(1)A combined authority or CCA may pay to a constituent council a grant towards expenditure incurred or to be incurred by it.
(2)The amount of a grant under this section and the manner of its payment are to be such as the person paying it may determine.
(3)A grant under this section may be paid on such conditions as the person paying it may determine.
(4)Conditions under subsection (3) may, in particular, include—
(a)provision as to the use of the grant;
(b)provision as to circumstances in which the whole or part of the grant must be repaid.
(5)Subsection (6) applies where, in exercising a function under this section, a combined authority or CCA determines an amount of grant to be paid towards expenditure incurred or to be incurred by a constituent council in relation to the exercise of its highway functions.
(6)In determining that amount, the combined authority or CCA must have regard to the desirability of ensuring that the constituent council has sufficient funds to facilitate the effective discharge of those highway functions.
(7)To comply with subsection (6), the combined authority or CCA must take into account any other sources of funding available to the constituent council for expenditure incurred or to be incurred in relation to the exercise of its highway functions.
(8)The functions conferred by this section on a mayoral combined authority or mayoral CCA are functions of the authority or CCA exercisable only by the mayor on behalf of the authority or CCA.
(9)In this section—
“combined authority” means a combined authority established under section 103 of the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009;
“combined county authority” means a combined county authority established under section 9(1) of the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023;
“constituent council” means—
in relation to a combined authority—
a county council the whole or any part of whose area is within the area of the authority, or
a district council whose area is within the area of the authority;
in relation to a combined county authority—
a county council for an area within the area of the authority, or
a unitary district council for an area within the area of the authority;
“highway functions” means functions exercisable by a constituent council (in whatever capacity) in relation to the highways for which it is the highway authority;
“mayoral CCA” has the same meaning as in Chapter 1 of Part 2 of the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 (see section 27(8) of that Act);
“mayoral combined authority” has the same meaning as in Part 6 of the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009 (see section 107A(8) of that Act).]