§ 2676-H — Bonds of the authority

§ 2676-h. Bonds of the authority. 1. The authority shall have the\npower and is hereby authorized from time to time to issue bonds, notes\nor other obligations to pay the cost of any project or for any other\ncorporate purpose, including the establishment of reserves to secure the\nbonds, the payment of principal of, premium, if any, and interest on the\nbonds and the payment of incidental expenses in connection therewith.\nThe aggregate principal amount of such bonds, notes, or other\nobligations outstanding shall not exceed eighty million dollars,\nexcluding bonds, notes, or other obligations issued to refund or\notherwise repay bonds, notes, or other obligations theretofore issued\nfor such purposes; provided, however, that upon any such refunding or\nrepayment the total aggregate principal amount of outstanding bonds,\nnotes, or other obligations may be greater than eighty million dollars\nonly if the present value of the aggregate debt service of the refunding\nor repayment bonds, notes, or other obligations to be issued shall not\nexceed the present value of the aggregate debt service of the bonds,\nnotes, or other obligations so to be refunded or repaid. For purposes\nhereof, the present values of the aggregate debt service of the\nrefunding or repayment bonds, notes, or other obligations and of the\naggregate debt service of the bonds, notes, or other obligations so\nrefunded or repaid, shall be calculated by utilizing the effective\ninterest rate of the refunding or repayment bonds, notes, or other\nobligations, which shall be that rate arrived at by doubling the\nsemi-annual interest rate (compounded semi-annually) necessary to\ndiscount the debt service payments on the refunding or repayment bonds,\nnotes, or other obligations from the payment dates thereof to the date\nof issue of the refunding or repayment bonds, notes, or other\nobligations and to the price bid including estimated accrued interest or\nproceeds received by the authority including estimated accrued interest\nfrom the sale thereof. The authority shall have power and is hereby\nauthorized to enter into such agreements and perform such acts as may be\nrequired under any applicable federal legislation to secure a federal\nguarantee of any bonds.\n 2. The authority shall have power from time to time to renew bonds or\nto issue renewal bonds for such purpose, to issue bonds to pay bonds,\nand, whenever it deems refunding expedient, to refund any bond by the\nissuance of new bonds, whether the bonds to be refunded have or have not\nmatured, and may issue bonds partly to refund bonds then outstanding and\npartly for any other corporate purpose of the authority. Bonds, other\nthan notes or other evidence of indebtedness, issued for refunding\npurposes, which have a final maturity date longer than the maturity of\nthe bonds being refunded, shall be approved by a resolution of the\ncounty legislature adopted by a majority vote and approved by the county\nexecutive. Bonds issued for refunding purposes shall be sold and the\nproceeds applied to the purchase, redemption, or payment of the bonds or\nnotes to be refunded.\n 3. Bonds issued by the authority may be general obligations of the\nauthority or may be special obligations payable solely out of particular\nrevenues or other moneys as may be designated in the proceedings of the\nauthority under which the bonds shall be authorized to be issued,\nsubject as to priority only to any agreements with the holders of\noutstanding bonds pledging any particular property, revenues, or moneys.\nThe authority may also enter into loan agreements, lines of credit and\nother security agreements and obtain for or on its behalf letters of\ncredit, insurance, guarantees, or other credit enhancements to the\nextent now or hereafter available, in each case for securing its bonds\nor to provide direct payment of any costs which the authority is\nauthorized to pay.\n 4. (a) Bonds shall be authorized by resolution of the authority, be in\nsuch denominations and bear such date or dates and mature at such time\nor times, as such resolution may provide, provided that bonds and\nrenewals thereof shall mature within forty years from the date of\noriginal issuance of any such bonds.\n (b) Bonds shall be subject to such terms of redemption, bear interest\nat such rate or rates, be payable at such times, be in such form, either\ncoupon or registered, carry such registration privileges, be executed in\nsuch manner, be payable in such medium of payment at such place or\nplaces, and be subject to such terms and conditions as such resolution\nmay provide. