SCS CSHB 386(FIN) AM S: "An Act relating to the financing authority, programs, operations, and projects of the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority; and providing for an effective date."
00SENATE CS FOR CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 386(FIN) am S 01 "An Act relating to the financing authority, programs, operations, and projects 02 of the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority; and providing for 03 an effective date." 04 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 05 * Section 1. AS 44.88.090(e) is amended to read: 06 (e) Before issuing bonds, the authority shall provide for consideration at least 07 sufficient, in the judgment of the authority, to pay the principal of and interest on the 08 bonds as they become due and to create and maintain the reserves for the payments 09 that the authority considers necessary or desirable, and to meet all obligations in 10 connection with the lease or agreement and all costs necessary to service the bonds, 11 unless the lease or agreement provides that the obligations are to be met or costs are 12 to be paid by a party other than the authority. If the bonds are being issued to finance 13 a project or projects under AS 44.88.155 - 44.88.159, then the consideration shall be 14 provided by lease or other agreement regarding the project or projects. If the bonds
01 are being issued to finance a development project or development projects under 02 AS 44.88.172 - 44.88.177, then the consideration shall be provided by lease or other 03 agreement regarding the development project or development projects. [IF THE 04 BONDS ARE BEING ISSUED TO PROVIDE MONEY TO FINANCE, 05 GUARANTEE, OR INSURE AN EXPORTING TRANSACTION UNDER 06 AS 44.88.300 - 44.88.390, THEN THE CONSIDERATION SHALL BE PROVIDED 07 BY AGREEMENT WITH THE EXPORTER.] 08 * Sec. 2. AS 44.88.090(h) is amended to read: 09 (h) The authority may combine, for the purposes of a single offering, bonds 10 financing more than one project or development project under AS 44.88.155 - 11 44.88.159 or 44.88.172 - 44.88.177 [, AND BONDS ISSUED TO PROVIDE MONEY 12 TO FINANCE, GUARANTEE, OR INSURE AN EXPORTING TRANSACTION 13 UNDER AS 44.88.300 - 44.88.390]. 14 * Sec. 3. AS 44.88.095(g) is amended to read: 15 (g) Before July 1, 2000 [1998], the authority may issue bonds in an amount 16 greater than $10,000,000 to assist in the financing of a development project under 17 AS 44.88.172 - 44.88.177 only with legislative approval. Beginning July 1, 2000 18 [1998], and thereafter, without prior legislative approval, the authority may not issue 19 bonds, except refunding bonds. 20 * Sec. 4. AS 44.88.100 is amended to read: 21 Sec. 44.88.100. Trust indentures and trust agreements. In the discretion of 22 the authority, an issue of bonds may be secured by a trust indenture or trust agreement 23 between the authority and a corporate trustee (which may be a trust company, bank, 24 or national banking association, with corporate trust powers, located inside or outside 25 the state) or by a secured loan agreement or other instrument or under a resolution 26 giving powers to a corporate trustee (hereinafter in this section referred to as "trust 27 agreement") by means of which the authority may 28 (1) make and enter into any and all the covenants and agreements with 29 the trustee or the holders of the bonds which the authority may determine to be 30 necessary or desirable, including, without limitation, covenants, provisions, limitations, 31 and agreements as to
01 (A) the application, investment, deposit, use, and disposition of 02 the proceeds of bonds of the authority or of money or other property of the 03 authority or in which it has an interest; 04 (B) the fixing and collection of rents or other consideration for 05 [,] and the other terms to be incorporated in a lease or contract of sale of a 06 project or development project financed under AS 44.88.155 - 44.88.159 or 07 44.88.172 - 44.88.177 [, OR OF A FACILITY THAT IS PART OF AN 08 EXPORTING TRANSACTION FINANCED, GUARANTEED, OR INSURED 09 UNDER AS 44.88.300 - 44.88.390]; 10 (C) the assignment by the authority of its rights in the lease or 11 contract of sale of a project or development project financed under 12 AS 44.88.155 - 44.88.159 or 44.88.172 - 44.88.177 [, OR OF A FACILITY 13 THAT IS PART OF AN EXPORTING TRANSACTION FINANCED, 14 GUARANTEED, OR INSURED UNDER AS 44.88.300 - 44.88.390] or in a 15 mortgage or other security interest created with respect to a project or 16 development project financed under AS 44.88.155 - 44.88.159 or 44.88.172 - 17 44.88.177 [, OR WITH RESPECT TO A FACILITY THAT IS