§ 1680-A — Judicial facilities in certain counties

§ 1680-a. Judicial facilities in certain counties. 1. In order to\neffectuate the purposes of this title, the following provisions shall\napply to the authority and any county, within the tenth judicial\ndistrict, that does not contain a city (a "county") in connection with\nthe provision of judicial facilities;\n (a)(1) Any county for whose use judicial facilities are to be\ndesigned, constructed, reconstructed, rehabilitated, improved or\notherwise provided may enter into a lease, sublease or other agreement\nfor the provision of judicial facilities with the authority in\naccordance with the provisions of either paragraph b or c of this\nsubdivision and otherwise upon such terms and conditions as the\nauthority and the county shall determine to be reasonable, including,\nbut not limited to, the reimbursement to the authority of all costs of\nsuch design, construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation or improvement\nand claims arising therefrom and provisions setting forth or providing\nfor the calculation of rental and other payments for the use and\noccupancy of such judicial facilities, which payment shall be at least\nsufficient to pay the principal of and interest on the bonds of the\nauthority issued to finance the cost of the design, construction,\nreconstruction, rehabilitation, or improvement of such judicial\nfacilities and the fees and expenses of the authority incurred in\nconnection therewith.\n (2) Such lease, sublease or other agreement shall not be deemed to be\na contract for public work or purchase within the meaning of the general\nmunicipal law.\n (3) Such lease, sublease or other agreement shall provide that if the\nauthority undertakes to design, construct, reconstruct, rehabilitate,\nimprove, furnish or equip any judicial facilities for a county, any\ncontract or contracts for the construction, reconstruction,\nrehabilitation, improvement of judicial facilities shall be awarded\nbased upon the authority's evaluation of proposals submitted to the\nauthority in response to a request for proposals. Such request for\nproposals shall be prepared in accordance with standards to be developed\nby the authority designed to assure the award of all contracts to\ncontractors evidencing proven experience with projects of the scope,\nmagnitude and complexity of the judicial facilities that are the subject\nof the contract and the ability to perform all work required in a\nprofessional and timely manner. The procedures governing the request for\nproposals shall assure that, wherever practicable, responsible\ncontractors, meeting the above criteria, located or regularly doing\nbusiness in the county for whose benefit the judicial facilities are to\nbe provided are given the opportunity to be considered. Any contract or\ncontracts for the purchase of furnishings and equipment shall be awarded\nto the lowest responsible bidder in accordance with the provisions of\nsection one hundred three of the general municipal law.\n (4) Any such lease, sublease or other agreement entered into pursuant\nto this paragraph (a) may provide that the provisions thereof shall\nremain in force and effect until the issue of bonds of the authority to\nwhich it relates, together with interest thereon, interest on any unpaid\ninstallments of interest and the fees and expenses of the authority, are\nfully met and discharged, and any payments to be made by a county may be\npledged by the authority to secure such bonds.\n (5) A county entering into such a lease, sublease or other agreement\nis hereby authorized to raise and appropriate such sums as shall be\nnecessary from time to time to make any payment pursuant thereto.\n (6) Any lease, sublease or other agreement entered into by the\nauthority and a county may provide that at the termination thereof the\ntitle to the judicial facilities shall vest in the county, free and\nclear of any indebtedness contracted by the authority.\n (b) (1) A lease, sublease or other agreement entered into pursuant to\nthis paragraph shall be executory only to the extent of moneys\nappropriated and available therefor, be for the periods agreed by the\nparties thereto, but not exceeding thirty years.\n (2) The annual payment obligation pursuant to a lease, sublease or\nother agreement entered into pursuant to this paragraph shall not be\ndeemed to be "indebtedness" for the purpose of determining the gross\nindebtedness of a county pursuant to the provisions of section 135.00 of\nthe local finance law or section ten of article eight of the state\nconstitution nor shall it be deemed an evidence of indebtedness within\nthe meaning of section 20.00 of the local finance law.\n (c) (1) A lease, sublease or other agreement entered into pursuant to\nthis paragraph may be for the periods agreed by the parties thereto, but\nnot exceeding thirty years which is hereby determined to be the period\nof probable usefulness of any judicial facilities authorized to be\nprovided pursuant to this title, which term shall be computed from the\ndate of the first indebtedness contracted by the authority for such\njudicial facilities.\n (2) The portion of the annual payment obligation to be made by a\ncounty to the authority pursuant to any lease, sublease or other\nagreement entered into pursuant to this paragraph to enable the\nauthority to pay the principal of any indebtedness contracted by it to\nfinance the cost of such judicial facilities shall commence within two\nyears after any such indebtedness or portion thereof shall have been\ncontracted and no such portion of the annual payment obligation shall be\nmore than fifty per centum in excess of the smallest prior portion of\nthe annual payment for such purpose.