{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-66.191","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 66.191","heading":"Complaint for validation of bonds -- Proceedings.","body":"(1) As used in this section, supplementing the definitions of the terms contained in\nKRS 66.011, \"issuer\" also includes any person issuing fractionalized interests in\nbonds and any instrumentality of an issuer and \"bonds\" also includes obligations.\n(2) (a) An issuer, at any time prior to its issuance or entering into of bonds, may file a\ncomplaint for validation and thereby commence an action for the purpose of\nobtaining an adjudication of its authority to issue or enter into and the validity\nof, and security for, and source of payment of, the bonds, and of the validity of\nall proceedings taken and proposed to be taken in connection therewith,\nincluding, but not limited to, any of the following:\n1. The levy of taxes or special assessments levied or to be levied;\n2. The lien of those taxes or special assessments;\n3. The levy or charge of rates, charges, rentals, lease payments, or tolls;\n4. Any underlying obligation; and\n5. The proceedings and remedies for the collection of the taxes, special\nassessments, rates, charges, rentals, lease payments, or tolls, or payments\nby an issuer.\n(b) No such action shall be commenced except upon determination of its\nnecessity by the governing body or other authority empowered to adopt the\nlegislation for the issuance of the bonds.\n(c) The action shall be commenced in the Circuit Court of the county in which the\nissuer is located in whole or in part or has its principal office.\n(3) The complaint for validation shall contain that which is required by the Rules of\nCivil Procedure including, without limitation, in ordinary and precise language and\nby references or exhibits, statements or descriptions of all of the following:\n(a) The issuer's existence and authority for issuing the bonds;\n(b) The holding and result of any required election relating to the bonds;\n(c) If already passed or issued, the legislation, order, or proceeding authorizing\nthe issuance of the bonds and evidence of its passage or issuance;\n(d) All other essential proceedings  taken and proposed to be taken in connection\nwith the bonds;\n(e) If not set forth in legislation, order, or proceeding already passed or issued, the\napproximate amount and general proposed terms of the bonds;\n(f) The county or counties in which the proceeds of the bonds, or any part thereof,\nare to be expended; and\n(g) Any other pertinent matters.\n(4) Upon the filing of the complaint, the court shall issue an order in general terms in\nthe form of a notice directed to the state and to \"all property owners, taxpayers,\ncitizens, and others having or claiming any right, title, or interest in any property or\nfunds to be affected\" by the issuance or entering into of the bonds or \"affected in\nany way thereby,\" requiring the state through the Attorney General and a ll such\npersons to appear and be heard before the court at a time to be designated in the\norder, and show cause why the complaint should not be granted and the proceedings\nand the bonds validated and confirmed as therein.\n(5) At least twenty (20) days before the time fixed in the order for hearing, a copy of the\ncomplaint and order, unless waived in writing, shall be served upon the Attorney\nGeneral. The Attorney General shall carefully examine the complaint and if it\nappears, or there is reason to believe, that the complaint is defective, insufficient, or\nuntrue, or if in the opinion of the Attorney General the issuance of the bonds or any\nrelated action, is not lawful or has not been duly authorized, the Attorney General\nmay enter an appearance for the sta te and assert any defense to the complaint that\nthe Attorney General considers proper. The Attorney General may enter an\nappearance and assert any support for the complaint that the Attorney General\nconsiders proper. No other appearance by or service of th e complaint on any other\nattorney or person other than the Attorney General or persons set forth in this\nsection shall be required.\n(6) The clerk of the court in which the action is commenced shall publish a copy of the\norder in a newspaper of general circ ulation in that county and in each other county\nin which at least ten percent (10%) of the proceeds of the bonds is proposed to be\nexpended. The publication in each county shall be made not less than seven (7) nor\nmore than twenty-one (21) days before the date set for hearing. Upon publication of\nthe order, service upon all property owners, taxpayers, citizens, or others having or\nclaiming any right, title, or interest in or against the plaintiff or property subject to\ntaxation or special assessment for pay ment of debt charges on the bonds, or\notherwise affected by or interested in the issuance or entering into of the bonds\ndescribed in the complaint is complete, and the court has jurisdiction of them to the\nsame extent as if these defendants were individual ly named in the complaint and\npersonally served.