PART OF AN 18 EXPORTING TRANSACTION FINANCED, GUARANTEED, OR INSURED 19 UNDER AS 44.88.300 - 44.88.390] to a trustee for the benefit of bondholders; 20 (D) the terms and conditions upon which additional bonds of 21 the authority may be issued; 22 (E) the vesting in a trustee of rights, powers, duties, funds, or 23 property in trust for the benefit of bondholders, including, without limitation, 24 the right to enforce payment, performance, and all other rights of the authority 25 or of the bondholders under a lease, contract of sale, mortgage, security 26 agreement, or trust agreement with respect to a project or development project 27 financed under AS 44.88.155 - 44.88.159 or 44.88.172 - 44.88.177 [, OR 28 WITH RESPECT TO A FACILITY THAT IS A PART OF AN EXPORTING 29 TRANSACTION FINANCED, GUARANTEED, OR INSURED UNDER 30 AS 44.88.300 - 44.88.390] by mandamus or other proceeding or by taking 31 possession of by agent or otherwise and operating a project or facility and
01 collecting rents or other consideration and applying the same in accordance 02 with the trust agreement; 03 (2) pledge, mortgage, or assign money, leases, agreements, property, 04 or other assets of the authority either presently in hand or to be received in the future, 05 or both; and 06 (3) provide for any other matters of like or different character which 07 in any way affect the security or protection of the bonds. 08 * Sec. 5. AS 44.88.130 is amended to read: 09 Sec. 44.88.130. Pledge of the state. The state pledges to and agrees with the 10 holders of bonds issued under this chapter and with the federal agency that lends or 11 contributes funds in respect to a project or development project financed under 12 AS 44.88.155 - 44.88.159 or 44.88.172 - 44.88.177 [, OR IN RESPECT TO AN 13 EXPORTING TRANSACTION FINANCED, GUARANTEED, OR INSURED 14 UNDER AS 44.88.300 - 44.88.390] that the state will not limit or alter the rights and 15 powers vested in the authority by this chapter to fulfill the terms of a contract made 16 by the authority with the holders or federal agency and that the state will not in any 17 way impair the rights and remedies of the holders until the bonds, together with the 18 interest on them with interest on unpaid installments of interest, and all costs and 19 expenses in connection with an action or proceeding by or on behalf of the holders are 20 fully met and discharged. The authority is authorized to include this pledge and 21 agreement of the state, insofar as it refers to holders of bonds of the authority, in a 22 contract with the holders and, insofar as it relates to a federal agency, in a contract 23 with the federal agency. 24 * Sec. 6. AS 44.88.155(d) is amended to read: 25 (d) A loan participation purchased by the authority with assets of the enterprise 26 development account or with proceeds of bonds secured by assets of the enterprise 27 development account 28 (1) may not exceed $10,000,000; however, in the case of a loan 29 participation for a power transmission intertie, the loan participation may exceed 30 $10,000,000 with legislative approval; 31 (2) may not be purchased unless
01 (A) the project applicant is not, or, if the applicant is not a 02 single proprietorship, all members of the business enterprise or enterprises 03 constituting the project applicant are not, in default on another loan made by 04 the state or by a public corporation of the state; and 05 (B) at least 20 percent of the principal amount of the loan is 06 retained by the loan originator; 07 (3) may not be purchased if the loan to be purchased exceeds [THE 08 COST OF THE PROJECT OR] 75 percent of the appraised value of the collateral 09 offered as security for the loan [PROJECT, WHICHEVER IS LESS,] unless the 10 amount of the loan in excess of this limit is federally insured or guaranteed or is 11 insured by a qualified mortgage insurance company , except that in no event may the 12 loan to be purchased under this paragraph exceed the total of loan proceeds used 13 to refinance an existing debt plus the cost of new construction, expansion, or 14 acquisition ; 15 (4) may not be purchased if the participation in the loan to be 16 purchased is for a term longer than the following, except that in no event may a loan 17 under (A) or (C) of this subparagraph have a term longer than three-quarters of 18 the authority's estimate of the life of the collateral offered as security for the loan: 19 (A) 40 years from the date the loan is made in the case of 20 a loan participation for a project described in AS 44.88.900(9)(E); 21 (B) 50 years from the date the loan is made [PROJECT OR 22 25 YEARS FROM THE DATE THE LOAN IS MADE, WHICHEVER IS 23 EARLIER; HOWEVER,] in the case of a loan participation for a power 24 transmission intertie ; 25 (C) 25 years from the date the loan is made in the case of 26 a loan participation for other projects [, THE TERM MAY NOT BE 27 LONGER THAN 50 YEARS FROM THE DATE THE LOAN IS MADE]; 28 (5) may be made only if the participation in the loan to be purchased 29 contains amortization provisions; the amortization provisions 30 (A) must be complete and satisfactory to the authority and 31 require periodic payments by the borrower;
