ARTICLE 2 SUBSTITUTE
A
RELATING TO
BORROWING IN ANTICIPATION OF RECEIPTS FROM TAXES AND
INTERFUND
BORROWING
SECTION
1. (a) The State of
fiscal year ending June 30, 2010, in anticipation of receipts
from taxes such sum or sums, at such
time or times and upon such terms and conditions not
inconsistent with the provisions and
limitations of Section 17 of Article VI of the constitution of
treasurer, with the advise of the Governor, shall deem for the
best interests of the state, provided
that the amounts so borrowed shall not exceed three
hundred and fifty million dollars
($350,000,000), at any time
outstanding. The state is hereby
further authorized to give its
promissory note or notes signed by the general treasurer and
counter-signed by the secretary of
state for the payment of any sum so borrowed. Any such
proceeds shall be invested by the
general treasurer until such time as they are needed. The
interest income earned from such
investments shall be used to pay the interest on the promissory
note or notes, or other forms of
obligations, and any expense of issuing the promissory note or
notes, or other forms of
obligations, with the balance remaining at the end of said fiscal
year, if any, shall be used toward
the payment of long-term debt service of the state,
unless prohibited by federal law or regulation.
(b) Notwithstanding any
other authority to the contrary, duly authorized bonds or notes of
the state issued during the fiscal year ending June 30,
2010 may be issued in the form of
commercial paper, so-called. In connection herewith, the state,
acting through the general
treasurer, may enter into agreements with banks, trust
companies or other financial institutions
within or outside the state, whether in the form of letters
or lines of credit, liquidity facilities,
insurance or other support arrangements. Any notes issued as
commercial paper shall be in such
amounts and bear such terms as the general treasurer, with
the advice of the governor, shall
determine, which may include provisions for prepayment at any
time with or without premium at
the option of the state. Such notes may be sold at a
premium or discount, and may bear interest or
not and, if interest bearing, may bear interest at such
rate or rates variable from time to time as
determined by the Federal Reserve Bank Composite Index of
Commercial Paper, or the
Municipal Market Data General Market Index or other
similar commercial paper offerings, or
other method specified in any agreement with brokers for
the placement or marketing of any such
notes issued as commercial paper, or other like agreements.
Any such agreement may also
include such other covenants and provisions for protecting
the rights, security and remedies of the
lenders as may, in the discretion of the general treasurer,
be reasonable, legal and proper. The
general treasurer may also enter into agreements with brokers
for the placement or marketing of
any such notes of the state issued as commercial paper.
Any notes to the state issued as
commercial paper in anticipation of receipts from taxes in any
fiscal year must also be issued in
accordance with the provisions of Section 17 of Article VI of
the constitution of
within the limitations set forth in Subsection (a) of
Section 1 of this Article.
(c) Notwithstanding any
other authority to the contrary, other forms of obligations of the
state not to exceed twenty million dollars ($20,000,000) of
the three hundred fifty million dollar
($350,000,000) amount authorized in Section 1 may be
issued during the fiscal year ending June
30, 2010 in the form of a commercial or business
credit account, at any time outstanding, with
banks, trust companies or other financial institutions
within or outside the state in order to finance
a payables incentive program for the state with its
vendors. Any such forms of obligations entered
into pursuant to this subsection shall be in such amounts
and bear such terms as the general
treasurer, with the advice of the governor, shall determine,
which may include provisions for
prepayment at any time with or without premium at the option of
the state. Any such forms of
obligations entered into pursuant to this subsection may also
include such other covenants and
provisions for protecting the rights, security and remedies of
the lenders as may, in the discretion
of the general treasurer, be reasonable, legal and
proper. Any such forms of obligations entered
into pursuant to this subsection must also be issued in
accordance with the provisions of Section
17 of Article VI of the Constitution of Rhode Island
and within the limitations set forth in
Subsection (a) of Section 1 of this
Article.
SECTION
2. Section 35-3-23 of the General Laws in Chapter 35-3 entitled “State
Budget” is hereby amended to read as follows:
35-3-23. Interfund transfers.
-- (a) The governor may make an interfund transfer to the
general fund. Prior
to making an interfund transfer the governor shall
give five (5) days written
notification of the proposed interfund
transfer to the speaker of the house, the president of the
senate, the chairperson of the house finance committee, the
chairperson of the senate finance
committee, the minority leader of the senate, and the minority
leader of the house.
An interfund
transfer must comply with this section. An interfund
transfer can be made
under the following circumstances and on the following
conditions:
(1) The governor must
make the findings that:
(i)
All cash in the general fund, including the payroll clearing account, has been
or is
about to be exhausted;
(ii) The anticipated
cash expenditures exceed the anticipated cash available.
(2) The governor may
make an interfund transfer to the general fund from
the:
(i)
Temporary disability fund created in § 28-39-4; and/or
(ii) Intermodal
surface transportation fund created in § 35-4-11.; and/or
(iii) Tobacco
settlement financing trust fund created in § 42-133-9.
(3) Once in each
fiscal quarter from each fund the governor may make an interfund
transfer. The
fund(s) from which money is transferred must be made whole by June 30th in
the
same fiscal year as the transfer is made. September 30th of the following fiscal year. A
subsequent
transfer from a fund shall not be made until at least six (6)
months after the fund has been made
whole from the previous transfer.
(4) The interfund transfer may be made notwithstanding the provisions
of §§ 28-37-3 and
28-39-4.
SECTION 3. Section 1 of this article shall take effect upon
passage. Section 2 of this
article shall take effect on April 10, 2009.