§ 62.1-216 — Purchase and credit enhancements of local obligations

Virginia § 62.1-216

• Jurisdiction: Virginia
• Title 62.1: Waters of the State, Ports and Harbors
• Ch. 21: Virginia Resources Authority

Text

The Authority shall have the power and authority, with any funds of the Authority available for such a purpose, to purchase and acquire, on terms which the Authority determines, local obligations to finance or refinance the cost of any project. The Authority may pledge to the payment of any bonds all or any portion of the local obligations so purchased. The Authority may also, subject to any such pledge, sell any local obligations so purchased and apply the proceeds of such a sale to the purchase of other local obligations for financing or refinancing the cost of any project or for any other corporate purpose of the Authority.

The Authority shall also have the power and authority to issue credit enhancements, on terms which the Authority determines, to credit enhance local obligations issued to finance or refinance the cost of any project.

The Authority may require, as a condition to the purchase or credit enhancement of any local obligations, that the local government issuing the local obligations covenant to perform any of the following:

A. Establish and collect rents, rates, fees and charges to produce revenue sufficient to pay all or a specified portion of (i) the costs of operation, maintenance, replacement, renewal and repairs of the project; (ii) any outstanding indebtedness incurred for the purposes of the project, including the principal of and premium, if any, and interest on the local obligations; and (iii) any amounts necessary to create and maintain any required reserve, including any rate stabilization fund deemed necessary or appropriate by the Authority to offset the need, in whole or part, for future increases in rents, rates, fees or charges;

B. Create and maintain a special fund or funds for the payment of the principal of and premium, if any, and interest on the local obligations and any other amounts becoming due under any agreement entered into in connection with the local obligations, or for the operation, maintenance, repair or replacement of the project or any portions thereof or other property of the local government, and deposit into any fund or funds amounts sufficient to make any payments as they become due and payable;

C. Create and maintain other special funds as required by the Authority; and

D. Perform other acts, including the conveyance of real and personal property together with all right, title and interest therein to the Authority, or take other actions as may be deemed necessary or desirable by the Authority to secure payment of the principal of and premium, if any, and interest on the local obligations or obligations to the Authority with respect to any credit enhancement and to provide for the remedies of the Authority or other holder of the local obligations in the event of any default by the local government in the payment, including, without limitation, any of the following:

1. The procurement of credit enhancements or liquidity arrangements for local obligations from any source, public or private, and the payment therefor of premiums, fees or other charges.

2. The payment of the allocable shares of the local governments, as determined by the Authority, of any costs, fees, charges or expenses attributable to liquidity arrangements incurred in connection with the issuance of bonds by the Authority to acquire local obligations of one or more local governments. The determination of such allocable shares may be made by the Authority on any reasonable basis.

3. The combination of one or more projects, or the combination of one or more projects with one or more other undertakings, facilities, utilities or systems, for the purpose of operations and financing, and the pledging of the revenues from such combined projects, undertakings, facilities, utilities and systems to secure local obligations issued in connection with such combination or any part or parts thereof.

4. The payment of the allocable shares of the local governments, as determined by the Authority on any reasonable basis, of rate stabilization funds established or required by the Authority in connection with the issuance of bonds by the Authority to acquire or provide credit enhancement for local obligations of two or more local governments.

All local governments issuing and selling local obligations to the Authority or to be credit enhanced by the Authority are authorized to perform any acts, take any action, adopt any proceedings and make and carry out any contracts with the Authority that are contemplated by this chapter. Such contracts need not be identical among all participants in financings of the Authority, but may be structured as determined by the Authority according to the needs of the contracting local governments and the Authority.

To the extent permitted by law for local obligations issued after July 1, 2003, local governments may enter into agreements with the Authority that provide for a local government to consider and make appropriations from the following: (i) funds or revenues from service districts created under Chapter 24 (§ 15.2-2400 et seq.) of Title 15.2, (ii) funds or revenues accumulated and held by the local government, or (iii) any funds or revenues to be received or generated by the local government in amounts sufficient to pay all or a specified portion of the amounts set forth in subsection A or to make deposits into the special fund or funds provided for in subsections B and C and to pledge and apply the amounts so appropriated for such purposes.

Legislative History

1984, c. 699; 1985, c. 67; 1998, c. 399; 2003, c. 561; 2023, cc. 440, 441.