§ 275 — Sale of water district facilities

§ 275. Sale of water district facilities. 1. The board of supervisors\nmay sell all or any part of the water supply and distribution system of\na county water district to a water authority or to a joint water works\nsystem established pursuant to article five-B of the general municipal\nlaw, provided, however, that the sale shall have been approved by a\nmajority vote of the qualified electors of the district voting thereon.\nSuch referendum shall be held in the manner prescribed in section one\nhundred and one hundred two of this chapter, except, however, that only\nthose electors shall be qualified to vote who are residents of the\ndistrict and owners of property in the district assessed upon the last\ncompleted town or city assessment roll, as the case may be.\n 2. The proceeds of the sale of a part of a water supply and\ndistribution system shall be deposited in a reserve fund established for\nthe purpose of retiring outstanding obligations issued on behalf of the\ncounty water district to finance the cost of the facilities sold and\nshall be expended only for such purpose, except as provided below. If\nthe proceeds exceed the sum of all installments of principal of and\ninterest on such indebtedness due or to become due, or if, when all such\noutstanding obligations shall have been retired, any moneys remain\nunexpended in the reserve fund, such excess moneys may be used for any\npurpose properly chargeable against the entire district.\n 3. If it is proposed that all of the property and facilities of the\ndistrict be sold, the proposition submitted to referendum shall provide,\nas a part thereof, for dissolution of the district as well as for sale\nof such property and facilities. If the proposition for sale and\ndissolution is approved, the moneys received from such sale must be set\naside in a reserve fund and used to amortize outstanding obligations, as\nprovided in subdivision two of this section. Any excess over and above\nthe amount necessary to be set aside in a reserve fund and used to\nretire indebtedness, as aforesaid, together with any other moneys of the\ndistrict, shall be disposed of to the credit of real property within the\ndistrict by any equitable method described in the proposition submitted\nto referendum.\n 4. If no provision for distribution of such excess is made in the\nproposition, the excess proceeds shall first be apportioned to each town\nand city upon the basis of the true equalized value of real estate\nwithin the district computed in the manner prescribed in section eight\nhundred four of the real property tax law. The amount thus apportioned\nto a town or a city shall be further apportioned on the basis of\nassessed valuation among the several parcels of land situated in the\ndistrict, as shown on the last completed assessment roll of the town or\ncity. The amounts so determined shall be credited to each such parcel of\nland in reduction of county and town taxes or county and city taxes, as\nthe case may be, on so many successive tax rolls as may be necessary to\nexhaust such amounts. When a tax is required to be levied by the city,\nthe county treasurer, or comparable officer or body, shall certify to\nthe proper city officer the amount available for credit against such\ntax. The aggregate amount credited in any year in reduction of town or\ncity taxes shall be paid over to the proper town or city officer from\nthe available excess moneys.\n 5. If there be any real property in the district which is wholly\nexempt from general taxation, but which, while exempt from general\ntaxation, paid, as an assessment for benefit, a proportionate share of\nthe cost of the improvement, the amount apportioned to such real\nproperty shall be refunded to the owner or owners thereof as shown on\nthe last completed assessment roll at the time of the distribution.\n