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the bonds of\nthe authority issued pursuant to this section shall be sold to the\nbidder offering the lowest true interest cost, taking into consideration\nany premium or discount not less than four nor more than fifteen days,\nSundays excepted, after a notice of such sale has been published at\nleast once in a newspaper of general circulation in the area served by\nthe authority, which shall state the terms of the sale. The terms of the\nsale shall not change unless notice of such change is published in such\nnewspaper at least one day prior to the date of the sale as set forth in\nthe original notice of sale. Advertisements shall contain a provision to\nthe effect that the authority, in its discretion, may reject any or all\nbids made in pursuance of such advertisements, and in the event of such\nrejection, the authority is authorized to negotiate a private or public\nsale or readvertise for bids in the form and manner above described as\nmany times as, in its judgment, may be necessary to effect satisfactory\nsale.\n (c) Notwithstanding paragraph (b) of this subdivision, whenever in the\njudgment of the authority the interests of the authority will be served\nthereby, the members of the authority, on the written recommendation of\nthe chairperson, may authorize the sale of such bonds at private or\npublic sale on a negotiated basis or on either a competitive or\nnegotiated basis. The authority shall set guidelines governing the terms\nand conditions of any such private or public sales. The private or\npublic bond sale guidelines set by the authority shall include, but not\nbe limited to, a requirement that where the interests of the authority\nwill be served by a private or public sale of bonds, the authority shall\nselect underwriters for each private or public bond sale conducted\npursuant to a request for proposal process and consideration of\nproposals from qualified underwriters taking into account, among other\nthings, qualifications of underwriters as to experience, their ability\nto structure and sell authority bond issues, anticipated costs to the\nauthority, the prior experience of the authority with the firm, if any,\nthe capitalization of such firms, participation of qualified minority\nand women-owned business enterprise firms in such private or public\nsales of bonds of the authority and the experience and ability of firms\nunder consideration to work with minority and women-owned business\nenterprises so as to promote and assist participation by such\nenterprises.\n (d) The authority shall have the power from time to time to amend such\nprivate bond sale guidelines in accordance with the provisions of this\nsubdivision.\n (e) No private or public bond sale on a negotiated basis shall be\nconducted by the authority without prior approval of the state\ncomptroller and the county comptroller. The authority shall annually\nprepare and approve a bond sale report which shall include the private\nor public bond sale guidelines as specified in this subdivision,\namendments to such guidelines since the last private or public bond sale\nreport, an explanation of the bond sale guidelines and amendments, and\nthe results of any sale of bonds conducted during the fiscal year. Such\nbond sale report may be a part of any other annual report that the\nauthority is required to make.\n (f) The authority shall annually submit its bond sale report to the\nstate comptroller and the county comptroller and copies thereof to the\nsenate finance committee and the assembly ways and means committee.\n (g) The authority shall make available to the public copies of its\nbond sale report upon reasonable request thereof.\n (h) Nothing contained in this subdivision shall be deemed to alter,\naffect the validity of, modify the terms of or impair any contract or\nagreement made or entered into in violation of, or without compliance\nwith, the provisions of this subdivision.\n 5. Any resolution or resolutions authorizing bonds or any issue of\nbonds may contain provisions which may be a part of the contract with\nthe holders of the bonds thereby authorized as to:\n (a) pledging all or part of the revenues, other monies or property of\nthe authority to secure the payment of the bonds, or any costs of\nissuance thereof, including but not limited to any contracts, earnings,\nor proceeds of any grant to the authority received from any private or\npublic source subject to such agreements with bond holders as may then\nexist;\n (b) the setting aside of reserves and the creation of sinking funds\nand the regulation and disposition thereof;\n (c) limitations on the purpose to which the proceeds from the sale of\nbonds may be applied;\n (d) the rates, rents, fees, and other charges to be fixed and\ncollected by the authority and the amount to be raised in each year\nthereby and the use and disposition of revenues;\n (e) limitations on the right of the authority to restrict and regulate\nthe use of the project or part thereof in connection with which bonds\nare issued;\n (f) limitations on the issuance of additional bonds, the terms upon\nwhich additional bonds may be issued and secured and the refunding of\noutstanding or other bonds;\n (g) the procedure, if