CSHB 471(FIN) am: "An Act amending the Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority Act and the powers and authority of the authority to finance construction and maintenance of the Knik Arm Bridge, to set and collect tolls, and to carry out its duties; and providing for an effective date."
00 CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 471(FIN) am 01 "An Act amending the Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority Act and the powers and 02 authority of the authority to finance construction and maintenance of the Knik Arm 03 Bridge, to set and collect tolls, and to carry out its duties; and providing for an effective 04 date." 05 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 06 * Section 1. AS 19.75.111 is amended to read: 07 Sec. 19.75.111. Powers and duties of the authority. (a) Except as otherwise 08 explicitly made applicable to the authority, the performance of the authority's 09 duties and the exercise of its powers, including its powers to issue bonds and 10 otherwise incur debt, shall be governed exclusively by this chapter. In furtherance 11 of its purposes, the authority may 12 (1) own, acquire, construct, develop, create, reconstruct, equip, 13 operate, maintain, extend, and improve the Knik Arm bridge and its appurtenant 14 facilities;
01 (2) sue and be sued; 02 (3) adopt a seal; 03 (4) adopt, amend, and repeal regulations under AS 44.62 and establish 04 bylaws; 05 (5) make and execute agreements, contracts, and all other instruments 06 with any public or private person, governmental unit or agency, corporation, or 07 other business entity lawfully conducting business in the United States for the 08 exercise of its powers and functions under this chapter and for the financing, design, 09 construction, maintenance, improvement, or operation of facilities, properties, or 10 projects of the authority, including making and executing contracts with any 11 person, firm, corporation, governmental agency, or other entity for the purpose of 12 (A) incurring indebtedness, obtaining investments in the 13 authority's projects, acquiring or granting lump sum payments for 14 services in advance or in arrears, grants, and other financing; and 15 (B) entering into public-private partnerships or service 16 contracts in any form; 17 (6) in its own name acquire, lease, rent, sell, or convey real and 18 personal property; 19 (7) issue and refund bonds [AND OTHERWISE INCUR 20 INDEBTEDNESS,] in accordance with this chapter [AS 19.75.211], in order to pay 21 the cost of the Knik Arm bridge and its appurtenant facilities; the authority may also 22 secure payment of the bonds [OR OTHER INDEBTEDNESS] as provided in this 23 chapter [AS 19.75.221]; 24 (8) incur other indebtedness, including lines of credit and 25 indebtedness to the Federal Highway Administration, United States Department 26 of Transportation, under 23 U.S.C. 601 - 610 (Transportation Infrastructure 27 Finance and Innovation Act of 1998), as amended, and secure that indebtedness 28 as provided in this chapter; 29 (9) apply for and accept gifts, grants, or loans from a federal agency or 30 an agency or instrumentality of the state, or from a municipality, private organization, 31 or other source, including obtaining title to state, local government, or privately
01 owned land, directly or through a department of the state having jurisdiction of 02 the land; 03 (10) [(9)] fix and collect fees, rents, tolls, rates, or other charges for the 04 use of the Knik Arm bridge and appurtenant facilities, or for a service developed, 05 operated, or provided by the authority; notwithstanding AS 37.10.050(a), fees, rents, 06 tolls, rates, and other charges fixed and collected under this paragraph may exceed the 07 actual operating cost of the use of the bridge, facility, or service; 08 (11) bring civil actions, refer criminal actions to the appropriate 09 authority, and take other actions or enter into agreements with law enforcement 10 and collection agencies to enforce the collection of its fees, rents, tolls, rates, other 11 charges, penalties, and other obligations; 12 (12) [(10)] pledge, encumber, transfer, or otherwise obligate 13 revenue derived by the authority from the ownership, use, or operation of toll 14 facilities, including fees, rents, tolls, rates, charges, or other revenue of the authority 15 or money that the legislature may appropriate, except a state tax or license, as 16 security for bonds or other indebtedness or agreements of the authority; 17 (13) [(11)] deposit or invest its funds, subject to agreements with 18 bondholders; 19 (14) [(12)] procure insurance against any loss in connection with its 20 operation; 21 (15) [(13)] contract for and engage the services of consultants, experts, 22 and financial and technical advisors that the authority considers necessary for the 23 exercise of its powers and functions under this chapter; 24 (16) [(14)] apply for, obtain, hold, and use permits, licenses, or 25 approvals from appropriate agencies of the state, the United States, a foreign country, 26 and any other proper agency in the same manner as any other person; 27 (17) [(15)] perform reconnaissance studies and engineering, survey, 28 and design studies with respect to the Knik Arm bridge and its appurtenant facilities; 29 (18) [(16)] exercise, on prior approval of the governor, powers of 30 eminent domain or file a declaration of taking as necessary for the Knik Arm bridge 31 and appurtenant facilities under AS 09.55.240 - 09.55.460 to acquire land or an