01 (B) may allow the loan originator to amortize the portion of the 02 loan retained by the loan originator using a shorter amortization schedule than 03 the amortization schedule for the portion of the loan held by the authority if 04 (i) in the authority's opinion, the project financed can 05 support the increased debt service; and 06 (ii) the accelerated amortization schedule is required to 07 induce the originator to make the loan; 08 (6) may be made only if the participation in the loan to be purchased 09 is in the form and contains the terms and provisions with respect to insurance, repairs, 10 alterations, payment of taxes and assessments, default reserves, delinquency charges, 11 default remedies, acceleration of maturity, secondary liens, and other matters the 12 authority prescribes; and 13 (7) may be made only if the participation in the loan to be purchased 14 is secured as to repayment by a mortgage or other security instrument in the manner 15 the authority determines is feasible to assure timely repayment under the [A] loan 16 documents [AGREEMENT] entered into with the borrower. 17 * Sec. 7. AS 44.88.190(c) is amended to read: 18 (c) A loan participation purchased or financed by the authority is exempt from 19 the provisions of AS 45.45.010. [A GUARANTEE EXTENDED UNDER 20 AS 44.88.300 OR INSURANCE PROVIDED UNDER AS 44.88.390 DOES NOT 21 CONSTITUTE INSURANCE FOR THE PURPOSES OF AS 21.03.010.] 22 * Sec. 8. AS 44.88 is amended by adding a new section to read: 23 Sec. 44.88.215. Confidentiality of information. (a) In order to promote the 24 purposes of AS 44.88, unless the records were a matter of public record before 25 submittal to the authority, the following records, files, and information shall be kept 26 confidential upon the request of the person supplying the information or upon the 27 request of the project, bond, loan, or guarantee applicant or borrower: 28 (1) income tax returns; 29 (2) financial statements, profit-and-loss statements, and cash flow 30 projections, except the information required by the authority to calculate debt service 31 coverage on the loan;
01 (3) financial business plans; 02 (4) credit reports from consumer reporting agencies and other credit 03 information obtained from banks, creditors, or other credit reporting entities; 04 (5) trade secrets; 05 (6) appraisals, except the name of the appraiser, the date of the 06 appraisal, and the fair market value determined for the property appraised; 07 (7) market surveys and marketing strategy information; and 08 (8) any information required to be kept confidential by a federal law 09 or regulation or by state law. 10 (b) Information compiled by the authority from information described in (a) 11 of this section shall be kept confidential unless disclosure is authorized by the person 12 supplying the information and by the project, bond, loan, or guarantee applicant or 13 borrower. 14 (c) The information that is determined to be confidential under (a) or (b) of 15 this section is not a public record under AS 09.25.110 - 09.25.220. 16 (d) Nothing in this section shall prevent a legislator from reviewing 17 information otherwise confidential under this section if the legislator has a valid 18 legislative purpose for reviewing the information and if the legislator agrees to 19 maintain the confidentiality of the information. 20 * Sec. 9. AS 44.88.500 is repealed and reenacted to read: 21 Sec. 44.88.500. Business and export assistance guarantees. Subject to the 22 requirements of AS 44.88.500 - 44.88.599, the authority may 23 (1) guarantee new business and export assistance loans; and 24 (2) guarantee new business and export assistance loans made to 25 refinance existing loans. 26 * Sec. 10. AS 44.88 is amended by adding a new section to read: 27 Sec. 44.88.502. Effect of guarantee. (a) A guarantee under AS 44.88.500 - 28 44.88.599 does not create a debt or liability of the state. 29 (b) A guarantee under AS 44.88.500 may not be terminated, canceled, or 30 revoked except under its terms. A guarantee held by a participating financial 31 institution is presumed to be valid.
