§ 11-28-2 — Authorization of Issuance of Warrants

In addition to all other warrants which any county shall have the power to issue pursuant to laws other than this chapter, the county shall have the power from time to time to sell and issue warrants of the county for the purpose of paying costs of public facilities. In the proceedings pursuant to which warrants are authorized to be issued the county commission of the county may, in its discretion, provide that the warrants shall evidence general obligation debt of such county, in which case the full faith and credit of the county shall be irrevocably pledged for the payment of the principal of and interest on the warrants or, alternatively, that the warrants shall evidence limited obligation debt of the county payable solely from specified pledged funds, in which case the pledged funds shall be irrevocably pledged for the payment of the principal of and interest on such warrants as provided in Section 11-28-3. The warrants may be in the denomination or denominations, may have a maturity or maturities not exceeding 30 years from their date, except that in counties having a population of 98,500 inhabitants or more, except Madison County, according to the 1990 federal decennial census, warrants in excess of $25,000,000 may have a maturity or maturities not exceeding 40 years, may bear interest from their date at the rate or rates payable in the manner at the times, may be payable at the place or places within or without the State of Alabama, may be sold at the time or times and in the manner, whether publicly or privately, may be executed in the manner, and may contain the terms not in conflict with the provisions of this chapter, all as the county commission of the county may provide in the proceedings pursuant to which the warrants are authorized to be issued. The county commission of any county issuing the warrants may provide, in its discretion, that the warrants shall bear interest at a rate or rates fixed at the time of the issuance thereof, or at fixed rates which may be changed from time to time during the term of the warrants in accordance with an objective procedure determined by the county commission at the time of the issuance of the warrants, or at a floating rate or rates which may change from time to time in connection with published interest rates or indexes that reflect an objective response to market changes in interest rates by banks, governmental agencies, or other generally recognized public or private sources of information concerning interest rates, and the county commission may also provide, in its discretion, that interest on the warrants may be payable in cash at fixed intervals, or through one or more payments which reflect compound interest computed at specified intervals on accrued but unpaid interest, or through a discount in the sales price for the warrants equivalent to compound interest on the warrants for all or part of the term thereof, or through any combination of the foregoing methods of providing for the payment of interest. The county commission of any county issuing the warrants shall have the power to enter into and perform all contracts with banks or trust companies, insurance or surety companies, governmental entities, investment banking firms, and other persons to the extent that such county commission determines, in its discretion, that such contracts are necessary or desirable to sell and issue warrants and to secure and provide for the payment thereof. The proceeds derived from the sale of the warrants shall be used solely for the purpose for which they are authorized to be issued.

Legislative History

(Acts 1983, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 83-75, p. 78, §2; Acts 1983, 4th Ex. Sess., No. 83-921, p. 192, §1; Act 98-616, p. 1356, §1.)