N.Y. Local Finance Law § 26.10: Temporary alternative methods of financing storm relief expenses

§ 26.10 Temporary alternative methods of financing storm relief

expenses. a. Definitions. As used in this section, the terms

"extraordinary expenses of storm relief" and "such extraordinary

expenses" shall mean expenses incurred by a municipality, school

district or district corporation before the first day of January, two

thousand fourteen, for storm relief projects necessitated by damage

caused by the storm commonly known as Sandy on or shortly after October

twenty-ninth, two thousand twelve. The term "storm relief projects"

shall mean the repair or reconstruction of public thoroughfares,

buildings, places, and projects of such municipality, school district or

district corporation, in excess of the normal expenses which would have

been incurred for such purposes during such periods as determined by the

finance board of such municipality, school district or district

corporation. 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. Such extraordinary expenses may include any interest

payments on revenue anticipation notes issued in anticipation of the

receipt of moneys from the state or federal government on account of

such storm pursuant to any state or federal disaster relief act.

b. The financing of storm relief expenses by the issuance of serial

bonds.

1. The finance board of a municipality, school district or district

corporation may authorize the issuance of serial bonds on or before

December thirty-first two thousand thirteen to provide for the payment

of all or part of the extraordinary expenses of storm relief, to

reimburse any fund or account of the issuer from which moneys to pay

such extraordinary expenses have been advanced or to replenish any fund

or account of the issuer 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 eighteen.

2. No provision of subdivision one of this paragraph shall be deemed

to prohibit the issuance of serial bonds for the purpose of financing

any portion of such extraordinary expenses described in such subdivision

which heretofore have been or hereafter shall be financed by the

issuance of budget notes or for the purpose of redeeming any such notes.

3. 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

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

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

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

the county law, (3) section 5-514 of the village law, (4) any general or

special law applicable to counties, cities, villages, school districts

or district corporations 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 (5) all laws relating to the financial reports,

debt statements and real estate tax margin computations of such

municipalities, school districts or district corporations. The chief

fiscal officer of any municipality, school district or district

corporation 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, school districts and district corporations for the

purpose of making any such report.

4. 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, school district or district corporation 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 chapter and paragraph c of this section.

5. 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, school

district or district corporation, suspended and made ineffective insofar

as necessary to effectuate the purposes of this section.

c. The financing of storm relief expenses by the issuance of budget

notes. 1. If any municipality or school district described in paragraph

a of this section has heretofore issued budget notes pursuant to the

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

of this chapter to provide for the payment of extraordinary expenses of

storm relief, 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 or school district to issue budget notes pursuant to

such subdivision two or three.

2. If any municipality, school district or district corporation

described in paragraph a of this section has heretofore issued budget

notes pursuant to the provisions of subdivision one, two or three of

paragraph a, or paragraph b, of section 29.00 of this chapter, to

provide for the payment of extraordinary expenses of storm relief, 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, school district or district corporation

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 paragraph 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)

section 5-514 of the village law, (4) any general or special law

applicable to counties, cities, villages, school districts or district

corporations 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 (5) all laws relating to financial reports, debt

statements and real estate tax margin computations of such

municipalities, school districts or district corporations. 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, school district or district corporation 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, school districts or district corporations for the

purpose of making any such report.

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

chapter, the finance board of a municipality or a school district

described in paragraph a of this section may authorize the issuance of

budget notes pursuant to subdivision one of paragraph a, or, in the case

of a municipality, paragraph b of such section 29.00 of this chapter to

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

storm relief, to reimburse any fund or account of the municipality or

school district from which moneys to pay such extraordinary expenses

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

municipality or school district 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 of this chapter, or, if the fiscal procedures

applicable to such municipality or school district 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. The provisions of subdivision four of paragraph c of section 40.00

of this chapter 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,

school district or district corporation, suspended and made ineffective

insofar 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.