Chapter 011
2012 -- H 7594
Enacted 03/16/12
A N A C T
AUTHORIZING THE
TOWN OF LITTLE COMPTON TO FINANCE HEALTH, SAFETY AND FIRE CODE-RELATED EMERGENCY
REPAIRS, ALTERATIONS, RENOVATIONS, IMPROVEMENTS, LANDSCAPING AND EQUIPPING AND
FURNISHING OF THE WILBUR & MCMAHON SCHOOLS AND ALL ATTENDANT EXPENSES
INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, ENGINEERING AND ARCHITECTURAL COSTS AND TO ISSUE
NOT MORE THAN $11,310,000
BONDS AND/OR NOTES THEREFOR
Introduced By: Representative Daniel P. Gordon
Date Introduced: February 16, 2012
It is enacted by the
General Assembly as follows:
SECTION 1. The town of
previously granted, to issue bonds to an amount not exceeding
eleven million three hundred ten
thousand dollars ($11,310,000) from time to time under its
corporate name and 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. All such bonds of a particular issue may
be issued in the form of zero coupon
bonds, capital appreciation bonds, serial bonds or term
bonds or a combination thereof. Annual
installments of principal may be provided for by maturity of
principal in the case of serial bonds
or by mandatory serial redemption in the case of term
bonds. 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 town
treasurer and the president of the town council and shall be
issued and sold in such amounts as the
town council may authorize 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 proceedings of the town council authorizing the
issue or by separate resolution of the
town 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 town 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 town 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 town council
authorizing such issuance of by separate
resolution of the town 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 manual or facsimile signature of the town
treasurer. The proceeds derived from the sale
of the bonds shall be delivered to the town treasurer,
and such proceeds, exclusive of premium
and accrued interest, shall be expended: (a) To
finance health, safety and fire code-related
emergency repairs, alterations, renovations, improvements,
landscaping and equipping and
furnishing of, the Wilbur & McMahon schools and all
attendant expenses including, but not
limited to, engineering and architectural costs (all of which
shall be hereinafter referred to as the
“projects”);
(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) To finance capitalized
interest on the projects. 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 projects shall be carried
out and all contracts made
therefor on behalf of the town by the town council, or the town council may
delegate such
authority to the town school committee. The proceeds of bonds
or notes issued under this act, any
applicable federal or state assistance and the other moneys
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. The bond issue authorized by this act may be
consolidated for the purposes of issuance and
sale with any other bond issue of the town 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. The town treasurer and president of
the town council, on behalf of the town, are hereby
authorized to execute such instruments,
documents or other papers as either of them deem necessary or
desirable to carry out the intent of
this act and are also authorized to take all actions and
execute all instruments, documents or
agreements necessary to comply with federal tax and securities
laws, which instruments,
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 and to execute and
deliver a continuing disclosure agreement or certificate in
connection with the bonds or notes.
SECTION 3. The town council may by resolution authorize the
issuance from time to
time of interest bearing or discounted notes in
anticipation of the issuance of bonds 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 town treasurer.
Temporary notes issued
hereunder shall be signed by the manual or facsimile signatures of the
town treasurer and the president of the town council 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 issuance
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 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 town by the paying agent at
the direction of the town treasurer in any investment
permitted under section 5. The moneys in
the fund and any investments held as 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 town. The town 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 town’s authority to issue
bonds or notes in anticipation of
bonds under this act shall continue provided that: (1) The
town council passes a resolution
evidencing the town’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 4. Pending any authorization or issue of bonds hereunder
or pending or in lieu
of any authorization or issue of notes hereunder, the
town treasurer, with the approval of the town
council, may, to the extent that bonds or notes may be issued
hereunder, apply funds in the
treasury of the town 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 town
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 town.
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 shall, in the discretion
of the town 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 project costs, to the payment of
the principal of or interest on bonds
or notes issued hereunder 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 town treasurer, 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 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 town from property taxes. In exercising any
discretion under this section, the
town treasurer shall be governed by any instructions
adopted by resolution of the town council.
SECTION 7. All bonds and notes issued under this act and the
debts evidenced thereby
shall be obligatory on the town 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 town charter. No such obligation
shall at any time be included in the
debt of the town for the purpose of ascertaining its
borrowing capacity. The town 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 town shall be subject to ad valorem taxation
by the town without limitation as to
rate or amount.
SECTION 8. Any bonds or notes issued under the provisions of
this act, and coupons, if
any, if properly executed by officers of the town 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 town, acting by resolution of its town
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 the
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 costs under section 2.
SECTION 10. Bonds and notes may be issued under this act
without obtaining 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. All or any portion of the authorized but
unissued authority to issue bonds
and notes under this act may be extinguished by ordinance
of the town council, without further
action by the general assembly.
SECTION 12. The question of the approval of this act shall
be submitted to the electors
of the Town at a local election to be held on a date
that shall be designated by the town council.
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 TOWN OF
LITTLE
AND FIRE CODE-RELATED
EMERGENCY REPAIRS, ALTERATIONS, RENOVATIONS,
IMPROVEMENTS, LANDSCAPING
AND EQUIPPING AND FURNISHING OF, THE
BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
ENGINEERING AND ARCHITECTURAL COSTS AND TO ISSUE
NOT MORE THAN $11,310,000
BONDS AND/OR NOTES THEREFOR’ be approved?” and
the warning for the election shall contain the question
to be submitted. Notwithstanding anything
contained in Rhode
Board of Canvassers may
certify the question to the Secretary of State not later than thirty (30)
days prior to the date set for any special town election.
From the time the election is warned and
until it is held, it shall be the duty of the town clerk to
keep a copy of this act available 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 town
charter, this act shall prevail.
SECTION
13. Sections 12 and 13 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 section
12.
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LC01770
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