§ 2050-EE — Powers of the authority

§ 2050-ee. Powers of the authority. The authority shall have the\npower:\n 1. To sue and be sued.\n 2. To have a seal and alter the same.\n 3. To acquire in the name of the authority, hold, sell, lease,\nmortgage or otherwise dispose of property, real, personal or mixed, or\nany interest therein within the area of operation, without limitation,\nfor its corporate purposes and to take by eminent domain, in the name of\nthe authority, pursuant to the eminent domain procedure law, any real\nproperty required to carry out its corporate purposes; provided,\nhowever, that in the acquisition of any real property designated as the\nsite for any facility, the authority shall give consideration to the\npresent and any proposed land use character of the area in which the\nsite is to be located and zoning laws or regulations, if any, otherwise\ngenerally applicable to such area. The authority shall not determine to\nconstruct a facility outside of its area of operation without approval\nof the solid waste management planning unit (as that term is defined in\nsection 27-0107 of the environmental conservation law) responsible for\nthe municipality in which such facility is to be constructed and without\nthe approval of the chief executive officer and local legislative body\nof such municipality. The authority shall not site a solid waste\nmanagement-resource recovery facility within an agricultural district\nestablished pursuant to article twenty-five-AA of the agriculture and\nmarkets law.\n 4. To collect, receive, extract, transport, process, dispose of, sell,\nstore, convey, recycle, and deal with, in any lawful manner and way\nsolid waste and any products or by-products thereof now or hereafter\ndeveloped or discovered, including any energy generated by the operation\nof any solid waste management-resource recovery facility. Any such\ndisposal or sale may be effected on such terms and in such manner as the\nauthority may deem proper.\n 5. To plan, develop and construct projects and to pay the cost thereof\nand to have the right to contract in relation thereto with the towns, or\nother municipalities or persons within or without the area of operation\nand to own and operate, maintain, repair, improve, reconstruct,\nrenovate, rehabilitate, replace, increase, enlarge, and extend, subject\nto the provisions of this title, any of its projects acquired or\nconstructed under this title, and to enter into contracts for any and\nall such purposes and for the management and operation of a project, and\nto sell, lease, mortgage or otherwise dispose of any project or part\nthereof to any person or public corporation, municipality or the state,\nsubject to such conditions and limitations as the authority may\ndetermine to be in the public interest.\n 6. To assist in the planning, development and construction of and the\nfinancing of the cost of any project to be located in the area of\noperation, whether or not such project is to be owned or operated by the\nauthority.\n 7. To collect or receive from the United States, the state, any county\nwithin the state, the towns, any other municipality or public\ncorporation or person, solid waste for the purpose of treatment or\ndisposal thereof, with the right of the authority to sell and dispose of\nany products or by-products (including energy) of such process of\ntreatment or disposal, as the authority may deem proper.\n 8. To contract with the towns, or other municipalities, state\nagencies, public corporations or persons within or without the area of\noperation, for the purpose of collecting, receiving, treating and\ndisposing of solid waste, including, without limitation, to contract\nwith persons for the delivery of all solid waste generated within a\nstated area to a specific solid waste management-resource recovery\nfacility.\n 9. To make by-laws for the management and regulation of its affairs\nand, subject to agreements with bondholders, for the regulation of the\nuse of any project or other property of the authority, which by-laws and\nall amendments thereto, duly certified by the secretary of the\nauthority, shall be filed in the office of the authority and in the\noffice of the clerk of each of the legislative bodies of the towns, and\nto provide for the enforcement of such by-laws by legal or equitable\nproceedings which are or may be provided or authorized by law. In\naddition, the legislative bodies shall have power to prescribe that\nviolations of specific by-laws of the authority, including, without\nlimitation, any failure to comply with any by-law requiring the payment\nof any fee or other charge by any person in connection with the delivery\nof solid waste to any facility or any other use of any facility by such\nperson, shall constitute offenses or infractions and provide for the\npunishment of violations thereof by civil penalty.\n 10. With the consent of the appropriate legislative body of any other\nmunicipality, to use officers or employees of such town or municipality\nand to pay a proper portion of compensation or costs for the services\nfor such officers or employees.\n 11. To make contracts and to execute all necessary or convenient\ninstruments, including evidences of indebtedness, negotiable or\nnon-negotiable.\n 12. To enter on any lands, waterways or premises within the area of\noperation for the purpose of making surveys, soundings, and\nexaminations, any liability for which shall not exceed actual damages.