Chapter 428
2012 -- S 3013
Enacted 06/25/12
A N A C T
AUTHORIZING THE
CITY OF PAWTUCKET TO PROVIDE FOR HEALTH, SAFETY AND FIRE CODE-RELATED EMERGENCY
REPAIRS, RENOVATIONS AND EQUIPPING OF PUBLIC SCHOOL BUILDINGS IN THE CITY OF
PAWTUCKET AND AUTHORIZING THE FINANCING, THEREOF, INCLUDING THE ISSUE OF NOT
MORE THAN $5,000,000 BONDS, NOTES AND OTHER EVIDENCES OF INDEBTEDNESS THEREFOR,
INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, ANY BONDS OR NOTES ISSUED PURSUANT TO FINANCING
AGREEMENTS WITH THE RHODE ISLAND HEALTH AND EDUCATIONAL BUILDING CORPORATION,
TO FUND THE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM FOR THE TWO FISCAL YEARS 2013 AND 2014
Introduced By: Senators Doyle, and Nesselbush
Date Introduced: May 24, 2012
It is enacted by the
General Assembly as follows:
SECTION 1. The city of
previously granted, to issue bonds and other evidences of
indebtedness (hereinafter “bonds”) up
to an amount not exceeding five million dollars
($5,000,000) from time to time under its
corporate name and seal or a facsimile of such. 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 sinking
fund installments in the case of term
bonds, in annual installments of principal, the first
installment to be not later than three (3) years
and the last installment not later than thirty (30) years
after the date of the bonds.
SECTION 2. The bonds shall be signed by the city treasurer
and by the manual or
facsimile signature of the mayor and be issued and sold in such
amounts as the city council may
determine by resolution. 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 city council authorizing the issue or by
separate resolution of the city 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. Notwithstanding anything
contained in this act to the
contrary, the city may enter into financing agreements with
the Rhode Island Health and
Educational Building
Corporation pursuant to title 16, chapter 7 and title 45, chapter 38.1 of the
general laws and, with respect to notes or bonds issued in
connection with such financing
agreements, if any, the city may elect to have the provisions of
title 45, chapter 38.1 of the
general laws apply to the issuance of the bonds or notes
issued hereunder to the extent the
provisions of title 45, chapter 38.1 of the general laws are
inconsistent herewith. Such election
may be fixed by the proceedings of the city council
authorizing such issuance or by separate
resolution of the city 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 city
treasurer, and such proceeds exclusive of premiums
and accrued interest shall be expended: (a) For health,
safety and fire code-related emergency
repairs, renovations and equipping of public school buildings
in the city of
“project”);
(b) In payment of the principal of or interest on temporary notes issued under
section
3; (c) In repayment of
advances under section 4; (d) In payment of related
costs of issuance of
any bonds or notes and/or (e) In payment of capitalized
interest during construction of the project.
There being no local
election planned for the calendar year 2013 in the city of
amounts authorized by this act to finance the project are
intended to fund appropriations for two
fiscal years. The city, however, is not required to issue
the bonds and notes authorized by this act
during the fiscal years ending June 30, 2013 or June 30,
2014, but may issue them at any time, or
from time to time. 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
monies referred to in sections 6 and 9 shall be deemed
appropriated for the purposes of this act
without further action than that required by this act.
SECTION 3. The city council may by resolution authorize the
issuance from time to time
of interest bearing or discounted notes in anticipation
of the issue of bonds under section 2 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 city treasurer.
Temporary notes issued
hereunder shall be signed by the manual or facsimile signatures of the
city treasurer and the mayor and shall be payable within
five (5) 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 (5) years. Any temporary notes
in anticipation of bonds issued under
this section may be refunded prior to the maturity of the
notes by the issuance of additional
temporary notes, provided that no such refunding shall result
in any amount of such temporary
notes outstanding at any one time in excess of two hundred
percent (200%) of the amount of
bonds which may be issued under this act, and provided
further that if the issuance of any such
refunding notes results in any amount of such temporary notes
outstanding at any one time in
excess of the amount of bonds which may be issued under this
act, the proceeds of such refunding
notes shall be deposited in a separate fund established
with the bank which is paying agent for the
notes being refunded. Pending their use to pay the notes
being refunded, moneys in the fund shall
be invested for the benefit of the city by the paying
agent at the direction of the city treasurer in
any investment permitted under section 5. The moneys in
the fund and any investments held as a
part of the fund shall be held in trust and shall be
applied by the paying agent solely to the
payment or prepayment of the principal of and interest on the
notes being refunded. Upon
payment of all principal of and interest on the notes, any
excess moneys in the fund shall be
distributed to the city. The city may pay the principal of and
interest on notes in full from other
than the issuance of refunding notes prior to the issuance
of bonds pursuant to section 1 hereof. In
such case, the city's authority to issue bonds or notes in
anticipation of bonds under this act shall
continue provided that 1) the city council passes a resolution
evidencing the city's intent to pay
off the notes without extinguishing the authority to
issue bonds or notes and 2) that the period
from the date of an original note to the maturity date of
any other note shall not exceed five (5)
years. Section 5-106 of the city charter shall not apply to
the issue of notes in anticipation of
bonds.