01 (c) A guarantee or portion of a guarantee under AS 44.88.500 that relates to 02 an export transaction must guarantee against commercial and political loss, in whole 03 or in part, of principal and interest. The authority may require the borrower to obtain 04 insurance against some or all of the loss guaranteed under AS 44.88.500. In this 05 subsection, "political loss" means a loss incurred as a result of 06 (1) a political risk that would be insurable under an export credit 07 insurance policy issued by the Export-Import Bank of the United States; or 08 (2) any other political risk that is actually insured under insurance the 09 authority requires the borrower to obtain. 10 * Sec. 11. AS 44.88.505(a) is amended to read: 11 (a) A business enterprise may apply for a new loan guarantee under 12 AS 44.88.500(1) [AS 44.88.500(a)(1)]. 13 * Sec. 12. AS 44.88.515 is amended to read: 14 Sec. 44.88.515. Qualifications of applicant for debt refinancing guarantee. 15 A business enterprise may apply under AS 44.88.500(2) [AS 44.88.500(a)(2)] to 16 guarantee the refinancing of existing debt. 17 * Sec. 13. AS 44.88.525 is amended to read: 18 Sec. 44.88.525. Conditions of debt refinancing guarantee. The authority 19 may not guarantee refinanced debt 20 (1) unless the refinancing 21 (A) is necessary to extend substantial debt payments over a 22 longer period of time, thereby improving the applicant's net cash flow and 23 working capital position consistent with the useful life of the assets being 24 refinanced; 25 (B) assists with short-term debt or cash expenditures when 26 lenders will not extend reasonable longer terms to the applicant; and 27 (C) creates additional economic opportunity or improves the 28 viability of the borrower rather than just reducing the liability of the lender; or 29 (2) unless the refinancing is necessary to place a permanent loan 30 subsequent to an interim loan for financing [CONSTRUCTION] of the project. 31 * Sec. 14. AS 44.88.535(a) is amended to read:
01 (a) The authority may guarantee a loan under AS 44.88.500 - 44.88.599 if the 02 (1) loan 03 (A) is commercially reasonable; 04 (B) contains payment [AMORTIZATION] provisions 05 satisfactory to the authority; 06 (C) is secured by adequate collateral; however, the authority 07 may waive on a case-by-case basis the requirement of collateral for a loan 08 guarantee of $100,000 or less for which the proposed loan term 09 [AMORTIZATION PERIOD] does not exceed five years, but the ability to 10 waive the requirement of this subparagraph or the grant of a waiver does not 11 prevent the financial institution that holds the loan guaranteed by the authority 12 from requiring reasonable collateral for the loan; 13 (2) borrower demonstrates the ability to repay the loan from either 14 or both of the following: 15 (A) net cash flow from the borrower [PROVIDES ADEQUATE 16 COVERAGE FOR THE DEBT SERVICE ON THE LOAN]; and 17 (B) proceeds from the sale of current assets that are 18 collateral for the loan if the sale, or receipt of proceeds from the sale, is an 19 event that creates a payment obligation; in this subparagraph, "current 20 asset" means property that will be or could be converted into cash in the 21 normal operation of a business within one year; 22 (3) term of the loan does not exceed 20 years; 23 (4) loan is originated with and serviced by a state chartered or federally 24 chartered financial institution; 25 (5) portion of the loan not guaranteed by the authority is held by the 26 originating financial institution or another institution approved by the authority; 27 (6) loan is made to a business with a majority interest held by state 28 residents; and 29 (7) loan guarantee provides a benefit to the borrower. 30 * Sec. 15. AS 44.88.535(c) is amended to read: 31 (c) The authority may guarantee the payment of interest on the guaranteed
