§ 42-64-7 - Additional general powers.
SECTION 42-64-7
§ 42-64-7 Additional general powers.– In addition to the powers enumerated in § 42-64-6, except to the extentinconsistent with any specific provision of this chapter, the Rhode Islandeconomic development corporation shall have power:
(1) To undertake the planning, development, construction,financing, management, operation of any project, and all activities in relationthereto.
(2) To sell, mortgage, lease, exchange, transfer, orotherwise dispose of or encumber any port project, (or in the case of a sale,to accept a purchase money mortgage in connection with any port project) or togrant options for any purposes with respect to any real or personal property orinterest in real or personal property, all of the foregoing for considerationas the corporation shall determine. Any lease by the corporation to anotherparty may be for any part of the corporation's property, real or personal, forany period, upon any terms or conditions, with or without an option on the partof the lessee to purchase any or all of the leased property for anyconsideration, at or after the retirement of all indebtedness incurred by thecorporation on account thereof, as the corporation shall determine.
(ii) Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, thecorporation is expressly empowered to lease or sell any part of the real orpersonal property owned or controlled by the corporation to the state, or anydepartment of the state or to any municipality. The provisions of this sectionor of any other laws of this state (other than this chapter) restricting thepower of the state, its departments or any municipality, to lease or sellproperty, or requiring or prescribing publication of notice of intention tolease or sell, advertising for bids, the terms of contracts of lease or sale,that would in any manner interfere with the purpose of this section, which isto provide for the mutual cooperation by and between the corporation and thestate, its departments or any municipality, to the fullest extent possible, arenot applicable to leases and sales made pursuant to this section.
(3) To prepare or cause to be prepared plans, specifications,designs, and estimates of costs for the construction, reconstruction,rehabilitation, improvement, alteration, or repair of any project, and fromtime to time to modify those plans, specifications, designs, or estimates.
(4) To manage any project, whether then owned or leased bythe corporation, and to enter into agreements with the state or anymunicipality or any agency or their instrumentalities, or with any person,firm, partnership, or corporation, either public or private, for the purpose ofcausing any project to be managed.
(5) To provide advisory, consultative, training, andeducational services, technical assistance, and advice to any person, firm,partnership, or corporation, whether it is public or private, in order to carryout the purposes of this chapter.
(6) Subject to the provisions of any contract with noteholders or bond holders to consent to the modification, with respect to rate ofinterest, time of payments of any installment of principal or interest,security or any other term of any mortgage, mortgage loan, mortgage loancommitment, contract, or agreement of any kind to which the corporation is aparty.
(7) In connection with any property on which it has made amortgage loan, to foreclose on that property or commence an action to protector enforce any right conferred upon it by law, mortgage, contract, or otheragreement and to bid for and purchase the property at any foreclosure or anyother sale, or to acquire or take possession of the property; and in that eventthe corporation may complete, administer, pay the principal of, or interest onany obligations incurred in connection with the property, dispose of, andotherwise deal with the property in a manner as may be necessary or desirableto protect the interest of the corporation therein.
(8) As security for the payment of principal and interest onany bonds or notes or any agreements made in connection therewith, to mortgageand pledge any or all of its projects and property, whether then owned orthereafter acquired, and to pledge the revenues and receipts from all or partthereof, and to assign or pledge the leases, sales contracts or loan agreementsor other agreements on any portion or all of its projects and property and toassign or pledge the income received by virtue of the lease, sales contracts,loan agreements or other agreements.
(9) To invest any funds of the corporation, including fundsheld in reserve or sinking funds, or any moneys not required for immediate useor disbursement at the discretion of the corporation, in: (i) obligations ofthe state or the United States, (ii) obligations of the principal and interestof which are guaranteed by the state or the United States, (iii) obligations ofagencies and instrumentalities of the state or the United States, or (iv)certificates of deposits of banks and trust companies or shares of buildingloan associations organized under the laws of the state or doing business inthe state or (v) any obligations, securities, and other investments as shall bespecified in resolutions of the corporation.
(10) To engage the services of consultants on a contractbasis for rendering professional and technical assistance and advice, and toemploy architects, engineers, attorneys, accountants, construction, andfinancial experts and any other advisors, consultants, and agents as may benecessary in his or her judgment, and to fix their compensation.
(11) To contract for and to accept any gifts or grants orloans or funds or property or financial or other assistance in any form fromthe United States or any agency or instrumentality of the United States or fromthe state or any agency or instrumentality of the state or from any othersource and to comply, subject to the provisions of this chapter, with the termsand conditions of this contract.
(12) To enter into agreements with any municipality orpolitical subdivision, either directly or on behalf of any other party whichholds legal title to all or any portion of a project as the lessee from thecorporation designated pursuant to § 42-64-20(c), providing that thecorporation or the lessee shall pay annual sums in lieu of taxes to themunicipality or political subdivision of the state in respect to any real orpersonal property which is owned by the corporation or the lessee and islocated in the municipality or political subdivision.
(13) To borrow money and to issue negotiable bonds and notes,and to provide for the rights of the holders of these bonds and notes, for thepurpose of providing funds to pay all or any part of the cost of any portproject or for the purpose of refunding any of these bonds issued.
(14) To construct, acquire, own, repair, develop, operate,maintain, extend, and improve, rehabilitate, renovate, furnish, and equip oneor more port projects and to pay all or any part of the costs of these bondsand notes from the proceeds of bonds of the corporation or from anycontribution, gift, or donation or other funds made available to thecorporation for those purposes.
(15) To fix, charge and collect rents, fees, tolls, andcharges for the use of any port project and to alter and investigate rates, andpractices of charging, which affect port projects so as to increase commerce inthe state.
(16) To prescribe rules and regulations deemed necessary ordesirable to carry out the purposes of this chapter including rules andregulations to insure maximum use and proper operation of port projects.
(17) To establish penalties for violations of any order,rule, or regulation of the corporation, and a method of enforcing thesepenalties.
(18) To develop, maintain, and operate foreign trade zonesunder those terms and conditions that may be prescribed by law.
(19) To impose administrative penalties in accordance withthe provisions of § 42-64-9.2.
(20) To make assessments and impose reasonable and just usercharges, and to pay for those expenses that may be required by law or as may bedetermined by the corporation to be necessary for the maintenance and operationof the sewage treatment facility.
(21) To establish a sewage pretreatment program, and torequire as a condition to the grant or re-issuance of any approval, license, orpermit required under the program that the person applying for the approval,license or permit, pay to the corporation a reasonable fee based on the cost ofreviewing and acting upon the application and based on the costs ofimplementing the program. In addition, where a violation of any of theprovisions of this title or any permit, rule, regulation, or order issuedpursuant to this title have occurred, the violator shall reimburse thecorporation for the actual costs of implementing and enforcing the terms of thepermit, rule, regulation or order as a condition to the grant or re-issuance ofany approval.
(22) To assist urban communities revitalize their localeconomics.
(23) To provide assistance to minority businesses and toneighborhoods where there is insufficient economic and business investment.
(24) To support and assist entrepreneurial activity byminorities and by low and moderate income persons.
(25) To issue bonds and notes of the type and for thoseprojects and for those purposes specified in any Joint Resolution of theGeneral Assembly adopted by the Rhode Island house of representatives and theRhode Island senate; pursuant to § 18 of title 35 of the general lawsentitled "the Rhode Island Public Corporation Debt Management Act"; and to makesuch determinations, enter into such agreements, to deliver such instrumentsand to take such other actions as it shall deem necessary or desirable toeffectuate the financing of such projects.