Title 42
State Affairs and Government

Chapter 64
Rhode Island Commerce Corporation

§ 42-64-3. Definitions.

As used in this chapter, the following words and terms shall have the following meanings, unless the context indicates another or different meaning or intent:

(1) “Administrative penalty” means a monetary penalty not to exceed the civil penalty specified in § 42-64-9.2.

(2) “Airport facility” means developments consisting of runways, hangars, control towers, ramps, wharves, bulkheads, buildings, structures, parking areas, improvements, facilities, or other real or personal property necessary, convenient, or desirable for the landing, taking off, accommodation, and servicing of aircraft of all types, operated by carriers engaged in the transportation of passengers or cargo, or for the loading, unloading, interchange, or transfer of the passengers or their baggage, or the cargo, or otherwise for the accommodation, use or convenience of the passengers or the carriers or their employees (including related facilities and accommodations at sites removed from landing fields and other landing areas), or for the landing, taking off, accommodation, and servicing of aircraft owned or operated by persons other than carriers. It also means facilities providing access to an airport facility, consisting of rail, rapid transit, or other forms of mass transportation which furnish a connection between the air terminal and other points within the state, including appropriate mass transportation terminal facilities at and within the air terminal itself and suitable offsite facilities for the accommodation of air passengers, baggage, mail, express, freight, and other users of the connecting facility.

(3) “BOCA code” means the BOCA basic building code published by building officials & code administrators international, inc., as the code may from time to time be promulgated by the building officials & code administrators international, inc.

(4) “Bonds” and “notes” means the bonds, notes, securities, or other obligations or evidences of indebtedness issued by the corporation pursuant to this chapter, all of which shall be issued under the name of and known as obligations of the “Rhode Island commerce corporation.”

(5) “Civic facility” means any real or personal property designed and intended for the purpose of providing facilities for educational, cultural, community, or other civic purposes.

(6) “Compliance schedule” means a schedule of remedial measures including an enforceable sequence of actions or operations leading to compliance with an effluent limitation or any other limitation, prohibition, or standard.

(7) “Corporation,” “port authority,” or “authority” means the governmental agency and public instrumentality, formerly known as the “Rhode Island port authority and economic development corporation” and/or also formerly known as the “Rhode Island economic development corporation,” and now known as the Rhode Island commerce corporation authorized, created, and established pursuant to § 42-64-4, or any subsidiary corporation thereof which is established pursuant to § 42-64-7.1.

(8) “Director” means the executive director of the economic development corporation until such time that the secretary of commerce is appointed. Upon the appointment of a secretary of commerce, “Director” means the chief executive officer of the Rhode Island commerce corporation, who shall also be the secretary of the Rhode Island executive office of commerce.

(9) “Federal land” means real property within the state, now acquired or hereafter acquired by the Rhode Island commerce corporation which was formerly owned by the United States government, or any agency or instrumentality thereof, including without limiting the generality of the foregoing, any and all real property now or formerly owned or used by the United States government in the towns of North Kingstown, Portsmouth, Middletown, and Charlestown and the city of Newport as military installations or for other purposes related to the national defense. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, federal land shall also mean and include certain land in the town of North Kingstown, or any portion thereof, which has or shall revert to the state pursuant to the provisions of Public Laws 1939, chapter 696 and is now or hereafter acquired by the corporation from the state.

(10) “Industrial facility” means any real or personal property, the demolition, removal, relocation, acquisition, expansion, modification, alteration, or improvement of existing buildings, structures, or facilities, the construction of new buildings, structures, or facilities, the replacement, acquisition, modification, or renovation of existing machinery and equipment, or the acquisition of new machinery and equipment, or any combination of the United States, which shall be suitable for manufacturing, research, production, processing, agriculture, and marine commerce, or warehousing; or convention centers, trade centers, exhibition centers, or offices (including offices for the government of the United States or any agency, department, board, bureau, corporation, or other instrumentality of the United States, or for the state or any state agency, or for any municipality); or facilities for other industrial, commercial, or business purposes of every type and description; and facilities appurtenant or incidental to the foregoing, including headquarters or office facilities, whether or not at the location of the remainder of the facility, warehouses, distribution centers, access roads, sidewalks, utilities, railway sidings, trucking, and similar facilities, parking areas, waterways, dockage, wharfage, and other improvements necessary or convenient for the construction, development, maintenance, and operation of those facilities.

(11) “Local governing body” means any town or city council, commission, or other elective governing body now or hereafter vested by state statute, charter, or other law, with jurisdiction to initiate and adopt local ordinances, whether or not these local ordinances require the approval of the elected or appointed chief executive officer or other official or body to become effective.

(12) “Local redevelopment corporation” means any agency or corporation created and existing pursuant to the provisions of chapter 31 of title 45.

