Appropriation of funds to water management districts.

(1) The department shall transfer to the water management districts funds appropriated to the districts through the department in such sums as deemed necessary to defray the costs of the administrative, regulatory, and other operational activities of the districts. The governing boards shall submit annual budget requests for such purposes to the department, and the department shall consider such budgets in preparing its budget request for the Legislature. The districts shall annually report to the department on the use of the funds.

(2) Funds appropriated by the Legislature for the purpose of funding a specific water management district project shall be transferred to the water management district when the proposed project has been reviewed by the secretary of the pertinent state agency and upon receipt of a governing board resolution requesting such funds.