N.Y. Local Finance Law § 104.10: Additional limitations on the power to contract indebtedness

§ 104.10 Additional limitations on the power to contract indebtedness.

In addition to the other limitations of this chapter on the power to

contract indebtedness:

1. Any municipality, school district or district corporation shall be

subject to the limitations contained in any law requiring such

municipality, school district or district corporation to adopt, whether

or not as a part of an annual budget, a budget of the capital projects

which it may undertake, continue, complete or acquire during the twelve

months' period for which such budget is adopted.

2. Any county operating under an alternative form of government which

provides for the establishment of a county debt commission may establish

such a commission for the regulation, pursuant to such law, of the

contracting of indebtedness by such county and the units of government

within such county.

3. Any town which

(a) Is wholly or partly within the Adirondack park, and

(b) Has within its boundaries state lands subject to taxation assessed

at more than thirty per centum of the total taxable assessed valuation

of such town as determined from the assessment rolls of the town, as

completed from time to time, shall not issue its bonds, bond

anticipation notes, capital notes or budget notes if by doing so the

amount of its outstanding indebtedness evidenced by bonds, bond

anticipation notes, capital notes, budget notes and certificates of

indebtedness, plus the amount of the indebtedness proposed to be

incurred, shall exceed five percent of such town's revenues for the last

year the state comptroller has such data or one hundred thousand dollars

whichever is the lesser; provided, however, such obligations may be

issued originally by any such town upon the duly verified petition of

the owners of at least sixty-five per centum of the taxable real

property therein, as such real property appears on the last preceding

completed assessment-roll of such town, or upon the certificate of the

state comptroller consenting, on behalf of the state, to the original

issuance of such obligations. For the purposes of any such petition, the

state comptroller may act on behalf of the state. The state comptroller

shall annually calculate the dollar amount equal to five percent of such

town's total revenue for the last year the comptroller has such data on

file. Such bonds shall be refunded only pursuant to the provisions of

section 90.00 or 90.10 of this chapter. Such bond anticipation notes,

capital notes and budget notes may be renewed as provided in sections

23.00, 28.00 and 29.00 of this chapter, respectively. The consent of the

state comptroller shall not be required under this subdivision in any

such town in connection with the issuance of obligations for the

purposes of an improvement district if they are issued in accordance

with the statement of the proposed manner of financing an improvement as

set forth in an application to the state comptroller made pursuant to

section one hundred ninety-four of the town law and in compliance with

the terms or conditions, if any, of the order of the state comptroller

made pursuant to such section. Likewise, such consent shall not be

required under this subdivision in connection with the issuance of

obligations for the purpose of financing an expenditure in a town

improvement district where the expenditure has been approved by the

state comptroller.

4. Any town which, without first obtaining the permission of the state

comptroller, shall have established or extended an improvement district

prior to September first, nineteen hundred forty-five, or which shall

establish or extend any such district after August thirty-first,

nineteen hundred forty-five, shall not issue its bonds, bond

anticipation notes or capital notes for the purposes of any such

district or extension, except for improvements undertaken pursuant to

sections one hundred ninety-nine, two hundred two-b of the town law, and

section 222.5 of the Nassau county civil divisions act, and except when

the cost of the district or extension to the typical property or, if

different, the cost to the typical one or two family home is not above

the average cost threshold as may be annually computed by the state

comptroller pursuant to section one hundred ninety-four or two hundred

nine-f of the town law, unless it secure the permission of the state

comptroller, granted upon a written application signed and verified by

the supervisor or such other officer of the town as the town board shall

determine. Any such application shall include:

(a) A certified copy of the petition for the creation of the district

(omitting, however, the signatures and acknowledgements or proofs);

(b) An itemized statement of the then outstanding indebtedness of the

town for all purposes as evidenced by bonds, bond anticipation notes,

capital notes and budget notes; the amount of joint indebtedness

contracted or incurred for a joint service or a joint water, sewage or

drainage project and the amount of such indebtedness allocated and

apportioned to the town, as defined in title one-a of the local finance

law; the amount of the indebtedness proposed to be contracted for the

improvement; the amount of budgetary appropriations for the payment of

any such indebtedness, whether or not such appropriations have been

realized as cash, and the amounts, purposes and probable dates of

issuance of any bonds, bond anticipation notes, capital notes and budget

notes which the town has authorized to be issued but which in fact have

not been issued on the date of such application;

