriated for the arts and tourism development subcommittee for the purposes of subsection (b) of section 42-75.1-2.
(b) The subcommittee shall consist of eleven (11) members of the general public, five (5) of whom shall be appointed by the governor; three (3) of whom shall be appointed by the speaker of the house; and three (3) of whom shall be appointed by the senate majority leader.
(c) From this membership there shall be elected annually a chairperson, vice-chairperson, secretary, and treasurer. The chairperson of the subcommittee shall be a voting member of the Rhode Island Council on the Arts. The subcommittee members shall meet from time to time as may be required to study and consider any and all proposals and grant requests, and to approve or reject them by a majority vote of a quorum of the subcommittee members so designated. The subcommittee's authority would include, but not necessarily be limited to, the determination of eligibility requirements for recipients, application procedures for grants, the process of awarding grants and the accountability of grant recipients.
SECTION 2. Section 42-75.1-1 of the General Laws in Chapter 42-75.1 entitled "Voluntary Support of Arts and Tourism" is hereby amended to read as follows:
42-75.1-1. Voluntary taxpayer contributions -- (a) Resident individual taxpayers who file a Rhode Island income tax return and who will receive a tax refund from the Rhode Island division of taxation may designate that a contribution be made to arts and tourism the Rhode Island Council on the Arts appropriations by marking the appropriate box printed on the return pursuant to subsection (b).
(b) The Rhode Island division of taxation shall print on the face of the state income tax return form for residents or on a separate card a space for taxpayers to designate that a contribution be made to arts and tourism the Rhode Island Council on the Arts appropriations from their income tax refund due. The space for designating the contribution shall provide for check-off boxes in the amount of one dollar ($1.00), five dollars ($5.00), ten dollars ($10.00) or other dollar amount, commencing for the tax year 1985 and thereafter. Those contributions shall be deposited as general revenues.
SECTION 3. Chapter 42-75.1 of the General Laws entitled "Voluntary Support of Arts and Tourism" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following section:
42-75.1-2.1. Disbursements of funds. -- Funds collected under the provisions of this chapter shall be received and distributed by the Rhode Island Council on the Arts.
SECTION 4. This act shall take effect upon passage.