\n (3) The county shall pledge its faith and credit for the payment of\nthe portion of the annual payment described in subparagraph two of this\nparagraph and also for the payments required to be made to the authority\nto enable it to pay the interest on such indebtedness.\n (4) The total amount of all unpaid annual payments in relation to the\nprincipal of any such indebtedness for which the county has pledged its\nfaith and credit shall be deemed to be indebtedness of the county for a\ncapital improvement within the meaning of subparagraph b of subdivision\nthree of paragraph a of section 135.00 of the local finance law.\n (5) The portion of the annual payment by a county to the authority to\nenable the authority to pay the principal of any indebtedness contracted\nby it to finance the cost of such judicial facilities for which a county\nhas pledged its faith and credit and the portion of the annual payment\nby a county to the authority to enable the authority to pay interest on\nany indebtedness contracted by it to finance the cost of such judicial\nfacilities shall be deemed to be "indebtedness" and "interest" within\nthe meaning of section ten of article eight of the state constitution.\n (d) (i) In the event that a county for whose use judicial facilities\nare to be or have been provided fails to make its required payment, in\nwhole or in part, to the authority pursuant to any lease, sublease or\nother agreement, the authority shall certify to the state comptroller\nthat such county has failed to make such payment. Such certificate shall\nset forth the exact amount of payment required to satisfy the\nobligations of such county and the date such payment was due.\n (ii) The state comptroller, upon receipt of such certificate from the\nauthority, shall withhold from the next succeeding payment or payments\nof state aid or local assistance payable to such county for whose use\njudicial facilities are to be or have been provided, the amount of the\ndeficiency set forth in such certificate and shall thereafter\nimmediately pay over to the authority the amount so withheld.\n (iii) The provisions of this paragraph shall not apply in any case\nwhere either the payment of the principal of or interest on bonds issued\nby the authority for the purpose of financing the design, construction,\nacquisition, reconstruction, rehabilitation and improvement, and the\nfurnishing and equipping of judicial facilities for a county or the\npayment of the obligations of any such county are secured by a policy of\nmunicipal bond insurance, an irrevocable letter of credit, or other\nfinancial guarantee or credit enhancement provided by a bank, insurance\ncompany or other financial institution. Any such policy of municipal\nbond insurance, letter of credit, or other financial guarantee or credit\nenhancement shall be approved by the authority and notice of such\napproval shall be provided to the state comptroller.\n (e) The provisions of this title may be utilized by a county,\nnotwithstanding the provision of any general or special law, or county\ncharter that (i) requires that any project must be constructed,\nreconstructed, rehabilitated or improved, operated and maintained by the\ncounty, (ii) limits the period of time for which a county may enter into\na lease, sublease or otherwise agree, (iii) limits the period of time\nfor which a county may lease its real property to any other entity,\nincluding the authority, a county being hereby authorized to lease its\nreal property to the authority for any period of time as the county and\nthe authority may agree where such real property will constitute the\nsite on which judicial facilities for the use of such county will be\nconstructed, reconstructed, rehabilitated or improved, (iv) requires\nthat the cost shall be paid for by taxes levied for the fiscal year in\nwhich the expenditure is to be made, (v) requires that the cost shall be\nfinanced pursuant to the local finance law, or (vi) only permits any\nsuch project to be constructed, reconstructed, rehabilitated or improved\nsubject to either mandatory or permissive referendum.\n 2. The state hereby covenants with the holders from time to time of\nbonds issued by the authority to pay the cost of the design,\nconstruction, reconstruction, rehabilitation or improvement of judicial\nfacilities pursuant to this section that it will not limit, impair or\nimpede the rights and remedies granted hereby to such holders; provided,\nhowever, that nothing in this paragraph contained shall be deemed or\nconstrued as giving or pledging the credit of the state or as requiring\nthe state to continue the payment of any specific type or types of state\naid or local assistance to a county, within the tenth judicial district,\nthat does not include a city for whose benefit judicial facilities are\nto be or have been provided or as limiting or prohibiting the state from\nrepealing or amending any law heretofore or hereafter enacted relating\nto state aid and local assistance to such county, the manner and time or\npayment or apportionment thereof, or the amount thereof, nor shall such\nbonds be a debt of the state and the state shall not be liable thereon.\n