S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
4729
2013-2014 Regular Sessions
I N S E N A T E
April 19, 2013
___________
Introduced by COMMITTEE ON RULES -- (at request of the State Comp-
troller) -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be
committed to the Committee on Rules
AN ACT to amend the local finance law, in relation to temporary alterna-
tive methods of financing storm relief expenses
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Section 26.10 of the local finance law, as added by chapter
599 of the laws of 1973, paragraph a and subdivisions 1, 2 and 3 of
paragraph b as amended by chapter 157 of the laws of 2006 and subdivi-
sions 4, 5 and 6 of paragraph b, subdivisions 1, 2, 3 and 7 of paragraph
c as amended by chapter 87 of the laws of 1996, is amended to read as
follows:
S 26.10 Temporary alternative methods of financing [flood-relief]
STORM RELIEF expenses. a. Definitions. [1. With respect to any munici-
pality which has a calendar fiscal year which commenced on the first day
of January, two thousand five, the] AS USED IN THIS SECTION, THE terms
"extraordinary expenses [for flood] OF STORM relief" and "such extraor-
dinary expenses"[, as used in this section,] shall mean [the] expenses
incurred BY A MUNICIPALITY, SCHOOL DISTRICT OR DISTRICT CORPORATION
BEFORE THE FIRST DAY OF JANUARY, TWO THOUSAND FOURTEEN, for [flood]
STORM relief projects [involving the] 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,
[public] BUILDINGS, places, and projects of such municipality [during
any or all of the months of such year], 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 [and also any interest payments on
revenue anticipation notes issued in anticipation of the receipt of
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05523-01-3
S. 4729 2
moneys from the state or federal government pursuant to any state or
federal disaster relief act], 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.
[2. With respect to any municipality or school district which has a
fiscal year which commenced in the year two thousand five on or after
the first day of March in such year, the terms "extraordinary expenses
for flood relief projects" and "such extraordinary expenses", as used in
this section, shall mean the expense incurred for flood relief projects
involving the public thoroughfares, public places and projects of such
municipality or school district 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 prior to the fiscal year commencing in the
year two thousand five, as determined by the finance board of such muni-
cipality or school district.]
b. The financing of [flood] STORM relief 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 five], SCHOOL
DISTRICT OR DISTRICT CORPORATION may authorize the issuance of serial
bonds [in the] ON OR BEFORE DECEMBER THIRTY-FIRST two thousand [six
fiscal year] THIRTEEN to provide for the payment of all or part of the
extraordinary expenses of [flood] STORM relief [incurred during any or
all of the months of two thousand five], to reimburse any fund or
account of the [municipality] ISSUER from which moneys to pay such
extraordinary expenses have been advanced or to replenish any fund or
account of the [municipality] ISSUER from which such extraordinary
expenses have been paid, or any combination of such purposes, notwith-
standing that there may have been lack of statutory authority for any
such advance or payment from such fund or account. The period of proba-
ble 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 eleven as to counties and
towns and shall not extend beyond] the thirty-first day of December, two
thousand [eleven, as to other municipalities] EIGHTEEN.
2. [The finance board of a municipality or school district which has a
fiscal year which commenced in the year two thousand five on or after
the first day of March in such year may authorize the issuance of serial
bonds in the two thousand six fiscal year, or in its next succeeding
fiscal year, to provide for the payment of all or part of the extraor-
dinary expenses of flood relief incurred in the two thousand five fiscal
year, 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 period of probable usefulness of such objects
S. 4729 3
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 eleven.
3.] No provision of subdivision one [or two] 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
[subdivisions] 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.
[4.] 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 antic-
ipation 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 [and], 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 [or], school districts OR DISTRICT CORPORATIONS. The
chief fiscal officer of any municipality [or], 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 [and], school districts AND DISTRICT CORPORATIONS for the
purpose of making any such report.
[5.] 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 [or], 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.
[6.] 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 [or],
school district OR DISTRICT CORPORATION, suspended and made ineffective
insofar as necessary to effectuate the purposes of this section.
c. The financing of [flood] 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
S. 4729 4
expenses of [flood] STORM relief, [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
or school district to issue budget notes pursuant to such subdivision
two or three.
2. If any municipality [or], 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 [flood] STORM
relief, [as defined in this section,] the finance board may determine
that the provisions of paragraph j of such section shall not be applica-
ble 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
[or], school district OR DISTRICT CORPORATION will enable the necessary
budgetary appropriations for debt service to be made and such appropri-
ations to become available, that such notes shall mature in three equal
annual installments in three different fiscal years, but the final matu-
rity 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 thir-
ty-three of the county law, (3) section 5-514 of the village law, (4)
any general or special law applicable to counties, cities, villages
[and], school districts OR DISTRICT CORPORATIONS which relates to the
raising of taxes on real estate to provide for the payment of the inter-
est on and the principal of indebtedness, and (5) all laws relating to
financial reports, debt statements and real estate tax margin computa-
tions of such municipalities [or], school districts OR DISTRICT CORPO-
RATIONS. 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 [or], 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 comp-
troller 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 [or], 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
S. 4729 5
provide for the payment of all or part of the extraordinary expenses of
[flood] STORM relief, [as defined in this section,] 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. [If a municipality which had a calendar fiscal year which commenced
on the first day of January, nineteen hundred seventy-two, or the first
day of January, nineteen hundred seventy-three, issued budget notes in
such year pursuant to the provisions of section 29.00 of this chapter to
finance the payment of expenses of flood relief in such fiscal years 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 next succeeding the year of issuance, 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 two years next succeeding the year
of issuance.
5. If a municipality which had a calendar fiscal year, which commenced
on the first day of January, nineteen hundred seventy-two or the first
day of January, nineteen hundred seventy-three, authorized the issuance
of budget notes in such years pursuant to the provisions of section
29.00 of this chapter to finance the payment of expenses of flood relief
in such years and if such notes were not issued in the years nineteen
hundred seventy-two or nineteen hundred seventy-three, but were or are
to be issued in the years nineteen hundred seventy-three or nineteen
hundred seventy-four, 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 next succeeding the year of
issuance, then and in any such event the finance board of such munici-
pality 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 two
years next succeeding the year of issuance.
6. Any resolution of a finance board of a municipality making a deter-
mination pursuant to subdivisions 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
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 para-
graph (except those enacted to conform with the state constitution),
S. 4729 6
are, to the extent that this section is utilized by a municipality [or
a], school district OR DISTRICT CORPORATION, suspended and made ineffec-
tive 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.
S 2. This act shall take effect immediately.