Chapter 236
2004 -- S 3155
Enacted 07/01/04
A N A C T
AUTHORIZING
THE CITY OF CENTRAL FALLS TO ISSUE BONDS AND NOTES IN AN
AMOUNT
NOT TO EXCEED $10,000,000 FOR FINANCING CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS
TO
VARIOUS CITY BUILDINGS INCLUDING SUCH IMPROVEMENTS AS ARE
NECESSARY
IN ORDER TO COMPLY WITH THE STATE MANDATED FIRE/BUILDING
CODE
REGULATIONS
Introduced
By: Senator Daniel J. Issa
Date
Introduced: June 01, 2004
It
is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
SECTION
1. The City of Central Falls is hereby empowered, in addition to authority
previously
granted, to issue bonds to an amount not exceeding ten million dollars
($10,000,000)
from
time to time under its corporate name and seal or a facsimile of such 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
sinking
fund redemption in the case of term bonds, in annual installments of principal,
the first
installment
to be not later than three years and the last installment not later than thirty
(30) years
after
the date of the bonds. All such bonds of a particular issue may be issued in
the form of zero
coupon
bonds, capital appreciation bonds, serial bonds or terms bonds or a combination
thereof.
The
amount of principal appreciation each year on any bonds, after the date of
original issuance,
shall
not be considered to be principal indebtedness for the purposes of any constitutional
or
statutory
debt limit or any other limitation. The appreciation of principal after the
date of original
issue
shall be considered interest. Only the original principal amount shall be
counted in
determining
the principal amount so issued and any interest component shall be disregarded.
SECTION
2. The bonds shall be signed by the manual or facsimile signatures of the
director
of finance and the mayor and shall be issued in such amounts as the city
council may
determine.
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. Interest coupons (if any) shall bear the facsimile
signature of the
director
of finance. 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 purpose of financing capital improvements to various city buildings
in order
to
comply with the recently revised state mandated building code regulations; (b)
in payment of
the
principal of or interest on temporary notes issued under section three; (c) in
repayment of
advances
under section four; (d) in payment of costs of issuance associated with the
issuance of
the
bonds or notes hereunder; and/or (e) in payment of capitalized interest during
construction of
the
project. 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. In addition to such funds, there may be
expended for the
purposes
of this act such other sums as may be appropriated therefor. The bond issue
authorized
by
this act may be consolidated for the purposes of issuance and sale with any
other bond issue of
the
city heretofore or hereafter authorized, provided that, notwithstanding any
such consolidation,
the
proceeds from the sale of the bonds authorized by this act shall be expended
for the purposes
set
forth above.
SECTION
3. The city council may by resolution authorize the issue from time to time of
interest
bearing or discounted notes in anticipation of the issue of bonds under section
two 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 manual or facsimile
signatures
of the
director of finance and by the mayor and shall be payable within five (5) years
from their
respective
dates, but the principal of 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 that 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. 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
of 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 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. 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 of the amount of bonds which may be issued under this
act, and
provided
further that if 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 director of finance in any investment
permitted under
section
five. 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
repayment 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.
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
city
council, may, to the extent that the bonds or notes may be issued hereunder,
apply funds in
the
general treasury of the city 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 saving deposits in banks which are
members of
the
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or its 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 net earnings
or profits
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 or
the cost of
additional
improvements coming within the description of the project in section two of
this act, to
the
payment of the principal of or interest on bonds or notes issued hereunder, to
the extent
permitted
by applicable federal laws added to and dealt with as part of the revenues of
the city
from
property taxes, or to any one (1) 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, including premiums but exclusive of accrued
interest, or from
other
moneys available therefor. Any balance of bond or note proceeds remaining after
the
payment
of the cost of the projects and the cost of additional improvements coming
within the
description
of the projects in section two of this act 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 instruction adopted by resolution of the city
council.
SECTION
7. All bonds and notes issued under this act and the debts evidence thereby
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.
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 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 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, and coupons, if
any,
on any bonds, if properly executed by 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 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 cost under section two of this act.
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
projects
financed
in whole or in part under this act, including where applicable the condemnation
of any
land
or interest in land in levying of assessments or other charges permitted by law
on account of
any
such projects, 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 director of finance 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
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. The question of the approval of this act shall be submitted to the electors
of
the city at the general election to be held on November 2, 2004. The question
shall be
submitted
in substantially the following form: "Shall an Act, passed at the 2004
session of the
General
Assembly entitled 'An Act Authorizing the City of Central Falls to issue Bonds
and
Notes
in an amount not to exceed $10,000,000 to finance capital improvements to
various city
buildings
including such improvements as are necessary in order to comply with the state
mandated
fire/building code regulations' be approved?" and the warrant for the
election shall
contain
the question to be submitted. The question to be submitted may be submitted to
the
electors
with, and/or placed on the same ballot with, any other bond or referenda
questions which
is
being submitted to the electors of the city for approval. 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 the
city
clerk's office for public inspection, but the validity of the election shall
not be affected by this
or
any other public posting requirement. The polling place or places shall be
designated by the
local
board (as defined in Section 17-1-2 of the general laws) and the local board
shall forthwith
after
the election notify the Secretary of State of the result of the vote upon the
question
submitted.
To the extent of any inconsistency between this act and the city charter, this
act shall
prevail.
SECTION
13. Sections 12 and 13 of this act shall take effect upon passage. The
remainder
of this act shall take effect upon the approval by the electors of the city of
the question
provided
for in Section 12.
=======
LC03544
=======