N.Y. Local Finance Law § 26.00: Temporary alternative methods of financing snow and ice removal expenses

§ 26.00 Temporary alternative methods of financing snow and ice

removal expenses. a. Definitions. 1. With respect to any municipality

which has a calendar fiscal year which commenced on the first day of

January, two thousand two, the terms "extraordinary expenses for snow

and ice removal" and "such extraordinary expenses", as used in this

section, shall mean the expenses incurred for the removal of snow and

ice from the public thoroughfares and public places of such municipality

during any month in such year up to and including June two thousand

three, in excess of the normal expenses which would have been incurred

for such purposes during such period, as determined by the finance board

of such municipality. In making any such determination, the finance

board shall not include as a part of such extraordinary expenses the

salaries and wages of regular employees, except for overtime work and

work on Sundays and holidays.

2. With respect to any municipality which has a fiscal year which

commenced in the year two thousand two on or after the first day of

March in such year, the terms "extraordinary expenses for snow and ice

removal" and "such extraordinary expenses", as used in this section,

shall mean the expenses incurred for the removal of snow and ice from

the public thoroughfares and public places of such municipality during

such fiscal year, in excess of the amounts appropriated for such

purposes in the annual budget for such fiscal year, or, if no such

appropriations were made, then in excess of the average of all

expenditures for such purposes during each of the five preceding fiscal

years, as determined by the finance board of such municipality.

b. The financing of snow and ice removal expenses by the issuance of

serial bonds. 1. The finance board of a municipality which has a fiscal

year which commenced on the first day of January, two thousand two, may

authorize the issuance of serial bonds in the two thousand three fiscal

year to provide for the payment of all or part of the extraordinary

expenses of snow and ice removal incurred during any month in the year

two thousand two up to and including June two thousand three, to

reimburse any fund or account of the municipality from which monies to

pay such extraordinary expenses have been advanced or to replenish any

fund or account of the municipality from which such extraordinary

expenses have been paid, or any combination of such purposes,

notwithstanding that there may have been lack of statutory authority for

any such advance or payment from such fund or account. The period of

probable usefulness of such objects or purposes shall be five years. Any

such serial bonds shall have a maximum maturity of over two years, but

the date of final maturity of any such issue shall not extend beyond the

first day of March in the year two thousand eight as to counties and

towns and shall not extend beyond the thirty-first day of December, two

thousand eight, as to other municipalities.

2. The finance board of a municipality which has a fiscal year which

commenced in the year two thousand two on or after the first day of

March in such year may authorize the issuance of serial bonds in such

fiscal year, or in its next succeeding fiscal year, to provide for the

payment of all or part of the extraordinary expenses of snow and ice

removal incurred in such fiscal year, to reimburse any fund or account

of the municipality from which monies to pay such extraordinary expenses

have been advanced or to replenish any fund or account of the

municipality from which such extraordinary expenses have been paid, or

any combination of such purposes, notwithstanding that there may have

been lack of statutory authority for any such advance or payment from

such fund or account. The period of probable usefulness of such objects

or purposes shall be five years. Any such serial bonds shall have a

maximum maturity of over two years, but the date of final maturity of

any such issue shall not extend beyond the thirty-first day of December,

two thousand seven.

3. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of subdivisions one and

two of this paragraph, serial bonds may not be authorized to be issued

for the purpose of financing any portion of such extraordinary expenses

described in such subdivisions which heretofore have been or hereafter

shall be financed by the issuance of budget notes or for the purpose of

redeeming any such notes.

