2014 Connecticut General Statutes
Title 27 - Armed Forces and Veterans
Chapter 506 - Veterans
Section 27-138 - *(See end of section for amended version and effective date.) Custody and administration of the Soldiers, Sailors and Marines Fund. Repayment of amounts appropriated from the General Fund.

(a) The Soldiers, Sailors and Marines Fund shall remain as established and shall be in the custody of the Treasurer as trustee of the fund and shall be administered by the treasurer of the American Legion. The Treasurer shall invest the fund and shall reinvest as much of the fund as is not required for current disbursement in accordance with the provisions of part I of chapter 32. The interest accumulations of the fund so held in trust or so much thereof as is found necessary to carry out the purposes hereinafter stated shall be paid, upon the order of the Comptroller, upon such statements as the Comptroller may require, to the treasurer of the American Legion, who shall disburse the same, and the balance of said accumulations, except for a reserve of one hundred thousand dollars held in custody of the trustee for contingent purposes, shall at the end of each fiscal year be added to the principal of the fund. If the interest accumulations of the fund, together with available appropriations, if any, of other funds, are insufficient to carry out the purposes of this part, the Finance Advisory Committee, upon recommendation of the Governor, shall make appropriations therefor from the state General Fund, limited, however, for any fiscal year to amounts which, together with said interest accumulations for such year, shall not exceed the annual interest on thirty-five million dollars at the average rate of the investment yield earned during the preceding fiscal year on the Soldiers, Sailors and Marines Fund, provided, in case of disaster constituting an emergency, as declared by the Governor, the Finance Advisory Committee may make additional appropriations to the fund without regard to such limitation. Any amounts appropriated from the General Fund under the provisions of this subsection on or after July 1, 2002, and disbursed by the treasurer of the American Legion to carry out the purposes of this part, shall be repaid to said fund in accordance with the provisions of subsection (b) of this section. Payments to the treasurer of the American Legion shall be made at such definite and stated periods as are necessary to meet the convenience of the American Legion and said trustee; but each payment shall be made upon the order of the treasurer of the American Legion, approved by at least two of its executive officers or of a special committee thereof thereunto specially authorized. No part of the interest accumulation of the fund shall be expended for the purpose of maintaining the American Legion.

(b) If in any fiscal year the interest earned on the principal of the Soldiers, Sailors and Marines Fund exceeds the expenditure level of said fund and there remains an outstanding balance in the cumulative amount to be repaid to the General Fund by the Soldiers, Sailors and Marines Fund under the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, the Comptroller may transfer any interest earned in excess of expenditure to the General Fund. Except as provided in this section, the Comptroller may not transfer interest earned on the principal of the Soldiers, Sailors and Marines Fund to the General Fund.

(1949, Rev., S. 2957; 1949, S. 1648d; 1961, P.A. 578, S. 14; February, 1965, P.A. 574, S. 33; 1969, P.A. 337, S. 1; P.A. 74-338, S. 58, 94; P.A. 76-411, S. 2; P.A. 81-343, S. 5, 7; P.A. 97-47, S. 50; P.A. 07-187, S. 2; P.A. 11-48, S. 15.)

*Note: On and after July 1, 2014, this section, as amended by section 121 of public act 13-247, is to read as follows:

“Sec. 27-138. Custody and administration of the Soldiers, Sailors and Marines Fund. The Soldiers, Sailors and Marines Fund shall remain as established and shall be in the custody of the Treasurer as trustee of the fund and shall be administered by the American Legion. The Treasurer shall invest the fund and shall reinvest as much of the fund as is not required for current disbursement in accordance with the provisions of part I of chapter 32. The interest accumulations of the fund so held in trust or so much thereof as is found necessary to carry out the purposes hereinafter stated shall be paid to the American Legion, who shall disburse the same, and the balance of said accumulations, except for a reserve of one hundred thousand dollars held in custody of the trustee for contingent purposes, shall at the end of each fiscal year be added to the principal of the fund. Payments to the American Legion shall be made at such definite and stated periods as are necessary to meet the convenience of the American Legion and said trustee; but each payment shall be made upon the order of the American Legion, approved by at least two of its executive officers or of a special committee thereof thereunto specially authorized. The American Legion may consult with the Treasurer concerning investment of the fund. Up to three hundred thousand dollars of the interest accumulation may be utilized by the American Legion to administer the fund, provided no additional part of the interest accumulation of the fund shall be expended for the purpose of maintaining the American Legion.”

(1949, Rev., S. 2957; 1949, S. 1648d; 1961, P.A. 578, S. 14; February, 1965, P.A. 574, S. 33; 1969, P.A. 337, S. 1; P.A. 74-338, S. 58, 94; P.A. 76-411, S. 2; P.A. 81-343, S. 5, 7; P.A. 97-47, S. 50; P.A. 07-187, S. 2; P.A. 11-48, S. 15; P.A. 13-247, S. 121.)

History: 1961 act provided for augmentation by finance advisory committee where funds were insufficient, with limitation; 1965 act deleted provision for augmentation of the fund by cigarettes taxes; 1969 act provided for reserve fund of $100,000; P.A. 74-338 substituted “investment advisory council” for “investment committee”; P.A. 76-411 deleted references to board of trustees and investment advisory council and qualified the treasurer “as trustee of said fund”, providing that the treasurer, instead of the board, administer the fund; P.A. 81-343 allowed reinvestments of moneys not needed for current disbursement in accordance with part I of Ch. 32 rather than reinvestments “in such securities as may be legal investments for trust funds”; P.A. 97-47 substituted “trustee” for “board of trustees”; (Revisor’s note: In 2005 the Revisors editorially deleted the apostrophe from “Marines” in name of fund); P.A. 07-187 provided that treasurer of the American Legion, instead of State Treasurer, shall administer the fund and that State Treasurer shall invest the fund, and made technical changes, effective June 6, 2007; P.A. 11-48 designated existing provisions as Subsec. (a) and amended same by adding provision re repayment of amounts appropriated from General Fund, and added Subsec. (b) re when Comptroller may transfer interest to General Fund, effective July 1, 2011; P.A. 13-247 deleted Subsec. (a) designator, replaced requirement that treasurer of American Legion administer the fund with requirement that American Legion administer the fund, deleted provision re order of Comptroller to pay interest accumulations, deleted provisions re Finance Advisory Committee to make appropriations from state General Fund, added provision authorizing American Legion to consult with the Treasurer concerning investment of the fund and to utilize up to $300,000 of interest accumulation to administer the fund, deleted former Subsec. (b) re transfer of interest to General Fund by Comptroller, and made conforming changes, effective July 1, 2014.