2431 - Legislative findings.
§ 2431. Legislative findings. It is hereby declared to be in the public interest and to be the policy of the state to foster and promote by all reasonable means the provision of adequate capital markets and facilities for borrowing money by its several municipalities for the financing of their public improvements or purposes from proceeds of bonds or notes issued by those municipalities, and to assist those municipalities in fulfilling their needs for improvements by use of creation of indebtedness and to the extent possible to reduce costs of indebtedness to taxpayers and residents of the state and to encourage continued investor interest in the purchase of bonds or notes of municipalities as sound and preferred securities for investment. It is in the public interest and is the policy of the state to encourage its municipalities to continue their independent undertakings of public improvements and purposes and the financing thereof and to assist them therein by making funds available at reduced interest costs for orderly financing of public improvements and purposes, particularly for those municipalities not otherwise able to borrow for those purposes. It is further declared the state should exercise its power in the interest of its municipalities to further and implement those policies by authorizing a state instrumentality to be created as a body corporate and politic to have full powers to borrow money and to issue its bonds and notes to make funds available through the facilities of that instrumentality at reduced rates and on more favorable terms for borrowing by municipalities through the purchase by that instrumentality of the bonds or notes of municipalities and by granting broad powers to the instrumentality to accomplish and to carry out the aforesaid policies of the state which are in the public interest of the state and of its taxpayers and residents. It is further declared to be in the public interest and is the policy of the state that such instrumentality should so conduct its operations, including the full utilization of existing public corporations, as to provide the lowest rates in terms of borrowing to municipalities as is consistent with a self-supporting operation with no expectation of subsidization with state funds. It is further declared to be in the public interest and it is the policy of the state to provide a means by which certain cities may receive moneys to refund certain property taxes determined to be in excess of state constitutional tax limits or to reimburse such cities for the prior refunding of such taxes. It is further declared to be in the public interest and it is the policy of the state to provide a means by which certain special program municipalities may receive moneys for the purpose of paying the cost of settling litigation involving the city school districts of such special program municipalities and the teachers' unions thereof. It is hereby further declared that many municipalities are owed millions of dollars annually in unpaid property taxes. Such uncollected taxes adversely impact the municipalities' ability to timely collect the moneys necessary to meet their operating expenditures and provide for the delivery of necessary local government services, amplifying the risk of future real property tax increases and negatively impacting those taxpayers who timely remit payment. It is hereby further declared that limited means exist for municipalities to expedite the collection of such delinquent taxes and that as a result such delinquencies often remain unpaid thereby creating a lien against the affected real property and that the sale of such tax liens will enable municipalities to expedite the receipt of anticipated revenues and provide a funding source which will enable municipalities to more effectively carry out their public purposes. It is further declared that the state should exercise its power in the interest of its municipalities to facilitatethe sale and purchase of tax liens by authorizing such instrumentality, a trust or other single purpose entity or entities created by such instrumentality, to have full powers to borrow money and to issue its bonds, notes, certificates of participation or other obligations to make funds available to municipalities through the facilities of said instrumentality by the purchase through that instrumentality of the delinquent tax liens created and held by municipalities and by granting broad powers to such instrumentality to accomplish and to carry out the aforesaid policies of the state which are in the public interest of the state and of its taxpayers and residents. It is hereby further found and declared that, on September eleventh, two thousand one, events occurred that resulted in dramatic and unforeseen negative fiscal changes which affected the state and certain municipalities thereof. The impact of these events, if left unremediated, is contrary to the public interest of the state and such municipalities, and threatens a decline in the general prosperity and economic welfare of the inhabitants of such municipalities and the people of the state. Accordingly, it is a matter of substantial and imperative state concern that such municipalities not fail to address local needs and thereby suffer adverse consequences. It is further declared to be in the public interest and it is the policy of the state to provide a means for such municipalities to receive assistance to meet their obligations and thereby be assisted in relieving the effects of the negative fiscal changes caused by the September eleventh, two thousand one events. It is further declared to be in the public interest and it is the policy of the state to provide a means by which the enlarged city school district of the city of Troy may receive moneys for the specific object and purpose of liquidating the projected accumulated deficit in its general fund at the close of its fiscal year ending June thirtieth, two thousand two, including any budget notes and revenue anticipation notes which may be a part of the deficit. It is further declared to be in the public interest and it is the policy of the state to provide a means by which the Shoreham-Wading River Central School District may receive moneys for the specific object and purpose of mitigating the adverse fiscal impact resulting from the loss to the district of a significant majority of the taxable property that it depended on for support of its educational programs. It is further declared to be in the public interest and it is the policy of the state to provide a means by which a municipality in the state can take advantage of the opportunities for borrowing to provide for public improvements afforded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and to do so by authorizing a state instrumentality to borrow money and use the proceeds to purchase obligations issued by a municipality under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, thereby resulting in efficiencies and interest rate savings to the municipality. It is further declared to be in the public interest and it is the policy of the state to provide a means by which state and local first- responder public safety agencies can establish regional communications capabilities, intended to serve as a part of a statewide interoperable network, and to do so by authorizing a state instrumentality to borrow money and use the proceeds to purchase obligations issued by a municipality to fund these communications capabilities, thereby resulting in savings for taxpayers.