any, by which the terms of any contract with\nbond holders shall be amended or abrogated, the amount of bonds the\nholders of which shall consent thereto, and the manner in which such\nconsent shall be given;\n (h) the creation of special funds into which any revenues or monies\nshall be deposited;\n (i) the terms and provisions of any trust, mortgage, deed or indenture\nsecuring the bonds under which the bond shall be issued;\n (j) vesting in a trustee or trustees such properties, rights, powers,\nand duties in trust as the authority may determine which may include any\nor all of the rights, powers, and duties of the trustees appointed by\nthe bond holders to appoint a trustee pursuant to this title or limiting\nthe rights, duties, and powers of such trustee;\n (k) defining the acts or omissions to act which shall constitute a\ndefault in the obligations and duties of the authority to the bond\nholders and providing for the rights and remedies of the bond holders in\nthe event of such default, including as a matter of right appointment of\na receiver, provided, however, that such rights and remedies shall not\nbe inconsistent with the general laws of the state and other provisions\nof this title;\n (l) limitations on the power of the authority to sell or otherwise\ndispose of any project or any part thereof;\n (m) limitations on the amount of revenues and other monies to be\nexpended for operating, administrative or other expenses of the\nauthority;\n (n) the payment of the proceeds of bonds, revenues, and other monies\nto a trustee or other depository, and for the method of disbursement\nthereof with such safeguards and restrictions as the authority may\ndetermine; and\n (o) any other matters of like or different character which in any way\naffect the security or protection of the bonds or the rights and\nremedies of bondholders.\n 6. In addition to the powers conferred upon the authority to secure\nits bonds under this section, the authority shall have power in\nconnection with the issuance of bonds to adopt resolutions and enter\ninto such trust indentures, agreements or other instruments as the\nauthority may deem necessary, convenient or desirable concerning the use\nor disposition of its revenues or other monies or property, including\nthe mortgaging of any property and the entrusting, pledging, or creation\nof any other security interest in any such revenues, monies, or property\nand the doing of any act, including refraining from doing any act which\nthe authority would have the right to do in the absence of such\nresolutions, trust indentures, agreements, or other instruments. The\nauthority shall have power to enter into amendments of any such\nresolutions, trust indentures, agreements, or other instruments. The\nprovisions of any such resolutions, trust indentures, agreements, or\nother instruments may be made a part of the contract with the holders of\nbonds of the authority.\n 7. Notwithstanding any provision of the uniform commercial code to the\ncontrary, any pledge of or other security interest in revenues, monies,\naccounts, contract rights, general intangibles, or other personal\nproperty made or created by the authority shall be valid, binding, and\nperfected from the time when such pledge is made or other security\ninterest attaches without any physical delivery of the collateral or\nfurther act, and the lien of any such pledge or other security interest\nshall be valid, binding, and perfected against all parties having claims\nof any kind in tort, contract, or otherwise against the authority\nirrespective of whether or not such parties have notice thereof. No\ninstrument by which such a pledge or security interest is created, nor\nany financing statement need be recorded or filed.\n 8. Regardless of whether the bonds are of such form and character as\nto be negotiable instruments under the terms of the uniform commercial\ncode, the bonds are hereby made negotiable instruments within the\nmeaning of and for all the purposes of the uniform commercial code,\nsubject only to the provisions of the bonds for registration.\n 9. Neither the members of the authority nor any person executing its\nbonds shall be liable personally on its bonds or be subject to any\npersonal liability or accountability by reason of the issuance thereof.\n 10. Subject to such agreements with bondholders as may then exist, the\nauthority shall have power out of any funds available therefor to\npurchase bonds of the authority, which shall thereupon be cancelled, at\na price not exceeding (a) if the bonds are then redeemable, the\nredemption price then applicable plus accrued interest to the next\ninterest payment date; or (b) if the bonds are not then redeemable, the\nredemption price applicable on the first date after such purchase upon\nwhich the bonds become subject to redemption plus accrued interest to\nthe next interest payment date. Bonds so purchased shall thereupon be\ncancelled.\n