2052-E - Powers of the authority.

* §  2052-e.  Powers  of  the  authority. The authority shall have the  power:    1. To sue and be sued.    2. To have a seal and alter the same.    3. To acquire in  the  name  of  the  authority,  hold,  sell,  lease,  mortgage  or  otherwise dispose of property, real, personal or mixed, or  any interest therein, without limitation, for its corporate purposes.    4. To take by eminent domain, in the name of the  authority,  pursuant  to  the  eminent domain procedure law, any real property within the area  of operation required by the authority to carry out the  powers  granted  by this title.    5.  To  collect, receive, transport, process, dispose of, sell, store,  convey, recycle and deal with, in any lawful manner and way, solid waste  and any products or byproducts thereof now  or  hereafter  developed  or  discovered, including any energy generated by the operation of any solid  waste  management facility. Any such disposal or sale may be effected on  such terms and  in  such  manner  as  the  authority  may  deem  proper;  provided,  however,  that  in  the  acquisition  of  any  real  property  designated as the site  for  any  facility,  the  authority  shall  give  consideration  to the present and any proposed land use character of the  area in which the site is to be located and zoning laws or  regulations,  if any, otherwise generally applicable to such area. The authority shall  not  determine  to  construct  a  facility  within its area of operation  without approval of the proposed location of the facility by a unanimous  vote of the governing body of the authority.  The  authority  shall  not  determine  to  construct  a  facility  outside  of its area of operation  without the approval of the solid waste  management  planning  unit  (as  that   term   is   defined  in  section  27-0107  of  the  environmental  conservation  law)  responsible  for  the  municipality  in  which  such  facility  is  to  be  constructed  and without the approval of the chief  executive officer and local legislative body of such municipality.    6. To plan, develop and construct projects and to pay the cost thereof  and to have the right to contract in relation thereto with the towns  or  other  municipalities or persons within or without the area of operation  and to own and operate, maintain, repair, improve, reconstruct,  enlarge  and extend, subject to the provisions of this title, any of its projects  acquired  or  constructed  under this title, to enter into contracts for  any and all such purposes and for the  management  and  operation  of  a  project,  and  to  sell,  lease,  mortgage  or  otherwise dispose of any  project  or  part  thereof  to  any  person   or   public   corporation,  municipality or the state, subject to such conditions and limitations as  the authority may determine to be in the public interest.    7.  To assist in the planning, development and construction of and the  financing of the cost of any  solid  waste  management  facility  to  be  located  in any of the local governments whether or not such solid waste  management facility is to be owned or operated by the  authority,  which  assistance may include loans to any person or public corporation.    8.  To  collect, receive from the United States, the state, any of the  local governments, any  other  municipality  or  public  corporation  or  person,  solid  waste  for the purpose of treatment or disposal thereof,  with the right of the authority to sell and dispose of any  products  or  by-products (including energy) of such process of treatment or disposal,  as the authority may deem proper.    9.   To   contract   with   any   of   the  local  governments,  other  municipalities, state agencies, agencies or authorities created pursuant  to state law, public corporations or persons within or without  each  of  the  local  governments,  for  the  purpose  of  receiving, treating and  disposing of solid waste, including,  without  limitation,  to  contractwith  municipalities, state agencies, public corporations or persons for  the delivery of all solid waste generated within  a  stated  area  to  a  specific solid waste management facility.    10.  To  make by-laws for the management and regulation of its affairs  and, subject to agreements with bondholders, for the regulation  of  the  use of any project or other property of the authority, which by-laws and  all   amendments  thereto,  duly  certified  by  the  secretary  of  the  authority, shall be filed in the office of  the  authority  and  in  the  office of the clerk of each of the local governments, and to provide for  the  enforcement of such by-laws by legal or equitable proceedings which  are  or  may  be  provided  or  authorized  by  law.  In  addition,  the  legislative bodies of the local governments and the other municipalities  within  the  area  of  operation  shall  have  power  to  prescribe that  violations of specific by-laws  of  the  authority,  including,  without  limitation,  any failure to comply with any by-law requiring the payment  of a fee or charge by any person in  connection  with  the  delivery  of  solid  waste  to  any  facility or any other use of any facility by such  person, shall constitute offenses or infractions  and  provide  for  the  punishment of violations thereof by civil and criminal penalties.    11.  With  the  consent  of the chief executive officer of each of the  affected local governments, to use officers or employees  of  each  such  local  government  and  to  pay  a proper portion of the compensation or  costs for the services for such officers or employees.    12. To make contracts and  to  execute  all  necessary  or  convenient  instruments,   including   evidences   of  indebtedness,  negotiable  or  non-negotiable.    