§ 27-1316. Citizen technical assistance grants. 1. The commissioner is authorized to provide, or order a person acting under order or on consent, to provide grants to any not-for-profit corporation exempt from taxation under section 501(c)(3) of the internal revenue code who may be affected by an inactive hazardous waste disposal site remedial program. To qualify to receive such assistance, a community group must demonstrate that its membership represents the interests of the community affected by such site, and that members' health, economic well-being or enjoyment of the environment are potentially affected by such site. Such grants shall be known as technical assistance grants and may be used to obtain technical assistance in interpreting information with regard to the nature of the hazard posed by hazardous waste located at or emanating from an inactive hazardous waste disposal site or sites and the development and implementation of an inactive hazardous waste disposal site remedial program or programs. Such grants may also be used:

(a) to advise affected residents on any health assessment; and

(b) for training funds for the education of interested affected community members to enable them to more effectively participate in the remedy selection process. Grants awarded under this section may not be used for the purposes of collecting field sampling data, political activity or lobbying legislative bodies. 2. The amount of any grant awarded under this section may not exceed fifty thousand dollars at any one site. 3. No matching contribution from the grant recipient shall be required for a technical assistance grant. Following a grant award, a portion of the grant shall be made available to the grant recipient, in advance of the expenditures to be covered by the grant, in five thousand dollar installments.