Chapter 608
2006 -- S 3173
Enacted 07/14/06
A N A C T
AUTHORIZING
THE CITY OF EAST PROVIDENCE TO FINANCE THE REPAIRS, RENOVATIONS, AND
IMPROVEMENTS TO CITY ROADS AND DRAINAGE SYSTEMS AND TO ISSUE NOT MORE THAN
$5,000,000 BONDS AND NOTES THEREFOR
Introduced
By: Senators DaPonte, and Damiani
Date
Introduced: June 15, 2006
It is enacted by the General Assembly as
follows:
SECTION 1. The
city of East Providence is hereby empowered, in addition to authority
previously granted, to issue bonds to an amount
not exceeding five million dollars ($5,000,000)
from time to time under this 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 serial
redemption in the case of term bonds, in annual
installments of principal, the first installment to
be not later than five (5) 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 manual or facsimile signature of the city
director of finance and by the manual or facsimile
signature of the mayor and shall be issued and
sold at not less than par and accrued interest
in such amounts as the city council may authorize by
a bond ordinance or ordinances. Sections
4-27(2)(D) and (E) and 4-28 through 4-32 of the city
charter shall not apply to such ordinance or
ordinances or to bonds or notes issued hereunder and
it shall not be necessary to include the form of
notice as set forth in section 4-27(4) of the city
charter when such ordinance or ordinances are
published as required therein. The bonds shall be
sold at public sale as required by Section 4-33
of the city charter, except that the publication of
notices required in such section may be omitted.
The manner of
sale, denominations, maturities, interest rates and other terms, conditions
and details including issuance in Book Entry
Only format 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. The proceeds derived from the
sale of the bonds shall be delivered to the
director of finance, and such proceeds, excusive of
premium and accrued interest, shall be expended
(a) for the repair, renovation and improvements
to city roads and drainage systems, 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 sate
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. 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 director of finance and by 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.
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 bonds or
notes may be issued hereunder, apply funds in the
treasury of the city to the purposes specified
in section two, such advances to be repaid without
interest from the proceeds of the 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 premium 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 payment of the cost of
the project, to the payment of the principal of
or interest on bonds or notes issued hereunder or
shall be added to and dealt with as part of the
revenues of the city from property taxes to the
extent permitted by applicable federal law. 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 premium and accrued
interest or from other moneys available therefor. Any
balance of bond or note proceeds remaining after
payment of the cost of the project, 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 city council. The director of finance is
authorized to take any action deemed by him or her
necessary to assure that interest on the bonds
or notes issued hereunder remains excludable from
gross income of the holders thereof for federal
income tax purposes including, without limitation,
paying to the federal government any rebate of
earning derived from the deposit or investment of
the proceeds of such bonds or notes that may be
required therefor.
SECTION 7. All
bonds and notes issued under this act and the debts evidenced 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, 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 a 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 expenditure may be in addition to other
moneys provided in this act. To the extent of
any inconstancy between any law of this state and
any applicable federal law or regulation, the
latter shall prevail. Federal and state advances, with
the 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 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. For
the purposes of this act, the city may acquire land or other real
property, or any interest, estate or right
therein, by eminent domain in the manner prescribed by
chapter 1 of title 24 of the general laws as it
may be amended form time to time, provided that no
property or interest, estate or right therein
belonging to the state or any political subdivision shall
be acquired without its consent and that no
property or interest, estate or right therein belonging
to or used by a public utility shall be acquired
without the consent of the division of public
utilities and carriers. Any damages which may be
agreed upon or determined under this act,
including any interest and other applicable
charges, shall constitute a general obligation of the
city, but such obligation shall not at any time
be included in the debt of the city for the purposes
of ascertaining its borrowing capacity.
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 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 CITY OF EAST PROVIDENCE TO
FINANCE THE REPAIRS, RENOVATIONS, AND
IMPROVEMENTS TO CITY ROADS
AND DRAINAGE SYSTEMS INCLUDING THE ISSUE OF NOT
MORE THAN $5,000,000
BONDS AND NOTES 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 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.
SECTION 13. 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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LC03342
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