01 portion of a loan 02 (1) in the manner established by the authority by regulation ; and 03 (2) for a period of time not to exceed 04 (A) 90 days for loans or parts of loans not made to support 05 an export transaction; 06 (B) 180 days for loans or parts of loans made for a post- 07 shipment loan guarantee to support an export transaction; in this subparagraph, "post-shipment loan guarantee" means 08 a guarantee, or portion of a guarantee, that becomes 09 effective after the export contract date that shipment of the related goods or raw 10 materials or provision of the related services begins; or 11 (C) 270 days for loans or parts of loans made for a pre- 12 shipment loan guarantee to support an export transaction; in this subparagraph, "pre-shipment loan guarantee" means 13 a guarantee, or part of a guarantee, that becomes 14 effective before the export contract date that shipment of the related goods or raw 15 materials or provision of the related services begins . 16 * Sec. 16. AS 44.88.545 is amended to read: 17 Sec. 44.88.545. Limitations of guarantees with respect to borrowers. The 18 authority may not provide a guarantee 19 (1) of more than $1,000,000; 20 (2) to an individual borrower that cumulatively , with the outstanding 21 principal balance of other authority guaranteed indebtedness of that borrower, 22 exceeds $1,000,000 [OF GUARANTEED INDEBTEDNESS]. 23 * Sec. 17. AS 44.88.555(b) is amended to read: 24 (b) Amounts received toward satisfaction of a default on a loan guaranteed 25 under AS 44.88.500 - 44.88.599 shall be allocated between the lender and the fund 26 according to the guaranteed percentage of the loan until the principal balance and 27 accrued interest have [HAS] been repaid. 28 * Sec. 18. AS 44.88.560 is amended to read: 29 Sec. 44.88.560. Powers of the authority. The authority may 30 (1) adopt regulations to implement AS 44.88.500 - 44.88.599; 31 (2) establish terms and conditions for loan guarantees and refinancing
01 agreements subject to the requirements of AS 44.88.500 - 44.88.599; 02 (3) make and execute contracts and other instruments to implement 03 AS 44.88.500 - 44.88.599; 04 (4) charge reasonable fees that the authority may establish by 05 regulation 06 [(A) ONE PERCENT OF THE AMOUNT GUARANTEED] for 07 the service it provides under AS 44.88.500 - 44.88.599; [AND 08 (B) ANY OTHER REASONABLE FEE THAT THE 09 AUTHORITY MAY ESTABLISH BY REGULATION;] 10 (5) acquire real or personal property by purchase, transfer, or 11 foreclosure when the acquisition is necessary to protect the authority's interest in a loan 12 or a loan guarantee; 13 (6) exercise any other power necessary to implement AS 44.88.500 - 14 44.88.599; and 15 (7) to the extent the authority considers it to be in its best interest to 16 do so, use money to pay expenses relating to the liquidation of collateral securing 17 loans guaranteed by the authority. 18 * Sec. 19. AS 44.88.599 is amended by adding a new paragraph to read: 19 (3) "export transaction" means a contract for the sale of goods, services, 20 or raw materials that includes a term that requires the goods, services, or raw 21 materials, in whole or in part, to be shipped to or provided in a foreign country. 22 * Sec. 20. AS 44.88.900(9) is amended to read: 23 (9) "project" means 24 (A) a plant or facility used or intended for use in connection 25 with making, processing, preparing, transporting, or producing in any manner, 26 goods, products, or substances of any kind or nature or in connection with 27 developing or utilizing a natural resource, or extracting, smelting, transporting, 28 converting, assembling, or producing in any manner, minerals, raw materials, 29 chemicals, compounds, alloys, fibers, commodities and materials, products, or 30 substances of any kind or nature; 31 (B) a plant or facility used or intended for use in connection
01 with a business enterprise; 02 (C) commercial activity by a business enterprise; 03 (D) a plant or facility demonstrating technological advances of 04 new methods and procedures and prototype commercial applications for the 05 exploration, development, production, transportation, conversion, and use of 06 energy resources; 07 (E) infrastructure for a new tourism destination facility or for 08 the expansion of a tourism destination facility; in this subparagraph, 09 "tourism destination facility" does not include a hotel or other overnight 10 lodging facility; 11 (F) a plant or facility, other than a plant or facility described in 12 (D) of this paragraph, for the generation, transmission, development, 13 transportation, conversion, or use of energy resources; 14 * Sec. 21. AS 44.88.085(h), 44.88.300, 44.88.310, 44.88.320, 44.88.330, 44.88.340, 15 44.88.350, 44.88.360, 44.88.370, and 44.88.390 are repealed. 16 * Sec. 22. Section 4, ch. 162, SLA 1988, as amended by sec. 4, ch. 25, SLA 1991, sec. 4, 17 ch. 27, SLA 1993, and sec. 20, ch. 111, SLA 1996, is repealed. 