§ 552. Special fund. 1. Source. There is hereby established the
special fund. It shall consist of all moneys credited thereto pursuant
to the provisions of sections five hundred thirty-nine and five hundred
fifty-three of this article, of property and securities acquired by and
through the use of moneys belonging to such fund, and of interest earned
upon moneys belonging to such fund and deposited or invested. The
commissioner of taxation and finance shall be the custodian of such fund
and the moneys therein shall be deposited by him in the same manner as
other state moneys. Moneys in such fund may be invested by the state
comptroller in accordance with the provisions of section ninety-eight of
the state finance law, and shall be used for the purposes specified
herein. Any balance in such fund shall not lapse at any time but shall
remain continuously available for such purposes.

2. Use of fund. The moneys in this fund may be used to

(a) Finance operations deemed necessary by the commissioner in the
administration of this article and approved by the director of the
budget, including expenditures pursuant to section five hundred
thirty-nine of this article;

(1) for which no appropriations or inadequate appropriations from
federal funds are made; or

(2) for which a grant is made from appropriated federal funds but not
yet received, provided the special fund is reimbursed upon receipt of
such federal grant;

(b) Replace moneys in the unemployment administration fund pursuant to
the provisions of subdivision two of section five hundred fifty-one of
this article;

(c) Make refunds of interest and penalties erroneously collected;

(d) Defray the cost of vocational and related training courses and
make payments to persons enrolled in such courses, as provided in
article twenty-three-A of this chapter, and such expenditures shall not
be subject to the conditions are set forth in paragraph (b) of
subdivision three of this section.

(e) Pay interest on contributions, interest and penalties erroneously
collected.

3. Notwithstanding any provision of subdivision two of this section

(a) The special fund shall not be used in whole or in part for any
purpose or in any manner which (1) would permit its substitution for, or
a corresponding reduction in, federal funds that would be available in
its absence to finance expenditures for the administration of this
article; or (2) would cause the appropriate agency of the United States
government to withhold any part of an administrative grant which would
otherwise be made; and

(b) No expenditure from such fund shall be made unless the
commissioner and the director of the budget find that no other funds are
available or can properly be used to finance such expenditure.

4. The commissioner of taxation and finance shall, upon the direction
of the industrial commissioner and with the approval of the director of
the budget, transfer from the special fund to the unemployment insurance
fund such moneys available in the special fund which are in excess of
reasonable needs for the purposes set forth in subdivision two of this
section. Such moneys shall thereupon be credited to the general account.