(13) “Municipality” means any city or town within the state now existing or hereafter created, or any state agency.

(14) “Parent corporation” means, when used in connection with a subsidiary corporation established pursuant to § 42-64-7.1, the governmental agency and public instrumentality created and established pursuant to § 42-64-4.

(15) “Personal property” means all tangible personal property, new or used, including, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, all machinery, equipment, transportation equipment, ships, aircraft, railroad rolling stock, locomotives, pipelines, and all other things and rights usually included within that term. “Personal property” also means and includes any and all interests in the property which are less than full title, such as leasehold interests, security interests, and every other interest or right, legal or equitable.

(16) “Pollutant” means any material or effluent which may alter the chemical, physical, biological or radiological characteristics or integrity of water, including but not limited to, dredged spoil, solid waste, incinerator residue, sewage, garbage, sewage sludge, munitions, chemical wastes, biological materials, radioactive materials, heat, wrecked or discarded equipment, cellar dirt, or industrial, municipal, agricultural or other waste petroleum or petroleum products, including, but not limited to, oil.

(17) “Pollution” means the discharge of any gaseous, liquid, or solid substance or combination thereof (including noise) into the air, water, or land which affects the physical, chemical, or biological properties (including temperature) of the air, water, or land in a manner or to an extent which renders or is likely to render the air, water, or land harmful or inimical to the public health, safety, or welfare, or to animal, bird, or aquatic life, or to the use of the air or water for domestic, industrial, or agricultural purposes or recreation including the man-made or man-induced alteration of the chemical, physical, biological or radiological integrity of water.

(18) “Pollution control facility” means any land or interest in land, the demolition, removal, relocation, acquisition, expansion, modification, alteration, or improvement of existing buildings, structures, or facilities, the construction of new buildings, structures, or facilities, the replacement, modification, or renovation of existing machinery and equipment, or the acquisition of new machinery and equipment, or any combination thereof, having to do with or the purpose of which is the abatement, control, or prevention of pollution, including industrial pollution, and all real and personal property incidental to that facility.

(19) “Port facility” means harbors, ports, and all real and personal property used in connection therewith, including, but not limited to, waterways, channels, wharves, docks, yards, bulkheads, slips, basins, pipelines, ships, boats, railroads, trucks, and other motor vehicles, aircraft, parking areas, shipyards, piers, quays, elevators, compressors, loading and unloading facilities, storage facilities, and warehouses of every type, buildings and facilities used in the manufacturing, processing, assembling, storing, or handling of any produce or products, other structures and facilities necessary for the convenient use of the harbors and seaports, including dredged approaches, railways, railroad terminals, side tracks, airports, roads, highways, tunnels, viaducts, bridges, and other approaches, useful in connection therewith, and any other shipping or transportation facility useful in the operation of a port or harbor.

(20) “Project” or “port project” means the acquisition, ownership, operation, construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, improvement, development, sale, lease, or other disposition of, or the provision of financing for, any real or personal property (by whomever owned) or any interests in real or personal property, including without limiting the generality of the foregoing, any port facility, recreational facility, industrial facility, airport facility, pollution control facility, utility facility, solid waste disposal facility, civic facility, residential facility, water supply facility, energy facility or renewable energy facility, or any other facility, or any combination of two (2) or more of the foregoing, or any other activity undertaken by the corporation.

(21) “Project cost” means the sum total of all costs incurred by the Rhode Island commerce corporation in carrying out all works and undertakings, which the corporation deems reasonable and necessary for the development of a project. These shall include, but are not necessarily limited to, the costs of all necessary studies, surveys, plans, and specifications, architectural, engineering, or other special services, acquisition of land and any buildings on the land, site preparation and development, construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, improvement, and the acquisition of any machinery and equipment or other personal property as may be deemed necessary in connection with the project (other than raw materials, work in process, or stock in trade); the necessary expenses incurred in connection with the initial occupancy of the project; an allocable portion of the administrative and operating expenses of the corporation; the cost of financing the project, including interest on all bonds and notes issued by the corporation to finance the project from the date thereof to one year from the date when the corporation shall deem the project substantially occupied; and the cost of those other items, including any indemnity or surety bonds and premiums on insurance, legal fees, real estate brokers and agent fees, fees and expenses of trustees, depositories, and paying agent for bonds and notes issued by the Rhode Island commerce corporation, including reimbursement to any project user for any expenditures as may be allowed by the corporation (as would be costs of the project under this section had they been made directly by the corporation), and relocation costs, all as the corporation shall deem necessary.

(22) “Project user” means the person, company, corporation, partnership, or commercial entity, municipality, state, or United States of America who shall be the user of, or beneficiary of, a port project.

