Substitute House Bill No. 6709
An Act Concerning Municipal Refunding Bonds, the Statutory Debt Limitation for Municipalities and Regional School Districts and Funds Received by the State from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 7-370c of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof:
Any municipality, as defined in section 7-369, which has issued bonds, notes or other obligations pursuant to any public or special act may issue refunding bonds for the purpose of paying, funding or refunding prior to maturity all or any part of such municipality's bonds, notes or other obligations, [and] the redemption premium, if any, with respect thereto, the interest thereon, the costs with respect to the issuance of such refunding bonds and the payment of such refunded bonds, notes or other obligations. Such refunding bonds shall mature not later than (1) in the case of a single series of bonds, notes or other obligations being refunded, the final maturity date thereof; and (2) in the case of multiple series of bonds, notes or other obligations being refunded, the final maturity date of any such series last to occur. Notwithstanding the provisions of the general statutes or any special act, local law or charter governing the authorization and issuance of bonds, notes or other obligations and the appropriation of the proceeds thereof, such refunding bonds shall be authorized, [and issued] and the proceeds appropriated for the purposes permitted for under this section, by resolution of the legislative body of the municipality, and shall be subject to the same limitations and requirements as bonds issued pursuant to this chapter. As used in this section "legislative body" means (A) the board of selectmen in a town that does not have a charter, special act or home rule ordinance relating to its government, (B) the council, board of aldermen, representative town meeting, board of selectmen or other elected legislative body described in a charter, special act or home rule ordinance relating to government in a city, consolidated town and city, consolidated town and borough or a town having a charter, special act, consolidation ordinance or home rule ordinance relating to its government, (C) the board of burgesses or other elected legislative body in a borough, or (D) the district committee or other elected legislative body in a district, metropolitan district or other municipal corporation.
Sec. 2. Subsection (b) of section 7-374 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof:
(b) No town and no municipality coterminous with or within such town shall incur any indebtedness in any of the following classes through the issuance of bonds which will cause the aggregate indebtedness, in that class, of such town and of all municipalities coterminous with and within such town, jointly, to exceed the multiple stated below for each class times the aggregate annual receipts of such town and of all municipalities coterminous with and within such town, jointly, from taxation for the most recent fiscal year next preceding the date of issue: (1) All debt other than debt for urban renewal projects, water pollution control projects and school building projects as defined in section 10-289, two and one-quarter; (2) debt for urban renewal projects, three and one-quarter; (3) debt for water pollution control projects, three and three-quarters; (4) debt for school building projects, as defined in section 10-289, four and one-half; (5) total debt including subdivisions (1), (2), (3) and (4) of this subsection, seven. In the computation of annual receipts from taxation, there shall be included as such receipts interest, penalties, late payment of taxes and payments made by the state to such town and to municipalities coterminous with and within such town under section 12-129d and section 7-528. In computing such aggregate indebtedness, there shall be excluded each bond, note and other evidence of indebtedness (i) issued in anticipation of taxes; (ii) issued for the supply of water, for the supply of gas, for the supply of electricity, for the construction of subways for cables, wires and pipes, for the construction of underground conduits for cables, wires and pipes and for two or more of such purposes; (iii) issued in anticipation of the receipt of proceeds from assessments which have been levied upon property benefited by any public improvement; (iv) issued in anticipation of the receipt of proceeds from any state or federal grant for which the town or municipality has received a written commitment or for which an allocation has been approved by the State Bond Commission or from a contract with the state, a state agency or another municipality providing for the reimbursement of capital costs but only to the extent such indebtedness can be paid from such proceeds; (v) issued for water pollution control projects in order to meet the requirements of an abatement order of the Commissioner of Environmental Protection, provided the municipality files a certificate signed by its chief fiscal officer with the commissioner demonstrating to the satisfaction of the commissioner that the municipality has a plan for levying a system of charges, assessments or other revenues which are sufficient, together with other available funds of the municipality, to repay such obligations as the same become due and payable; and (vi) upon placement in escrow of the proceeds of refunding bonds, notes or other obligations or other funds of the municipality in an amount sufficient, together with such investment earnings thereon as are to be retained in said escrow, to provide for the payment when due of the principal of and interest on such bond, note or other evidence of indebtedness. "Urban renewal project", as used in this section, shall include any project authorized under title 8, the bonds for which are not otherwise, by general statute or special act, excluded from the computation of aggregate indebtedness or borrowing capacity. In the case of a town that is a member of a regional school district, a portion of the aggregate indebtedness of such regional school district shall be included in the aggregate indebtedness of such town for school building projects for the purposes of this section. Such portion shall be determined by applying to the indebtedness of the district, other than indebtedness issued in anticipation of the receipt by the district of payments by its member towns or the state for the operations of such district's schools and of proceeds from any state or federal grant for which the district has received a written commitment or for which an allocation has been approved by the State Bond Commission or from a contract with the state, a state agency or another municipality providing for the reimbursement of capital costs but only to the extent such indebtedness can be paid from such proceeds, such member town's percentage share of the net expenses of such district for the most recent fiscal year next preceding the date of issue payable by such town as determined in accordance with subsection (b) of section 10-51.