4. Except as provided in this section, such serial bonds and any bond

anticipation notes in anticipation thereof, shall be authorized, sold

and issued in the manner provided by this chapter. Any bond anticipation

notes issued in anticipation of such bonds shall, for the purpose of

determining the power of the issuer to contract indebtedness and to

raise taxes upon real estate, be deemed to be serial bonds of an issue

having a maximum maturity of more than two years as described in

subdivision A of section five and in section ten of article eight of the

state constitution and for the purposes of (1) paragraph one-a of

section 136.00 of this chapter, (2) section two hundred thirty-three of

the county law, (3) any general or special law applicable to counties,

cities and villages which relates to the raising of taxes on real estate

to provide for the payment of the interest on and the principal of

indebtedness, and (4) all laws relating to the financial reports, debt

statements and real estate tax margin computations of such

municipalities. The chief fiscal officer of any municipality issuing or

renewing such bond anticipation notes shall immediately after the

issuance or renewal thereof notify the state comptroller of such

issuance or renewal. The state comptroller may prescribe the form of any

such notice and shall furnish such forms to municipalities for the

purpose of making any such report.

5. Capital notes may not be issued to finance any object or purpose

for which serial bonds are authorized to be issued pursuant to this

paragraph. The provisions of this paragraph shall not affect the power

of any municipality described in paragraph a of this section to finance

all or part of any such extraordinary expenses pursuant to the

provisions of section 29.00 of this title and paragraph c of this

section.

6. Section 104.10 of this chapter shall not be applicable in relation

to, or as the result of, the adoption of a bond resolution authorizing

the issuance of serial bonds pursuant to this paragraph. The provisions

of section 10.00, paragraph a of section 21.00 and any other section of

this chapter, or the provisions of any general, special or local law,

which would restrict, limit or prohibit the issuance of such bonds

(except those enacted to conform with the state constitution) are, to

the extent that this section is utilized by a municipality, suspended

and made ineffective in so far as necessary to effectuate the purposes

of this section; provided, however, that this paragraph shall not apply

to a city having a population of over one million inhabitants, if the

legislature at the request of such city enacts a law at the one hundred

eighty-fourth annual session of the legislature amending the

administrative code of such city in relation to facilitating payment of

certain unusual snow and ice removal expenses of the city incurred in

its current fiscal year nineteen hundred sixty--nineteen hundred

sixty-one.

c. The financing of snow and ice removal expenses by the issuance of

budget notes. 1. If any municipality described in paragraph a of this

section has heretofore issued budget notes pursuant to the provisions of

subdivision two of paragraph a of section 29.00 of this title to provide

for the payment of extraordinary expenses of snow and ice removal, as

defined in this section, the finance board, by resolution, may determine

that such notes shall be deemed to have been issued pursuant to the

provisions of subdivision one of paragraph a of such section and that

such notes so issued shall not thereafter be considered in determining

the power of such municipality to issue budget notes pursuant to such

subdivision two.

2. If any municipality described in paragraph a of this section has

heretofore issued budget notes pursuant to the provisions of subdivision

one or two of paragraph a, or paragraph b, of section 29.00 of this

title, to provide for the payment of extraordinary expenses of snow and

ice removal, as defined in this section, the finance board may determine

that the provisions of paragraph j of such section shall not be

applicable in relation to the maturity of such notes and (a) that such

notes shall mature in equal annual installments in two different fiscal

years, but the final maturity of such notes shall not extend beyond the

close of the second fiscal year immediately succeeding the year of their

issue, or (b) if the fiscal procedures applicable to such municipality

will enable the necessary budgetary appropriations for debt service to

be made and such appropriations to become available, that such notes

shall mature in three equal annual installments in three different

fiscal years, but the final maturity of any such notes shall not exceed

three years in accordance with the provisions of paragraph a of section

11.00 of this chapter which prescribes a period of probable usefulness

of three years for objects or purposes financed by the issuance of

budget notes. Such budget notes which mature in three equal annual

installments, as aforesaid, shall, for the purpose of determining the

power of the issuer to contract indebtedness and to raise taxes on real

estate, be deemed to be serial bonds of an issue having a maximum

maturity of more than two years as described in subdivision A of section

five and in section ten of article eight of the state constitution and

for the purposes of (1) paragraph one-a of section 136.00 of this

chapter, (2) section two hundred thirty-three of the county law, (3) any

general or special law applicable to counties, cities and villages which

relates to the raising of taxes on real estate to provide for the

payment of the interest on and the principal of indebtedness, and (4)

