Sec. 1. 20-A MRSA §10006 is enacted to read:

§10006.__Endowment incentives

1.__Endowment Incentive Fund; nonlapsing fund.__The Endowment Incentive Fund, referred to in this section as the "endowment fund," is created to provide an incentive for private donations for endowment purposes to and for the benefit of the University of Maine System, the Maine Technical College System and the Maine Maritime Academy, referred to in this section as "postsecondary entities," by providing matching state funds for certain private donations for specified purposes.__Any funds appropriated by the Legislature to carry out the purposes of this section may not lapse and must be carried forward for continued use in the fund.

2.__Treasurer of State authority for deposit of state funds; interest earned on the endowment fund; disbursement of endowment funds.__The Treasurer of State is responsible for the custodial care of the endowment fund and may deposit state funds pursuant to Title 5, section 135.__Interest earned on the investment of the endowment fund must be credited to the respective postsecondary entity or its qualified institutionally related foundation.__The Treasurer of State is responsible for disbursement of the endowment fund, upon certification by the Chancellor of the University of Maine System, the President of the Maine Technical College System and the President of the Maine Maritime Academy, that the criteria established in subsection 3 are met.

3.__Administration of endowment fund; boards of trustees; boards of visitors; academic purposes.__The respective boards of trustees of the postsecondary entities shall adopt criteria establishing qualifications for private gifts and grants to be matched from the endowment fund.__For each university in the University of Maine System, the respective university president must recommend qualifications for that institution's endowment fund criteria to the Board of Trustees of the University of Maine System.__Each university president may direct that university's board of visitors to review the institution's unique fund-raising needs and advise the president on the board of visitors' final recommendations to the Board of Trustees of the University of Maine System.__The endowment fund criteria must provide that only private donations for academic purposes may qualify for matching.__ For the administration of this endowment fund, "academic purposes" is defined as scholarships, professorships or other endowed faculty positions, the repair of classrooms or