(c) A statement of the aggregate assessed valuation of the real

property in the district, as such assessed valuations are shown on the

last completed assessment roll of the town prior to the date of such

application; and

(d) A statement of the average full valuation of the taxable real

property of the town. Such average full valuation shall be determined by

taking the assessed valuation of the taxable real property of the town

as it appears on the assessment roll of the town which was last

completed prior to the date of the application, and such valuations as

they appear on each of the four preceding rolls; dividing the amount for

each such roll by the equalization rate established for it for the

assessment of special franchises by the state officer or agency

authorized to establish such rates; adding the quotients thus obtained,

and dividing the sum thereof by five; and

(e) A certified copy of the resolution authorizing the issuance of the

obligations in connection with which the application is made.

The state comptroller in his discretion may require the submission of

additional information in such form and detail as he shall deem

sufficient, or may cause an investigation to be made, to aid him in

making the determinations herein required. Any such application may be

amended prior to any final determination. If the state comptroller shall

determine (1) that the issuance of the obligations will not cause an

undue burden upon the property of the district, and (2) that amount of

the indebtedness of the town for all purposes as evidenced by bonds,

bond anticipation notes, capital notes and budget notes, plus the amount

of the indebtedness proposed to be incurred for the improvement

district, less the amount of budgetary appropriations for the payment of

any such indebtedness, whether or not such appropriations have been

realized as cash, as of the date of the application filed with the state

comptroller, will not exceed fifteen per centum of the average full

valuation of the taxable real property of the town he shall grant such

application; otherwise, it shall be denied. Such average full valuation

shall be determined in the manner provided in this subdivision. If any

such application shall be granted by the state comptroller, it shall not

be necessary to apply to the state comptroller under the provisions of

subdivision three of this section for his consent to the issuance of the

obligations described in the application made pursuant to this

subdivision. There shall be excluded from the amount of indebtedness to

be considered by the state comptroller in making such determination any

indebtedness allocated or apportioned or proposed by all the

participating municipal corporations to be allocated or apportioned to

any municipal corporation other than such town in accordance with the

provisions of section 15.10 of the local finance law.

5. Any town, in any county now or hereafter operating under an

optional form of government, shall not let any contract or incur any

indebtedness whatsoever for any capital improvement for any improvement

district therein for which such town intends to issue obligations unless

it shall have first secured the consent of the finance board of such

county to the issuance of such obligations. Whenever any such town

intends to issue obligations for such a purpose, it shall present a

petition to the finance board of such county, setting forth the

improvement proposed and the amounts and type or types of obligations to

be issued and requesting the approval of such county for the issuance of

the obligations. The finance board of such county within sixty days

after the presentation of such petition, by resolution, shall either

approve or disapprove of the issuance of such obligations and shall

forward a certified copy of such resolution to the town board of such

town.

6. Any fire district which is situated in whole or in part in a town

which is wholly or partly within the Adirondack park and has within the

town boundaries state lands subject to taxation assessed at more than

thirty per centum of the total taxable assessed valuation of the town as

determined from the assessment rolls of the town, as completed from time

to time, shall not issue its bonds, bond anticipation notes, capital

notes or budget notes if by doing so the amount of outstanding

indebtedness evidenced by bonds, bond anticipation notes, budget notes

and certificates of indebtedness, plus the amount of the indebtedness

proposed to be incurred shall exceed five percent of such district's

revenues for the last year the comptroller has such data or one hundred

thousand dollars whichever is the lesser unless the state comptroller,

on behalf of the state, shall consent thereto.

7. The total amount of bonds or capital notes which may be authorized

in any fiscal year of the municipal corporation, school district or

district corporation to finance advance planning pursuant to section

ninety-nine-d of the general municipal law shall not exceed the maximum

amount of budget notes which it may issue in such year pursuant to

subdivision two or three of paragraph a of section 29.00 of this

chapter, as the case may be, provided, however, that for the purposes of

this subdivision, amounts which are to be paid in the first instance

from improvement district assessments shall be included in computing

"the amount of the annual budget" of a town or a county in accordance

with section 29.00 of this chapter.