13. To enter on any lands, waterways or premises for  the  purpose  of  making  surveys,  soundings  and  examinations,  any liability for which  shall not exceed actual damages.    14. To borrow money and to issue bonds and to fund or refund the same,  and to provide for the rights of the holders thereof.    15. To determine classifications of users, to fix and  collect  rates,  rentals,  fees  and  other  charges for the use of the facilities of, or  services rendered by, or any commodities furnished  by,  the  authority,  which  rates,  rentals,  fees  and  charges  may  be  different for each  classification of user, so as to  provide  revenues  sufficient  at  all  times  to  pay, as the same shall become due, the principal and interest  on the bonds of the authority, together with the maintenance  of  proper  reserves  therefor, in addition to paying, as the same shall become due,  the  expenses  of  operating  and  maintaining  the  properties  of  the  authority, together with proper reserves for debt service, depreciation,  maintenance and contingencies and all other obligations and indebtedness  of the authority. No such rates, rentals, fees and other charges for the  use  of  the facilities of, or services rendered by, the authority shall  be established, fixed or revised unless the authority shall have held  a  public  hearing  at  which  the  users of the facilities of, or services  rendered by, the authority together with the owners of  property  served  or  to  be  served  and others interested have had the opportunity to be  heard concerning the same.  Notice  of  such  public  hearing  shall  be  published  by  the  authority  at  least  ten  days  before the date set  therefor in at least one newspaper having a general circulation in  each  of  the  towns.  Such notice shall set forth the date, time and place of  such hearing and shall include a brief description of the matters to  be  considered  at  such hearing. A copy of the notice shall be filed in the  office of the clerk of each of the towns  and  shall  be  available  for  inspection  by the public. At any such hearing, any person shall have an  opportunity to be heard concerning the matters under consideration.  Any  decision  of  the  authority  on  matters  considered at any such publichearing shall be in writing and shall be  made  available  to  any  such  person  in  the office of the authority during regular office hours. All  rates, rentals, fees and other charges for the use of the facilities of,  or  services  rendered  by,  the authority shall be a lien upon the real  property  upon  which,  or  in  connection  with  which,  services  were  provided.  Any  such liens shall take precedence over all other liens or  encumbrances,  except  taxes  or  assessments.  The  treasurer  of   the  authority  shall prepare and transmit to the respective legislative body  of each town or the treasurer of the city, on or before the first day of  December in each year, a list of properties within each respective local  government for which such services were provided and which the  payments  of  rates, rentals, fees and other charges are in arrears for the period  of thirty days or more after the last day  fixed  for  payment  of  such  rates,  rentals,  fees and other charges without penalty. The list shall  contain a brief description of the properties for  which  such  services  were  provided,  the  names of the persons or corporations liable to pay  for the same, and the amount chargeable to each, including penalties and  interests  computed  to  December  thirty-first  of  that   year.   Each  legislative  body shall levy such sums against the properties liable and  shall state the amount thereof in a separate column in  the  annual  tax  rolls  of  the  various local governments under the heading "solid waste  disposal charge". Such amounts, when collected by the several  municipal  collectors  or receivers of taxes, shall be paid over to each respective  town treasurer or the treasurer of the city, who immediately  shall  pay  the  same  over to the treasurer of the authority. All of the provisions  of the tax laws of the state  covering  enforcement  and  collection  of  unpaid  taxes  or  assessments for special improvements not inconsistent  herewith shall apply to the collection of such  unpaid  rates,  rentals,  fees and other charges.    16. To enter into agreements, in its discretion, to pay annual sums in  lieu  of  taxes  to  the  towns  or  the city or any other municipality,  political subdivision or taxing district of the state in respect to  any  real property which is owned by the authority and located in such towns,  city, municipality, political subdivision or taxing district.    17.  To  accept  gifts, grants, loans or contributions from the United  States, the state or any agency or instrumentality of either of them, or  any municipality or from any person or public corporation, by bequest or  otherwise, and to expend the proceeds for any corporate purposes of  the  authority.    18.  To  covenant and consent that the interest on any of its bonds or  notes issued pursuant to this  title  shall  be  includible,  under  the  United   States  Internal  Revenue  Code  of  1986,  or  any  subsequent  corresponding internal revenue law of the United States, in gross income  of the holders of the bonds or notes to the same extent and in the  same  manner  that the interest on bills, bonds, notes or other obligations of  the United States is includible in  the  gross  income  of  the  holders  thereof under said Internal Revenue Code or any such subsequent law.    19.  To  do all things necessary or convenient to carry out the powers  expressly given in this title.    * NB There are 2 § 2052-e's