\n 13. To borrow money and to issue bonds for any of its corporate\npurposes, to secure the same with its revenues or other funds or refund\nthe same, and to provide for the rights of the holders thereof.\n 14. Subject to any limitations imposed by any contract pursuant to\nsubdivision two of section two thousand fifty-tt of this title, to\ndetermine classifications of users, to fix and collect rates, rentals,\nfees and other charges for the use of the facilities of, or services\nrendered by, or any commodities furnished by, the authority, which\nrates, rentals, fees and other charges may be different for each\nclassification of user and may reflect the source and composition of\nsolid waste, and to contract with the towns or any other municipality or\nperson in respect thereto, so as to provide revenues sufficient at all\ntimes to pay, as the same shall become due, the principal and interest\non the bonds of the authority, together with the maintenance of proper\nreserves therefor, in addition to paying, as the same shall become due,\nthe expenses of operating and maintaining the properties of the\nauthority, together with proper reserves for debt service, depreciation,\nmaintenance and contingencies and all other obligations and indebtedness\nof the authority. No such rates, rentals, fees and other charges for the\nuse of the facilities of, or services rendered by, the authority shall\nbe established, fixed or revised unless the authority shall have held a\npublic hearing at which the users of the facilities of, or services\nrendered by, the authority together with the owners of property served\nor to be served and others interested have had the opportunity to be\nheard concerning the same. Notice of such public hearing shall be\npublished by the authority at least ten days before the date set\ntherefor in at least one newspaper having a general circulation in each\nof the towns. Such notice shall set forth the date, time and place of\nsuch hearing and shall include a brief description of the matters to be\nconsidered at such hearing. A copy of the notice shall be filed in the\noffice of the clerk of each of the towns and shall be available for\ninspection by the public. At any such hearing, any person shall have an\nopportunity to be heard concerning the matters under consideration. Any\ndecision of the authority on matters considered at any such public\nhearing shall be in writing and shall be made available to any such\nperson in the office of the authority during regular office hours. All\nrates, rentals, fees and other charges for the use of the facilities of,\nor services rendered by, the authority shall be a lien upon the real\nproperty upon which, or in connection with which, services were\nprovided. Any such lien shall take precedence over all other liens or\nencumbrances, except taxes or assessments. The treasurer of the\nauthority shall prepare and transmit to the respective legislative body\nof each town, on or before the first day of December in each year, a\nlist of those properties within each respective town for which such\nservices were provided and which the payment of rates, rentals, fees and\nother charges are in arrears for a period of thirty days or more after\nthe last day fixed for payment of such rates, rentals, fees and other\ncharges without penalty. The list shall contain a brief description of\nthe properties for which such services were provided, the names of the\npersons or corporations liable to pay for the same, and the amount\nchargeable to each, including penalties and interests computed to\nDecember thirty-first of that year. Each governing body shall levy such\nsums against the properties liable and shall state the amount thereof in\na separate column in the annual tax rolls of the various municipalities\nunder the heading "solid waste disposal charge". Such amounts, when\ncollected by the several municipal collectors or receivers of taxes,\nshall be paid over to each respective town treasurer, who immediately\nshall pay the same over to the treasurer of the authority. All of the\nprovisions of the tax laws of the state covering enforcement and\ncollection of unpaid taxes or assessments for special improvements not\ninconsistent herewith shall apply to the collection of such unpaid\nrates, rentals, fees and other charges.\n 15. To accept gifts, grants, loans or contributions from the United\nStates, the state or any authority or instrumentality of either of them,\nor any municipality or from any person, by bequest or otherwise, and to\nexpend the proceeds for any corporate purposes of the authority.\n 16. To enter into agreements, in its discretion, to pay annual sums in\nlieu of taxes to the towns or any other municipality, political\nsubdivision or taxing district of the state in respect to any real\nproperty which is owned by the authority and located in such towns,\nmunicipality, political subdivision or taxing district.\n 17. To covenant and consent that the interest on any of its bonds or\nnotes issued pursuant to this title shall be includible, under the\nUnited States Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or any subsequent\ncorresponding internal revenue law of the United States, in gross income\nof the holders of the bonds or notes to the same extent and in the same\nmanner that the interest on bills, bonds, notes or other obligations of\nthe United States is includible in the gross income of the holders\nthereof under said Internal Revenue Code or any such subsequent law.\n 18. To do all things necessary or convenient to carry out the power\nexpressly given in this title.\n