(1) The Colorado wildlife safe passages fund is hereby created in the state treasury. The fund consists of money transferred from the general fund to the fund pursuant to subsection (4) of this section, all private and public money received through gifts, grants, or donations that are transmitted to the state treasurer and credited to the fund, and any other money that the general assembly may appropriate or transfer to the fund. (2) The state treasurer shall credit all interest and income derived from the deposit and investment of money in the fund to the fund. (3) (a) Money in the fund is continuously appropriated to the department to fund projects that provide safe road crossings for connectivity of wildlife and reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions and also for the following purposes: (I) For the full range of wildlife crossing project needs including: (A) Projects identified on the department's ten-year priority pipeline projects list with wildlife passage components or other wildlife passage opportunities identified by the department, the division, the alliance, any board of county commissioners, or any tribal government; and (B) Costs related to project feasibility studies, planning, construction, retrofitting, and maintenance of wildlife road crossing infrastructure; roadkill tracking and studies; animal detection systems; signage; exclusionary fencing; and wildlife jump outs and to assist with private land conservation efforts; (II) To provide matching money as required of the state by federal grant programs relating to wildlife crossing projects; and (III) For administrative and personnel expenses related to the purposes for the fund set forth in this section. (b) The department shall: (I) Consult with the division and the alliance concerning the distribution of money from the fund for the purposes specified in this section and, if the money is distributed to a project on or adjacent to tribal land, also consult with the tribal government; (II) Prioritize the department's ten-year priority pipeline projects with wildlife components, the 2019 western slope wildlife prioritization study, and any subsequent studies concerning the prioritization of wildlife within the state when reviewing projects to receive money from the fund; and (III) Consider distributing money from the fund to projects to fill funding gaps for wildlife road crossings and connectivity that are not otherwise budgeted or required for projects under other federal or state obligation. (4) On September 1, 2022, the state treasurer shall transfer five million dollars from the general fund to the fund for use by the department as set forth in subsection (3) of this section. (5) The department shall report annually to the governor's office, the department of natural resources, the division, the alliance, and great outdoors Colorado regarding its expenditures from the fund, including, at a minimum: (a) An aggregate accounting of all money expended from the fund during the prior fiscal year; and (b) A listing of all projects receiving funding from the fund and the amount of funding for each project during the prior fiscal year.
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