18 * Sec. 23. TRANSFER OF ASSETS. Assets of the export insurance account 19 (AS 44.88.390(a)) are transferred to the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority 20 revolving fund (AS 44.88.060) on July 1, 1998. 21 * Sec. 24. LEGISLATIVE APPROVALS. (a) The Alaska Industrial Development and 22 Export Authority may issue bonds to finance the expansion, improvement, and modification 23 of the existing port facilities owned by the authority with respect to the DeLong Mountain 24 transportation system and to finance the construction of new facilities to be owned by the 25 authority related to the DeLong Mountain transportation system or may finance these projects 26 by other means available to the authority. The principal amount of the bonds and other 27 financing provided by the authority may not exceed $80,000,000. 28 (b) The Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority may issue bonds to 29 finance the improvement and expansion of the existing port facilities located at the City of 30 Nome, Alaska, to be owned by the authority, or may finance the project by other means 31 available to the authority. The principal amount of the bonds and other financing provided
01 by the authority may not exceed $30,000,000. 02 (c) The Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority may issue bonds to 03 finance the development of a railroad right-of-way within a railroad and utility corridor from 04 near the village of Healy along the general alignment of the Stampede Trail to the eastern 05 boundary of Denali National Park, or may finance this project by other means available to the 06 authority. The principal amount of the bonds and other financing provided by the authority 07 may not exceed $28,000,000. 08 (d) The Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority may issue bonds to 09 finance the construction and improvement of the Hatcher Pass Ski Resort, phase 1, located in 10 the Matanuska-Susitna Borough, or may finance the project by other means available to the 11 authority. The principal amount of the bonds and other financing provided by the authority 12 may not exceed $15,000,000. 13 (e) Subsections (a) - (d) of this section constitute the legislative approvals as or if 14 required by AS 44.88.095(g), as amended by sec. 3 of this Act. 15 * Sec. 25. RIGHT-OF-WAY FOR RAILROAD AND UTILITY CORRIDOR. (a) The 16 Department of Natural Resources shall grant to the Alaska Industrial Development and Export 17 Authority on the terms the department determines to be appropriate, and as may be more 18 particularly described by the authority, a right-of-way comprised of the land described under 19 (b) of this section for the purpose of financing a project under AS 44.88 to enable Kantishna 20 Holdings, Inc. and its successors and assigns in interest, or Kantishna Holdings, Inc. or its 21 successors and assigns in interest, to develop a railroad and utility corridor comprised of the 22 land described under (b) of this section. The right-of-way grant to the authority may not 23 impair current valid property rights within the land described under (b) of this section. 24 (b) The right-of-way grant to the authority under (a) of this section must run from 25 near the village of Healy along the general alignment of the Stampede Trail to the eastern 26 boundary of Denali National Park, and must proceed through the following cadastral units: 27 (1) Township 12 South, Range 7 West 28 Section 7; 29 (2) Township 12 South, Range 8 West 30 Sections 7, 11, 12, and 14 - 23; 31 (3) Township 12 South, Range 9 West
01 Sections 1 - 18, inclusive; 02 (4) Township 12 South, Range 10 West 03 Sections 1 - 18, inclusive; 04 (5) Township 12 South, Range 11 West 05 Sections 11, 15 - 22 06 Sections 27 - 30: N 1/2. 07 (c) The right-of-way developed for the project described under (a) of this section must 08 be 300 feet in width plus any ancillary land necessary for the development. 09 (d) If the right-of-way developed for the project described under (a) of this section 10 uses less than all of the land contained in the right-of-way granted to the authority under (a) 11 of this section, the authority's right-of-way shall be modified to exclude the land not needed 12 for the project. 13 (e) In this section, "authority" means the Alaska Industrial Development and Export 14 Authority. 15 * Sec. 26. Section 22 of this Act takes effect June 30, 1998. 16 * Sec. 27. Except as provided in sec. 26 of this Act, this Act takes effect July 1, 1998.