PURPOSE: This rule establishes guidelines for the administration of the Cost-Share Program by the participating districts.

1. (1) District Board Action on Applications. The district board shall review the cost-share assistance application and any amendments and approve or disapprove each application or amendment. The action shall be recorded in the official minutes of the district meeting and the landowners shall be notified of the action within thirty (30) days. Special circumstances may arise where district board approval for cost-share assistance is needed before the next monthly district board meeting. In those cases, the district board shall establish specific criteria by which any district board member may approve that action. Applications for cost-share assistance may be approved by the district board only when there is a sufficient unobligated fund balance to provide the estimated cost-share amount. The district board shall not approve any application for costshare assistance in which the implementation of a project or practice has begun.
2. (2) District Review of Claim for Payment. Upon completion of an eligible practice, the district shall review and approve the claim for payment. If the district determines that deficiencies exist, the district shall notify the landowner and provide the landowner with a reasonable opportunity to correct the deficiencies and resubmit the claim for payment.
3. (3) Filing System. To provide for efficient processing of requests for cost-share assistance and for maintenance of necessary documentation of matters relating to the administration of the Cost-Share Program, the district shall develop and maintain with the assistance of the commission, a filing system which includes copies of all forms completed by the landowner and all other information considered relevant to the implementation of the eligible practices and to the cost-share assistance provided. The files shall be available for inspection by representatives of the commission and the state auditor’s office.
4. (4) Regardless of the source of funding, each district board is authorized to deny any application or claim for payment for any program generally available through the district which is administered by the commission. The district board shall provide written notification of any denial to the applicant. The applicant may request that the commission conduct a review of the application or claim for payment. The request must be in writing and directed to the Soil and Water Districts Commission, PO Box 176, Jefferson City, MO 65102. The request must be received by the commission no later than thirty (30) days from the date the applicant received the denial notification from the district board. The applicant, upon request, may appear before the commission in person, by a representative, or in writing. The commission shall schedule the review of the application at a commission meeting within one hundred twenty (120) days of the district board’s denial. The commission shall give the applicant at least thirty (30) days written notice of the meeting when the commission will review the application.

AUTHORITY: sections 278.070, 278.080, and 278.110, RSMo 2016.* Original rule filed Aug. 12, 1980, effective Jan. 1, 1981. Amended: Filed Dec. 14, 1982, effective April 11, 1983. Amended: Filed Oct. 13, 1983, effective Feb. 13, 1984. Amended: Filed May 2, 1990, effective Sept. 28, 1990. Emergency amendment filed March 9, 1992, effective March 19, 1992, expired July 16, 1992. Emergency amendment filed July 29, 2009, effective Aug. 8, 2009, expired Feb. 25, 2010. Amended: Filed Nov. 15, 1991, effective April 9, 1992. Amended: Filed May 23, 2018, effective Jan. 30, 2019.

*Original authority: 278.070, RSMo 1943, amended 1961, 1969, 1980, 2008, 2009; 278.080, RSMo 1943, amended 1961, 1980, 1986, 1995, 2000, 2001; and 278.110, RSMo 1943, amended 1961, 1980.