73-10c-4 - Credit enhancement and interest buy-down agreements -- Loans or grants -- Hardship grants.
73-10c-4. Credit enhancement and interest buy-down agreements -- Loans orgrants -- Hardship grants.
(1) On behalf of the state, the Water Quality Board and the Drinking Water Board mayeach enter into credit enhancement agreements with political subdivisions containing terms andprovisions that the acting board determines will reasonably improve the security for ormarketability of drinking water and wastewater project obligations, including any of thefollowing:
(a) a term providing security for drinking water and wastewater project obligations, asprovided in Subsection 73-10c-6(2)(b), by agreeing to purchase the drinking water or wastewaterproject obligations of, or to make loans to, political subdivisions from a subaccount of thesecurity fund for the purpose of preventing defaults in the payment of principal and interest ondrinking water and wastewater project obligations;
(b) a term making loans to political subdivisions to pay the cost of obtaining:
(i) letters of credit from banks, savings and loan institutions, insurance companies, orother financial institutions;
(ii) municipal bond insurance; or
(iii) other forms of insurance or security to provide security for drinking water andwastewater project obligations; and
(c) a term providing other methods and assistance to political subdivisions that arereasonable and proper to enhance the marketability of or security for drinking water andwastewater project obligations.
(2) (a) The Drinking Water Board and the Water Quality Board may each make loansfrom a security fund subaccount to political subdivisions to finance all or part of drinking waterand wastewater project costs by following the procedures and requirements of Sections73-10c-4.1 and 73-10c-4.2.
(b) These loans may only be made after credit enhancement agreements, interestbuy-down agreements, and all other financing alternatives have been evaluated by the actingboard and the board determines those options are unavailable or unreasonably expensive for thesubdivision requesting assistance.
(c) Loans may be made from the security fund subaccount at interest rates determined bythe board.
(3) (a) The Drinking Water Board and the Water Quality Board may each make loans orgrants from the security fund to political subdivisions for interest buy-down agreements fordrinking water or wastewater project obligations.
(b) The Drinking Water Board may make loans or grants from the security account topolitical subdivisions for planning for drinking water projects.
(4) (a) Of the total amount of money annually available to the Drinking Water Board andWater Quality Board for financial assistance to political subdivisions, at least 10% shall beallocated by each board for credit enhancement and interest buy-down agreements.
(b) The requirement specified in Subsection (4)(a) shall apply only so long as sales anduse tax is transferred to the Utah Wastewater Loan Program Subaccount and Drinking WaterLoan Program Subaccount as provided in Section 59-12-103.
(5) To the extent money is available in the hardship grant subaccounts of the securityfund, the Drinking Water Board and the Water Quality Board may each make grants to politicalsubdivisions that meet the drinking water or wastewater project loan considerations respectively,
but whose projects are determined by the granting board to not be economically feasible unlessgrant assistance is provided.
(6) The Drinking Water and Water Quality Boards may at any time transfer money out oftheir respective hardship grant subaccounts of the security fund to their respective loan programsubaccounts.
(7) The Water Quality Board may make a grant from the Hardship Grant Program forWastewater Projects Subaccount created in Subsection 73-10c-5(2)(c) for a nonpoint sourceproject as provided by Section 73-10c-4.5 if:
(a) money is available in the subaccount; and
(b) the Water Quality Board determines that the project would not be economicallyfeasible unless a grant were made.
Amended by Chapter 142, 2007 General Session