Sec. 3. Subsection (b) of section 10-56 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof:
(b) "Annual receipts from taxation" means the receipts from taxation of the member towns for the fiscal year next preceding the beginning of the current fiscal year of such regional school district. Notwithstanding the provisions of section 7-374, as amended by this act, any regional school district may assume bonds, notes or other obligations of any member town as part of the purchase price of any property for school purposes or issue bonds, notes or other obligations, provided the aggregate indebtedness of such district shall not exceed: (1) In the case of a regional school district serving the same towns as are served by two or more town school districts, two and one-quarter times the annual receipts from taxation or (2) in the case of a regional school district empowered to provide for the member towns all programs under the general supervision and control of the State Board of Education, four and one-half times such annual receipts from taxation. Any regional school district may issue additional bonds, notes or other obligations in an amount not to exceed three and one-half times such annual receipts from taxation less the aggregate indebtedness computed in accordance with section 7-374, for the member towns of such district. In computing the aggregate indebtedness of a regional school district for purposes of this section and section 7-374, as amended by this act, there shall be excluded each bond, note or other evidence of indebtedness issued in anticipation of the receipt of (A) payments by a member town or the state for the operation of such district's schools and (B) proceeds from any state or federal grant for which the district has received a written commitment or for which an allocation has been approved by the State Bond Commission or from a contract with the state, a state agency or another municipality providing for the reimbursement of capital costs but only to the extent such indebtedness can be paid from such proceeds.
Sec. 4. Section 10-60a of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof:
Any regional school district which has issued any bonds, notes or other obligations pursuant to any general statute or special act may issue refunding bonds for the purpose of paying, funding or refunding prior to maturity all or any part of such district's bonds, notes or other obligations, [and] the redemption premium, if any, with respect thereto, the interest thereon, the costs with respect to the issuance of such refunding bonds and the payment of such refunded bonds, notes or other obligations. Such refunding bonds shall mature not later than (1) in the case of a single series of bonds, notes or other obligations being refunded, the final maturity date thereof; and (2) in the case of multiple series of bonds, notes or other obligations being refunded, the final maturity date of any such series last to occur. Such refunding bonds shall be authorized, and the proceeds thereof appropriated for the purposes permitted under this section, by resolution of the regional board of education and shall be issued in the same manner, and shall be subject to the same limitations and requirements, other than those requirements with respect to the manner of authorization of the bonds, as bonds issued pursuant to section 10-56. Upon placement in escrow of the proceeds of such refunding bonds or other funds of the district in an amount sufficient, together with such investment earnings thereon as are to be retained in said escrow, to provide for the payment when due of the principal of and interest on the bonds, notes or other obligations to be paid, funded or refunded by such refunding bonds and other funds, such bonds, notes or other obligations shall cease to be included in computing the aggregate indebtedness of the district pursuant to subsection (b) of section 10-56.
Sec. 5. (NEW) Notwithstanding any provision of the general statutes or the regulations adopted thereunder, disaster assistance funds received by the Office of Policy and Management from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for administration may be maintained in a separate fund or separate account within the General Fund and used for any administrative functions. The balance of any such funds remaining at the end of each fiscal year shall be carried forward for the fiscal year next succeeding.
Sec. 6. This act shall take effect from its passage.
Approved June 3, 1999
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