\n(7) The Attorney General, and any other person made a defendant, or his counsel shall,\nsubject to laws restricting public access to certain records, have reasonable access to\nall records and proceedings of t he issuer which pertain to the matters described in\nthe complaint. Any officer, agent, or employee of the issuer who has charge,\npossession, custody, or control of any of those records and proceedings shall furnish\nsuch authenticated copies of them as the person requests, at that person's expense.\n(8) Upon motion of the issuer, whether before or after the date set for hearing as\nprovided in subsection (4) of this section, the court may enjoin any person from\ncommencing any other action or proceeding contest ing the same or related matters\nas described in the complaint, as the complaint may from time to time be amended.\nThe court may order a joint hearing or trial before it of all related issues then\npending in any action or proceeding in any court in the stat e, and may order any\nsuch action or proceeding consolidated with the validation complaint pending\nbefore it, and may make any order as may be necessary or proper to effect that\nconsolidation and as may tend to avoid unnecessary costs or delays or multiplic ity\nof suits. That order is not appealable.\n(9) Any property owner, taxpayer, citizen, or person affected by or interested in the\nissuance or entering into of the bonds may become a named party to the action by\npleading to the complaint at or before the ti me set for the hearing provided in\nsubsection (4) of this section, or thereafter by intervention upon leave of court.\n(10) At the time designated in the order for hearing, the court shall proceed to hear and\ndetermine all questions of law and fact in the a ction and may make such\ninterlocutory orders and adjournments as will enable it properly to try and determine\nthe action and to render a final judgment with the least possible delay.\n(11) Any party to the action may appeal from a final judgment of a Circui t Court under\nsubsection (10) of this section to the Court of Appeals. The notice of appeal shall\ntake priority over all other civil cases therein pending, except habeas corpus. No\noral argument shall be permitted on appeal except at the request of the cou rt on its\nown motion.\n(12) All of the following apply to a final judgment of the Circuit Court, as finally\naffirmed or modified in any appeal, that determines that the issuer or obligor has\nauthority to issue the bonds upon the general terms set forth in t he complaint for\nvalidation and that adjudicates the legality of all proceedings taken and proposed to\nbe taken in connection with the bonds:\n(a) The final judgment is forever binding and conclusive, as to all matters\nadjudicated, against the issuer, any o bligor, and all other parties to the action,\nand those in privity with them, whether named in the action or included in the\ndescription in the notice provided for in subsection (4) of this section.\n(b) If all procedural steps required to be taken for the c ompletion of the\nauthorization, issuance, sale, and delivery of the bonds after the date of the\nfinal judgment, are properly taken in accordance with the applicable\nprovisions of law and the terms of the final judgment, the final judgment\nconstitutes a per manent injunction against any person's contesting, by any\naction or proceeding, any of the following:\n1. The validity of the bonds described in the complaint;\n2. The validity of the taxes, special assessments, tolls, charges, rates, or\nother levies, or lea se payments, or payments by an obligor, authorized,\ncontracted, or covenanted to be imposed, made, or collected for the\npayment of the debt charges on the bonds; or\n3. The validity of any pledge of or lien on revenue or property to secure the\npayment of the debt charges or payment obligations on the bonds.\n(c) A final judgment does not permanently enjoin any person not a named party to\nthe action from raising a claim or defense seeking relief in whole or in part\nfrom any levy of taxes or special assessments , made or to be made, or\ncollected or to be collected, against property owned by that person, authorized\nfor the payment of any debt charges or payment obligations on the bonds\ndescribed in the complaint if the claim or defense is based upon a right that\nsuch person may have only in his individual capacity as an owner of the\nproperty subject to the tax or special assessment.\n(13) The costs of each action under this section shall be paid by the plaintiff and may be\npaid from the proceeds of the bonds, except  that if a taxpayer, citizen, or other\nperson has contested, intervened in, or appealed the action the court may tax the\nwhole or such part of the costs against that person as is equitable and just.","path":["KRS Chapter 66"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=23601","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:49:24Z","sha256":"0a1da5650f056ad79df9cb163ffd5c4577c5205f0013d001d9d822cb4066b109","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-66.190","next":"us-ky/krs-66.200"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}