§ 13-1-4 — Bond issue proposal to be submitted to voters; election order

No debt shall be contracted or bonds issued under this article until all questions connected with the same are first submitted to a vote of the qualified electors of the political division for which the bonds are to be issued, and receive three fifths of all the votes cast for and against the same: Provided, That a county board of education may contract indebtedness and issue bonds for public school purposes when submitted to a vote of the people of the county if the question of contracting indebtedness and issuing bonds is approved by a majority of all the votes cast for and against the same pursuant to section ten, article X of the Constitution. The governing body of any political division referred to in this article may, and when requested so to do by a petition in writing, praying that bonds be issued and stating the purpose and amount thereof, signed by legal voters of the political division equal to twenty percent of the votes cast in a county for Governor, or in a municipal corporation or school district for mayor or member of the Board of Education, as the case may be, shall, by order entered of record, direct that an election be held for the purpose of submitting to the voters of the political division all questions connected with the contracting of debt and the issuing of bonds. The order shall state:

(a) The necessity for issuing the bonds or, if a petition has been filed as provided herein, that the petition has been filed;

(b) If for the construction of a county-district road or bridge thereon, a summary of the engineer's report provided for in the following section setting forth the approximate extent and the estimated cost of the proposed improvement and the kind or class of work to be done thereon;

(c) Purpose or purposes for which the proceeds of bonds are to be expended;

(d) Valuation of the taxable property as shown by the last assessment thereof for state and county purposes;

(e) Indebtedness, bonded or otherwise;

(f) Amount of the proposed bond issue;

(g) Maximum term of bonds;

(h) Maximum rate of interest;

(i) Date of election;

(j) That the levying body is authorized to lay a sufficient levy annually to provide funds for the payment of the interest upon the bonds and the principal at maturity and the approximate rate of levy necessary for this purpose;

(k) In the case of school bonds, that the bonds, together with all existing bonded indebtedness, will not exceed in the aggregate five percent of the value of the taxable property in the school district ascertained in accordance with section eight, article X of the Constitution; and that the bonds will be payable from a direct annual tax levied and collected in each year on all taxable property in the school district sufficient to pay the principal and the interest maturing on the bonds in that year, together with any deficiencies for prior years, within, and not exceeding thirty-four years, which tax levies will be laid separate and apart and in addition to the maximum rates provided for tax levies by school districts on the several classes of property in section one, article X of the Constitution, but in the same proportions as the maximum rates are levied on the several classes of property; and the tax may be levied outside the limits fixed by section one, article X of the Constitution.

Any other provision which does not violate any provision of law, or transgress any principle of public policy, may be incorporated in the order.

Legislative History

2009 Reg. Sess., SB243; 1959 Reg. Sess., SB59; 1951 Reg. Sess., SB145