Chapter
388
2006 -- S 3103
Enacted 07/06/06
A N A
C T
AUTHORIZING THE TOWN
OF SOUTH KINGSTOWN TO FINANCE THE ACQUISITION OF LAND FOR OPEN SPACE,
RECREATION AND AGRICULTURAL PURPOSES AND TO ISSUE NOT MORE THAN $3,000,000
BONDS THEREFOR
Introduced By: Senator V.
Susan Sosnowski
Date Introduced: May 16,
2006
It is
enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
SECTION
1. The town of South Kingstown is hereby empowered, in addition to
authority
previously granted, to issue bonds to an amount not exceeding three million
dollars
($3,000,000)
from time to time under its corporate name and seal. The bonds of each issue
may
be
issued in the form of serial bonds or term bonds or a combination thereof and
shall be payable
either
by maturity of principal in the case of serial bonds or by mandatory serial
redemption in the
case of
term bonds, in annual installments of principal, the first installment to be
not later than
five
years and the last installment not later than thirty years after the date of
the bonds. For each
issue
the amounts payable annually for principal and interest combined either shall
be as nearly
equal
from year to year as is practicable in the opinion of the officers authorized to
issue the
bonds,
or shall be arranged in accordance with a schedule providing for a more rapid
amortization
of
principal.
SECTION
2. The bonds shall be signed by the director of finance and by the president of
the
town council and shall be issued and sold in such amounts as the town council
may authorize.
The
manner of sale, denominations, maturities, interest rates and other terms,
conditions and
details
of any bonds or notes issued under this act may be fixed by the proceedings of
the town
council
authorizing the issue or by separate resolution of the town council or, to the
extent
provisions
for these matters are not so made, they may be fixed by the officers authorized
to sign
the
bonds or notes. The proceeds derived from the sale of the bonds shall be
delivered to the
director
of finance, and such proceeds exclusive of premiums and accrued interest shall
be
expended
(a) for the acquisition of land and interests in land consisting of open,
agricultural or
littoral
property, including existing and future well fields and aquifer recharge areas,
fresh and
saltwater
marshes and adjoining uplands, barrier beaches, wildlife habitats, land
providing access
to or
views of the ocean, harbors and ponds, land for unpaved bicycling, bridle and
hiking paths
and for
future passive recreational use, and land for agricultural use or (b) in
payment of the
principal
of or interest on temporary notes issued under section three or (c) in
repayment of
advances
under section four. No purchaser of any bonds or notes under this act shall be
in any
way
responsible for the proper application of the proceeds derived from the sale
thereof. The
proceeds
of bonds or notes issued under this act, any applicable federal or state
assistance and the
other moneys
referred to in section six shall be deemed appropriated for the purposes of
this act
without
further action than that required by this act.
SECTION
3. The town council may by resolution authorize the issue from time to time
of
interest bearing or discounted notes in anticipation of the issue of bonds or
in anticipation of
the
receipt of federal or state aid for the purposes of this act. The amount of
original notes issued
in
anticipation of bonds may not exceed the amount of bonds which may be issued
under this act
and the
amount of original notes issued in anticipation of federal or state aid may not
exceed the
amount
of available federal or state aid as estimated by the director of finance.
Temporary notes
issued
hereunder shall be signed by the director of finance and by the president of
the town
council
and shall be payable within five years from their respective dates, but the
principal of and
interest
on notes issued for a shorter period may be renewed or paid from time to time
by the
issue
of other notes hereunder, provided the period from the date of an original note
to the
maturity
of any note issued to renew or pay the same debt or the interest thereon shall
not exceed
five
years.
SECTION
4. Pending any authorization or issue of bonds hereunder or pending or in
lieu of
any authorization or issue of notes hereunder, the director of finance, with
the approval of
the
town council, may, to the extent that bonds or notes may be issued hereunder,
apply funds in
the
treasury of the town to the purposes specified in section two, such advances to
be repaid
without
interest from the proceeds of bonds or notes subsequently issued or from the
proceeds of
applicable
federal or state assistance or from other available funds.
SECTION
5. Any proceeds of bonds or notes issued hereunder or of any applicable
federal
or state assistance, pending their expenditure, may be deposited or invested by
the director
of
finance in demand deposits, time deposits or savings deposits in banks which
are members of
the
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or in obligations issued or guaranteed by
the United
States
of America or by any agency or instrumentality thereof or as may be provided in
any other
applicable
law of the State of Rhode Island.