all laws relating to financial reports, debt statements and real estate

tax margin computations of such municipalities. If the finance board

determines that such budget notes shall mature in three equal annual

installments, as aforesaid, the chief fiscal officer of such

municipality immediately after the adoption of the resolution making

such determination shall file a copy of the resolution with the state

comptroller and shall immediately after the issuance or renewal of such

notes notify the state comptroller of such issuance or renewal. The

state comptroller may prescribe the form of any such notice and shall

furnish such forms to municipalities for the purpose of making any such

report.

3. Notwithstanding any of the provisions of section 29.00 of this

title, the finance board of a municipality described in paragraph a of

this section may authorize the issuance of budget notes pursuant to

subdivision one of paragraph a, or paragraph b, of such section 29.00 to

provide for the payment of all or part of the extraordinary expenses of

snow and ice removal, as defined in this section, to reimburse any fund

or account of the municipality from which monies to pay such

extraordinary expenses have been advanced or to replenish any fund or

account of the municipality from which such extraordinary expenses have

been paid, or any combination of such purposes, notwithstanding that

there may have been lack of statutory authority for any such advance or

payment from such fund or account. The finance board may determine that

such notes may mature in the manner provided in paragraph j of section

29.00, or, if the fiscal procedures applicable to such municipality will

enable the necessary budgetary appropriations for debt service to be

made and such appropriations to become available, that such notes shall

mature in two equal annual installments in two different fiscal years,

but the final maturity of such notes shall not extend beyond the close

of the second fiscal year immediately succeeding the year of their

issue.

4. If a municipality which had a calendar fiscal year which commenced

on the first day of January, two thousand two, issued budget notes in

such year pursuant to the provisions of section 29.00 of this title to

finance the payment of expenses of removal of snow and ice in such

fiscal year and if such budget notes, under the provisions of paragraph

j of such section, could not be renewed after the close of its fiscal

year which would end in the year two thousand three, then and in such

event the finance board of such municipality may determine that the

provisions of paragraph j of such section shall not be applicable in

relation to the maturity of such notes and that such notes shall mature

in equal annual installments in the years two thousand three and two

thousand four.

5. If a municipality which had a calendar fiscal year which commenced

on the first day of January, two thousand two, authorized the issuance

of budget notes in such year pursuant to the provisions of section 29.00

of this chapter to finance the payment of expenses of removal of snow

and ice in such year and if such notes were not issued in the year two

thousand two, but were or are to be issued in the year two thousand

three, and if such budget notes, under the provisions of paragraph j of

such section, could not be renewed after the close of its fiscal year

which would end in the year two thousand four, then and in any such

event the finance board of such municipality may determine that the

provisions of paragraph j of such section shall not be applicable in

relation to the maturity of such notes and that such notes shall mature

in equal annual installments in the years two thousand four and two

thousand five.

6. Any resolution of a finance board of a municipality making a

determination pursuant to subdivision one, two, three, four or five of

this paragraph may be adopted by a majority vote of the finance board,

notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph d of section 40.00 of this

chapter.

7. The provisions of subdivision four of paragraph c of section 40.00

and of any other section of this chapter and the provisions of any

general, special or local law which would restrict, limit or prohibit

the renewal of budget notes as provided in this paragraph (except those

enacted to conform with the state constitution) are, to the extent that

this section is utilized by a municipality, suspended and made

ineffective in so far as necessary to effectuate the objects and

purposes of this section.

d. Separability. If any clause, sentence, subdivision, paragraph, or

part of this section be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction

to be invalid, such judgment shall not affect, impair or invalidate the

remainder thereof, but shall be confined in its operation to the clause,

sentence, subdivision, paragraph, or part thereof directly involved in

the controversy in which such judgment shall have been rendered.