01 interest in land the authority's exercise of powers under this paragraph may not 02 exceed the permissible exercise of those powers by the state; 03 (19) [(17)] confer with municipal and other governments, metropolitan 04 planning organizations, and the department, concerning the Knik Arm bridge; 05 (20) [(18)] do all acts and things necessary to carry out the powers 06 expressly granted or necessarily implied in this chapter; nothing in this chapter 07 limits the powers of the authority that are expressly granted or necessarily 08 implied. 09 (b) The authority shall 10 (1) prepare an annual report of its operations to include a balance 11 sheet, an income statement, a statement of changes in financial position, a 12 reconciliation of changes in equity accounts, a summary of significant accounting 13 principles, an auditor's report, comments regarding the year's business, and prospects 14 for the next year; the report shall be completed by the third day of each regular session 15 of the legislature, and the authority shall notify the governor, the commissioner of the 16 department, the presiding officers of each house of the legislature, and the Legislative 17 Budget and Audit Committee that the report is available; 18 (2) comply with the provisions of AS 37.07 (Executive Budget Act), 19 except that AS 37.07 does not apply to the activities of the authority that relate to the 20 authority's borrowing of money as provided in this chapter, including the issuing of its 21 obligations or evidence of that borrowing and the repayment of the debt obligation; 22 (3) establish a personnel management system for hiring employees and 23 setting employee-benefit packages; 24 (4) establish procedures, rules, and rates governing per diem and travel 25 expenses of the employees of the authority in substantial conformity to statutes, 26 procedures, rules, and rates applicable to state employees of similar state entities; 27 (5) coordinate the exercise of its powers to plan, design, construct, 28 operate, and maintain the Knik Arm bridge with the department, and with the mayors 29 of the Municipality of Anchorage and the Matanuska-Susitna Borough; 30 (6) have the exclusive authority to determine and fix fees, rents, 31 tolls, rates, and other charges, including the tolls for the use of the bridge and
01 appurtenant facilities and for the use of all other properties under the control of 02 or owned or managed by the authority. 03 * Sec. 2. AS 19.75 is amended by adding a new section to read: 04 Sec. 19.75.113. Assets, funds, and revenue of the authority. (a) The 05 Department of Revenue shall separately account for all funds, assets, and revenue of 06 the authority. 07 (b) The deposit or investment of money in the authority's funds may be made 08 as the board determines. The interest earned on or profits derived from the deposit, 09 investment, or sale of an investment by the authority are funds of the authority. 10 * Sec. 3. AS 19.75.211 is amended to read: 11 Sec. 19.75.211. Bonds of the authority. Notwithstanding any other 12 provision of law, the [THE] authority may borrow money and issue and refund 13 bonds on which the principal and interest are paid out of and secured by the gross 14 revenue derived by the authority from the ownership, use, and operation of its 15 toll facilities, including [PAYABLE FROM] money derived from the fees, rents, 16 tolls, rates, charges, and other revenue of the authority under this chapter and any 17 other revenue or money that the legislature may appropriate, except a state tax 18 or license. Before issuing bonds for the Knik Arm bridge, the authority shall submit to 19 the state bond committee a description of the bond issue and a preliminary prospectus, 20 offering circular, or official statement relating to the bond issue. Bonds may not be 21 issued unless the state bond committee finds, based upon the information submitted by 22 the authority under this section and other information that is reasonably available to 23 the committee, that the Knik Arm bridge revenue and other revenue available to the 24 authority can be reasonably expected to be adequate for payment of the principal of 25 and interest on the bonds to be issued and that issuance of the bonds by the authority 26 would not be expected to adversely affect the ability of the state or its political 27 subdivisions to market bonds. [BONDS MAY NOT BE ISSUED UNLESS THE 28 PRINCIPAL AMOUNT OF THE BOND ISSUE IS AUTHORIZED BY LAW.] 29 * Sec. 4. AS 19.75.211 is amended by adding new subsections to read: 30 (b) The bonds of the authority may be sold in the amounts or series and at the 31 time determined by its board of directors. Bonds, or a series of bonds, may not be sold
