S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5467
 
                        2017-2018 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             February 9, 2017
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by M. of A. ENGLEBRIGHT, GOTTFRIED -- read once and referred
   to the Committee on Environmental Conservation
 
 AN ACT to authorize the creation of a state debt in the amount  of  five
   billion  dollars, in relation to creating the "clean water bond act of
   2017" to provide moneys for the preservation, enhancement, restoration
   and improvement of the quality of the state's water through the  fund-
   ing  of  certain  projects  and  activities;  and  providing  for  the
   submission to the people of a proposition or question therefor  to  be
   voted  upon  at the general election to be held in November, two thou-
   sand seventeen
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  The  clean  water  bond act of 2017 is enacted to read as
 follows:
 
                       CLEAN WATER BOND ACT OF 2017
 
 Section 1. Short title.
         2. Creation of a state debt.
         3. Bonds of the state.
         4. Use of moneys received.
   § 1. Short title. This act shall be known and  may  be  cited  as  the
 "clean water bond act of 2017".
   §  2.  Creation  of  a  state debt. The creation of a state debt to an
 amount  not  exceeding   in   the   aggregate   five   billion   dollars
 ($5,000,000,000),  is hereby authorized to provide moneys for the single
 purpose of preserving, enhancing, restoring and improving the quality of
 the state's water by the accomplishment of projects and the  funding  of
 activities  by  state  agencies,  public  authorities and public benefit
 corporations, municipalities, and other governmental entities  and  not-
 for-profit  corporations  for  and  related to protecting, improving and
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD09318-05-7

 A. 5467                             2

 enhancing the quality of drinking water and enhancement of water bodies;
 by providing funds for water quality related research  and  development;
 for  repairing,  replacing and updating municipal wastewater, stormwater
 and  drinking  water  infrastructure;  and  for  restoring and improving
 contaminated areas and returning those to productive use; for  improving
 environmental health.
   The  legislature  may,  by appropriate legislation and subject to such
 conditions as it may impose, make available out of the proceeds  of  the
 sale  of bonds authorized in section three of this act, moneys disbursed
 or to be disbursed for  state  programs  or  state  assistance  payments
 toward  the  cost  of  such programs undertaken by or through a state or
 local public authority or  public  benefit  corporation,  not-for-profit
 corporation,  county,  city, town, village, school district, supervisory
 district, district corporation, improvement district  within  a  county,
 city, town, village, or Indian tribe residing in whole or in part within
 the  state,  or  any combination thereof, for the purpose of preserving,
 enhancing, restoring and improving the quality of the  state's  environ-
 ment  and  natural resources. Provided however, that funds expended from
 moneys derived from the sale of bonds authorized  in  section  three  of
 this  act that are later recovered under a state or federal superfund or
 through other means from polluters shall be repaid to satisfy any  state
 debt created pursuant to this act.
   §  3.  Bonds  of the state. The state comptroller is hereby authorized
 and empowered to issue and sell bonds of the state to the amount of five
 billion dollars ($5,000,000,000), for the purpose of this  act,  subject
 to the provisions of article 5 of the state finance law.
   The  aggregate  principal  amount  of such bonds shall not exceed five
 billion dollars ($5,000,000,000), excluding bonds issued  to  refund  or
 otherwise  repay  bonds  theretofore  issued for such purpose; provided,
 however, that upon any such refunding or repayment the  total  aggregate
 principal  amount  of outstanding bonds may be greater than five billion
 dollars ($5,000,000,000), only if the present  value  of  the  aggregate
 debt  service of the refunding or repayment bonds to be issued shall not
 exceed the present value of the aggregate debt service of the  bonds  to
 be refunded or repaid. The method for calculating present value shall be
 determined by law.  Any funds expended from moneys derived from the sale
 of  bonds pursuant to this section that are subsequently recovered under
 state or federal superfund or other methods from polluters shall be used
 to repay the bonds.
   § 4. Use of moneys received. The moneys received by the state from the
 sale of bonds sold pursuant to this act shall be  expended  pursuant  to
 appropriations in the following amount:
   a.  For  clean  water through the protection of the state's watersheds
 and natural resources; and drinking water supply protection, water qual-
 ity  related  research  and  development,  water   quality   restoration
 projects,   up   to   one   billion   five   hundred   million   dollars
 ($1,500,000,000);
   b. For clean water infrastructure including repairing,  replacing  and
 updating  New York's municipal stormwater, wastewater and drinking water
 infrastructures, updating and replacing septic systems, and  the  imple-
 mentation  of  new filtration systems and water testing, and other meas-
 ures necessary for areas that suspect or know they have a  contamination
 issue  and  have  not yet received superfund status, not less than three
 billion five hundred million dollars ($3,500,000,000).
   § 2. This act shall not take effect unless and  until  it  shall  have
 been  submitted  to  the  people  at  the general election to be held in

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 November, and shall have received a majority of all votes cast  for  and
 against it at such election. Upon approval by the people, this act shall
 take effect immediately.
   The  ballots  to be furnished for the use of voters upon submission of
 this act shall be in the form prescribed by the  election  law  and  the
 proposition  or  question  to  be  submitted shall be printed thereon in
 substantially the following form, namely, "Shall  chapter  (here  insert
 the number of the chapter) of the laws of 2017, known as the clean water
 bond act of 2017, authorizing the creation of a state debt in the amount
 of  five  billion  dollars  ($5,000,000,000),  to provide moneys for the
 enhancing of drinking water quality, and the preservation  and  restora-
 tion of the state's water resources be approved?".