- (a) The Department of Agriculture shall report to the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission the approval or disapproval of each district's operating plan, which shall be duly noted in the commission minutes.
- (b) The department shall recommend to the commission at its regular May meeting a commitment of state funds to each district that is in compliance with this part.
(c) Requests for operating funds and special project funds shall be prioritized according to the following criteria:
- (1) The degree of cooperation and assistance from county and municipal government;
- (2) Nature and extent of resource problems within the district;
- (3) Adequacy of operating plan in addressing priority problems;
- (4) Consistency with department goals;
- (5) Furtherance of district's goals; and
- (6) Whether the district's actual expenditures were consistent with its proposed budget during the previous fiscal year.
- (d) The department shall establish the maximum amount of operating funds available for each district under this subpart.