01 if the effective interest rate over the life of the bonds exceeds 11 percent a year or a 02 rate of interest that is 125 percent of the rate of the Bond Buyer Index of 20 Municipal 03 Bond Average Yields for the week previous to the date of the sale of the bonds, 04 whichever is higher. 05 (c) The authority may issue bonds in an aggregate amount not to exceed 06 $500,000,000, plus the cost of issuance. 07 (d) The amount of refunding bonds that may be issued by the authority and 08 bond premiums may not be included in the aggregate amount, but may be in addition 09 to the amount authorized by (c) of this section. 10 * Sec. 5. AS 19.75.221 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 11 (h) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the authority may establish 12 other funds and reserves as the board of directors may determine reasonable and 13 prudent for the issuance of bonds or for the conduct of the business and affairs of the 14 authority. The interest earned on or profit derived from these funds and reserves shall 15 be the property of the authority. 16 * Sec. 6. AS 19.75.241(b) is amended to read: 17 (b) The bonds issued by the authority do not constitute an indebtedness or 18 other liability of the state or of a political subdivision of the state other than the 19 authority, but shall be payable solely from the income, receipts, or other money or 20 property of the authority. All documents published by the authority or to which the 21 authority is a signatory and used in or for the issuance of bonds by the authority 22 must state that they are prepared by or for the authority. 23 * Sec. 7. AS 19.75.241(c) is amended to read: 24 (c) The authority may not pledge the faith or credit of the state or of a political 25 subdivision of the state other than the authority, and the issuance of a bond by the 26 authority does not directly, indirectly, or contingently obligate the state or a political 27 subdivision of the state to apply money from, levy, or pledge any form of taxation to 28 the payment of the bond or to make payments due on the bonds from any source of 29 funds not pledged for repayment of the bonds. 30 * Sec. 8. AS 19.75 is amended by adding new sections to article 2 to read: 31 Sec. 19.75.330. Bond terms. (a) The bonds of the authority mature at the time
01 fixed by the board. The bonds may be subject to redemption before their fixed 02 maturities as determined by the board, or by the authority's executive director when 03 delegated that responsibility under AS 19.75.332, and with the premium fixed by the 04 board, but a bond may not be subject to redemption before its fixed maturity date 05 unless the right to redeem that bond is expressly mentioned on the face of the bond. 06 The bonds 07 (1) may be in denominations determined by the board; 08 (2) may be issued in coupon form or in fully registered form, and may 09 be registrable as to principal or both principal and interest, all under regulations and 10 conditions the board provides; 11 (3) are payable as to principal and interest at the place determined by 12 the board; 13 (4) shall be signed on behalf of the authority as the board may direct; 14 the signatures may be facsimile signatures; each of the interest coupons, if any, 15 attached to the bonds shall be signed by the facsimile signatures of the officials as the 16 board may direct; 17 (5) shall have the seal of the authority impressed, printed, or 18 lithographed on them; and 19 (6) shall be issued under and subject to the terms, conditions, and 20 covenants, providing for the payment of the principal of and interest on the bonds and 21 the other terms, conditions, covenants, and protective features safeguarding this 22 payment and relating to the operations, maintenance, or capital improvements as found 23 necessary by the board, which covenants may include a provision requiring the setting 24 aside and maintenance of certain reserves to secure the payment of the principal and 25 interest or for operations, maintenance, or capital improvements. 26 (b) The board may select a trustee or trustees for the holders of the bonds or 27 any series of the bonds, for the safeguarding and disbursement of any of the money in 28 any of the funds created under this chapter or for the duties of authentication, delivery, 29 and registration of the bonds as the board may determine. The board shall fix the 30 rights, duties, powers, and obligations of the trustee or trustees. 31 (c) In determining the matters and questions relating to the issuance and sale
01 of the bonds and the fixing of the maturities, terms, conditions, covenants, and other 02 subjects of the bonds as provided in (a) and (b) of this section, the decisions of the 03 board shall be those found to be reasonably necessary for the best interests of the 04 authority and the construction, operation, and maintenance of its facilities, and those 05 that will accomplish the most advantageous sale of the bonds, giving due regard to (1) 06 necessary or normal costs of maintenance and operation; (2) renewals and 07 replacements of and repairs to the toll facilities; (3) all improvements to toll facilities 08 and property of toll facilities owned, used, operated, or leased in connection with toll 09 facilities; (4) the future growth and expansion of all of the facilities; and (5) the 10 possibility of additional revenue bond financing for toll facilities purposes. A decision 11 of the board as expressed in any bond resolution, is final when any bonds have been 12 issued under the bond resolution. 13 (d) A bond resolution may provide that the bonds issued must contain a recital 14 that the bonds are issued under this chapter, and any bonds containing this recital are 15 conclusively considered to be valid and to have been issued in conformity with this 16 chapter. 