SECTION
6. Any accrued interest received upon the sale of bonds or notes hereunder
shall
be applied to the payment of the first interest due thereon. Any premiums
arising from the
sale of
bonds or notes hereunder and any earnings or net profit realized from the
deposit or
investment
of funds hereunder shall, in the discretion of the director of finance, be
applied to the
cost of
preparing, issuing and marketing bonds or notes hereunder to the extent not
otherwise
provided,
to the payment of the cost of the projects, to the payment of the principal of
or interest
on
bonds or notes issued hereunder or to any one or more of the foregoing. The
cost of preparing,
issuing
and marketing bonds or notes hereunder may also, in the discretion of the
director of
finance,
be met from bond or note proceeds exclusive of accrued interest or from other
moneys
available
therefor. Any balance of bond or note proceeds remaining after payment of the
cost of
the
projects and the cost of preparing, issuing and marketing bonds or notes
hereunder shall be
applied
to the payment of the principal of or interest on bonds or notes issued
hereunder. In
exercising
any discretion under this section, the director of finance shall be governed by
any
instructions
adopted by resolution of the town council.
SECTION
7. All bonds and notes issued under this act and the debts evidenced thereby
shall
be obligatory on the town in the same manner and to the same extent as other
debts lawfully
contracted
by it and shall be excepted from the operation of section 45‑12‑2
of the General Laws.
No such
obligation shall at any time be included in the debt of the town for the
purpose of
ascertaining
its borrowing capacity. The town shall annually appropriate a sum sufficient to
pay
the
principal and interest coming due within the year on bonds and notes issued
hereunder to the
extent
that moneys therefor are not otherwise provided. If such sum is not
appropriated, it shall
nevertheless
be added to the annual tax levy. In order to provide such sum in each year and
notwithstanding
any provision of law to the contrary, all taxable property in the town shall be
subject
to ad valorem taxation by the town without limitation as to rate or amount.
SECTION
8. Any bonds or notes issued under the provisions of this act, if properly
executed
by officers of the town in office on the date of execution, shall be valid and
binding
according
to their terms notwithstanding that before the delivery thereof and payment
therefor
any or
all of such officers shall for any reason have ceased to hold office.
SECTION
9. The town, acting by resolution of its town council, is authorized to apply
for,
contract for and expend any federal or state advances or other grants or
assistance which may
be
available for the purposes of this act, and any such expenditures may be in
addition to other
moneys
provided in this act. To the extent of any inconsistency between any law of
this state and
any
applicable federal law or regulation, the latter shall prevail. Federal and
state advances, with
interest
where applicable, whether contracted for prior to or after the effective date
of this act,
may be
repaid as project costs under section two.
SECTION
10. Bonds and notes may be issued under this act without obtaining the
approval
of any governmental agency or the taking of any proceedings or the happening of
any
conditions
except as specifically required by this act for such issue. In carrying out any
project
financed
in whole or in part under this act, including where applicable the condemnation
of any
land or
interest in land, and in the levy and collection of assessments or other
charges permitted
by law
on account of any such project, all action shall be taken which is necessary to
meet
constitutional
requirements whether or not such action is otherwise required by statute; but
the
validity
of bonds and notes issued hereunder shall in no way depend upon the validity or
occurrence
of such action.
SECTION
11. The question of the approval of this act shall be submitted to the electors
of the
town at the general state election to be held on November 7, 2006. The question
shall be
submitted
in substantially the following form: “Shall an act, passed at the 2006 session
of the
general
assembly, entitled ‘AN ACT AUTHORIZING THE TOWN OF SOUTH KINGSTOWN
TO
FINANCE THE ACQUISITION OF LAND FOR OPEN SPACE, RECREATION AND
AGRICULTURAL
PURPOSES AND TO ISSUE NOT MORE THAN $3,000,000 BONDS
THEREFOR’
be approved?” and the warning for the election shall contain the question to be
submitted.
From the time the election is warned and until it is held, it shall be the duty
of the
town
clerk to keep a copy of the act available at his office for public inspection,
but the validity of
the
election shall not be affected by this requirement.
SECTION
12. This section and the foregoing section shall take effect upon the passage
of this
act. The remainder of this act shall take effect upon the approval of this act
by a majority
of
those voting on the question at the election prescribed by the foregoing
section.
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LC03235
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