(23) “Real property” means lands, structures (new or used), franchises, and interests in land, including lands under water, and riparian rights, space rights, and air rights, and all other things and rights usually included within the term. “Real property” shall also mean and include any and all interests in that property less than fee simple, such as easements, incorporeal hereditaments, and every estate, interest or right, legal or equitable, including terms for years and liens thereon by way of judgments, mortgages or otherwise, and also all claims for damages to that real property.

(24) “Recreational facility” means any building, development, or improvement, provided that building, facility, development, or improvement is designed in whole or in part to attract tourists to the state or to provide essential overnight accommodations to transients visiting this state, including, without limiting in any way the generality of the foregoing, marinas, beaches, bathing facilities, ski facilities, convention facilities, hotels, motels, golf courses, camp grounds, arenas, theatres, lodges, guest cottages, and all types of real or personal property related thereto as may be determined from time to time by the corporation.

(25) “Renewable energy facility” means any real or personal property, or any combination thereof, related to, or incidental to, any project, designed, intended, or utilized for an eligible renewable energy resource that meets the criteria set forth in §§ 39-26-5(a) and 39-26-5(c).

(26) “Revenues” means: (i) with respect to any project, the rents, fees, tolls, charges, installment payments, repayments, and other income or profit derived from a project or a combination of projects pursuant to any lease, conditional sales contract, installment sales contract, loan agreement, or other contract or agreement, or any combination thereof, and (ii) any receipts, fees, payments, moneys, revenues, or other payments received or to be received by the corporation in the exercise of its corporate powers under this chapter, including, without limitation, loan repayments, grants, aid, appropriations and other assistance for the state, the United States or any corporation, department or instrumentality of either or of a political subdivision thereof, bond proceeds, investment earnings, insurance proceeds, amounts in reserves and other funds and accounts established by or pursuant to this chapter or in connection with the issuance of bonds, and any other taxes, assessments, fees, charges, awards or other income or amounts received or receivable by the corporation.

(27) “Rule or regulation” means any directive promulgated by the Rhode Island commerce corporation not inconsistent with the laws of the United States or the state, for the improvement of navigation and commerce or other project purposes and shall include, but not be limited to, charges, tolls, rates, rentals, and security provisions fixed or established by the corporation.

(28) “Sewage” shall be construed to mean the same as “pollutant” as defined in subsection (16) above.

(29) “Sewage treatment facility” means the sewage treatment plant, structure, combined sewer overflows, equipment, interceptors, mains, pumping stations and other property, real, personal or mixed, for the treatment, storage, collection, transporting or disposal of sewage, or any property or system to be used in whole or in part for any of the aforesaid purposes located or operated within the boundaries of the Quonset Point/Davisville Industrial Park, or utilized by the corporation for the transport, collection, treatment, storage, or disposal of waste.

(30) “Solid waste” means garbage, refuse, and other discarded materials, including, but not limited to, solid waste materials resulting from industrial, recreational, utility, and commercial enterprises, hotels, apartments, or any other public building or private building, or agricultural, or residential activities.

(31) “Solid waste disposal facility” means any real or personal property, related to or incidental to any project, which is designed or intended or designated for the purpose of treating, compacting, composting, or disposing of solid waste materials, including treatment, compacting, composting, or disposal plants, site and equipment furnishings thereof, and their appurtenances.

(32) “Source” means any building, structure, facility, or installation from which there is or may be the discharge of sewage.

(33) “State” means the state of Rhode Island.

(34) “State agency” means any office, department, board, commission, bureau, division, authority, or public corporation, agency, or instrumentality of the state.

(35) “State guide plan” means the plan adopted pursuant to § 42-11-10, which establishes the statewide planning program.

(36) “Utility facility” means any real or personal property designed, intended or utilized for generating, manufacturing, producing, storing, transmitting, distributing, delivering, or furnishing natural or manufactured gas, steam, electrical, or nuclear energy, heat, light, or power directly or indirectly to or for any project, project user, or for the public, the collection and disposal of storm and sanitary sewage; any railroads necessary or desirable for the free flow of commerce to and from projects; any roads, highways, bridges, tunnels, viaducts, or other crossings necessary or desirable for the free flow of commerce to and from projects, and any public transportation systems or facilities, including, but not limited to, bus, truck, ferry, and railroad terminals, depots, tracked vehicles, and other rolling stock and ferries; and any appurtenances, equipment, and machinery or other personal property necessary or desirable for the utilization thereof.

(37) “Water supply facility” means any real or personal property, or any combination thereof, related to or incidental to any project, designed, intended, or utilized for the furnishing of water for domestic, industrial, irrigation, or other purposes and including artesian wells, reservoirs, dams, related equipment, and pipelines, and other facilities.