17 (e) The validity of the authorization and issuance of bonds is not affected by 18 any proceeding for the acquisition or construction of the additions, improvements, or 19 facilities for which the bonds have been issued or by any contract in connection with 20 the acquisition or construction. 21 Sec. 19.75.332. Bond resolution. (a) When issuing bonds of the authority, the 22 board shall adopt the bond resolution and approve all other documents and 23 proceedings necessary for the issuance, sale, and delivery of the bonds or any part or 24 series of them. The bond resolution shall fix the aggregate principal amount and 25 denomination, date, maturities, place or places of payment, rights of redemption, if 26 any, terms, form, conditions, and covenants of the bonds or each series of them. The 27 board shall also determine and provide for the date and manner of sale of the bonds, 28 and shall provide where the notice of sale, if any, is to be published. 29 (b) The board may delegate to the authority's executive director the authority 30 to approve final principal maturities and dates, interest rates, redemption rights, and 31 interest payment dates under the terms and conditions the board determines by
01 resolution. 02 Sec. 19.75.334. Enforcement by holder. The holder of any bonds or the 03 trustee for the holders of the bonds or any series of them, may, by appropriate 04 proceedings in state court, compel the transfer, setting aside, and payment of money 05 and the enforcement of all of the terms, conditions, and covenants as required and 06 provided in AS 19.75.330 and 19.75.332 and in the bond resolution. 07 Sec. 19.75.336. Bond negotiability. The bonds and the coupons attached to 08 them are fully negotiable instruments under the laws of the state. 09 Sec. 19.75.338. Refunding. (a) The bonds or any part of them may be 10 refunded at or before their maturity by the issuance of refunding revenue bonds of the 11 authority if, in the opinion of the board, refunding is advantageous to and in the best 12 interest of the authority. 13 (b) The board shall adopt the resolution authorizing refunding and all other 14 documents and proceedings necessary for the issuance, exchange or sale, and delivery 15 of the bonds. All provisions of AS 19.75.211 - 19.75.271, except AS 19.75.211(c), and 16 AS 19.75.330 - 19.75.340 applicable to revenue bonds are applicable to the refunding 17 bonds and to the issuance, sale, or exchange of the bonds, except as otherwise 18 provided in this section. 19 (c) Refunding bonds may be issued in a principal amount sufficient to provide 20 money for the payment of all bonds to be refunded by them and, in addition, for the 21 payment of all expenses incident to the calling, retiring, or paying of the outstanding 22 bonds, and the issuance of the refunding bonds. These expenses include, without 23 limitation, 24 (1) the difference in amount between the par value of the refunding 25 bonds and any amount less than par for which the refunding bonds are sold; 26 (2) any amount necessary to be made available for the payment of 27 interest on the refunding bonds from the date of sale of the bonds to the date of 28 payment of the bonds to be refunded or to the date on which the bonds to be refunded 29 will be paid under the call of the bonds or agreement with the holders of the bonds; 30 (3) the premium, if any, necessary to be paid in order to call or retire 31 the outstanding bonds; and
01 (4) the interest accruing on the outstanding bonds to the date of the call 02 or retirement and other costs of issuance and refunding. 03 Sec. 19.75.340. Bonds as legal investments. Bonds of the authority, including 04 toll facilities bonds, are legal investments for all banks, trust companies, savings 05 banks, savings and loan associations, and other persons carrying on a banking 06 business, all insurance companies and other persons carrying on an insurance business, 07 and all executors, administrators, trustees, and other fiduciaries. The bonds may be 08 accepted as security for deposits of all money of the state and its political subdivisions. 09 * Sec. 9. AS 19.75 is amended by adding new sections to read: 10 Sec. 19.75.915. Liability for payment of tolls. The owner of a vehicle using a 11 facility owned, controlled, or managed by the authority for which a toll or fee is 12 imposed is liable for the payment of the toll or fee solely because of the vehicle 13 ownership, unless the vehicle, except a rental vehicle, is used without the owner's 14 knowledge and incurs the toll or fee during operation. 15 Sec. 19.75.920. Statutory construction. This chapter shall be liberally 16 construed in order to carry out the purposes for which it was enacted. All existing laws 17 in conflict with this chapter are superseded as necessary to accomplish the purposes of 18 this chapter. 19 * Sec. 10. AS 19.75.980 is amended to read: 20 Sec. 19.75.980. Definitions. In this chapter, except as otherwise provided 21 and unless the context requires otherwise, 22 (1) "authority" means the Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority; 23 (2) "board" means the board of directors of the authority; 24 (3) "department" means the Department of Transportation and Public 25 Facilities; 26 (4) "state bond committee" means the state bond committee 27 created by AS 37.15.110. 28 * Sec. 11. This Act takes effect immediately under AS 01.10.070(c).