SECTION 4. Pending any authorization or issue of bonds
hereunder or pending or in lieu
of any authorization or issue of notes hereunder, the
city treasurer, with the approval of the city
council may, to the extent that bonds or notes may be issued
hereunder, apply funds in the general
treasury of the city to the purposes specified in section 2,
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 city
treasurer, 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
applicable law of the state of
investment policy of the city.
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, to the extent
permitted by applicable federal laws, any net
earnings or profits realized from the deposit or investment of
funds hereunder shall, in the
discretion of the city treasurer, 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 project,
to the payment of the principal of or interest on bonds
or notes issued hereunder, to the revenues
of the city and dealt with as part of the revenues of
the city from property taxes to the extent
permitted by federal law, 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 city treasurer, be met
from bond or note proceeds exclusive of premium and
accrued interest or from other monies
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. To the
extent permitted by applicable federal laws, any earnings or
net profit realized from the deposit or
investment of funds hereunder may, upon receipt, be added to and
dealt with as part of the
revenues of the city from property taxes. In exercising any
discretion under this section, the city
treasurer shall be governed by any instructions adopted by
resolution of the city council. Any
balance of bond or note proceeds remaining after completion
of the project shall be subject to
section 5-109 of the city charter.
SECTION 7. All bonds and notes issued under this act and the
debt evidenced hereby
shall be obligatory on the city 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
and any provision of the city charter. No such obligation
shall at any time be included in the debt
of the city for the purpose of ascertaining its
borrowing capacity. The city 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 monies 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 city shall be subject to ad valorem taxation
by the city without limitation as to rate
or amount.
SECTION 8. Any bonds or notes issued under the provisions of
this act, if properly
executed by the officers of the city 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 city, acting by resolution of its city
council is authorized to apply for,
contract for and expend any federal or state advances or other
grants of assistance which may be
available for the purposes of this act, and any such
expenditures may be in addition to other
monies 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 a cost of the project under section 2.
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. Without limiting the generality of
the foregoing, the validity of bonds
and notes issued hereunder shall in no way be affected by
sections 2-308 and 4-1602 of the city
charter, and the purposes of this act shall be deemed to
constitute a single project under article V
of the city charter.
SECTION 11. The city treasurer and the mayor, on behalf of
the city are hereby
authorized to execute such instruments, documents or other
papers as either of the foregoing
deem necessary or desirable to carry out the intent of
this act and are also authorized to take all
actions and execute all documents necessary to comply with
federal tax and securities laws,
which documents or agreements may have a term coextensive
with the maturity of the bonds
authorized hereby, including Rule 15c2-12 of the Securities
and Exchange Commission (the
Rule) and to execute and
deliver a continuing disclosure agreement or certificate in connection
with the bonds or notes in the form as shall be deemed advisable
by such officers in order to
comply with the Rule.
SECTION 12. All or any portion of the authorized but
unissued authority to issue bonds
and notes under this act may be extinguished by
resolution of the city council, without further
action by the general assembly, seven (7) years after the
effective date of this act.
SECTION 13. The question of the approval of this act shall
be submitted to the electors
of the city at the next general election but if a
special city-wide election or special state election,
in either case other than a primary, is called for a
date earlier than the date of such general
election, the mayor may direct that the question of the
approval of this act be submitted at such
special election. The question shall be submitted in
substantially the following form: "Shall an act
passed at the 2012 session of the general assembly entitled
'An act authorizing the city of
equipping of public school buildings in the city of
thereof, including the issue of not more than $5,000,000
bonds, notes and other evidences of
indebtedness therefor, including but not
limited to any bonds or notes issued pursuant to
financing agreements with the Rhode Island Health and
Educational Building Corporation, to
fund the Capital Improvement Program for the two fiscal
years 2013 and 2014’ 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 city clerk to keep a copy of the act
available at his or her office for public inspection, but the
validity of the election shall not be
affected by this requirement. To the extent of any
inconsistency between this act and the city
charter or any law of special applicability to the city,
this act shall prevail.
SECTION 14. This act shall constitute an enabling act of the
general assembly that is
required pursuant to section 16-7-44 of chapter 7 of title 16
of the general laws.
SECTION 15. This section and sections 13 and 14 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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LC02685
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