08 LC 34
1597S
The
House Committee on Transportation offers the following substitute to HB
1019:
A
BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
AN ACT
To
amend Article 2 of Chapter 10 of Title 32 of the Official Code of Georgia
Annotated, relating to the State Road and Tollway Authority, so as to enact the
"Georgia Transportation Infrastructure Bank Act"; to create the Georgia
Transportation Infrastructure Bank as an instrumentality of the state within the
State Road and Tollway Authority; to provide for a short title; to provide for
governance of the bank; to provide for the functions of the bank in general and
in particular with respect to the financing of transportation projects of
government units; to define terms; to provide for the powers, duties,
governance, and operations of the bank; to provide for capitalization of the
bank and funding sources; to authorize the issuance of bonds by the authority
for purposes of the bank; to provide for other related matters; to provide an
effective date; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION
1.
Article
2 of Chapter 10 of Title 32 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating
to the State Road and Tollway Authority, is amended by revising paragraph (6.1)
of Code Section 32-10-60, relating to definitions, as follows:
"(6.1)
'Revenue' or 'revenues' shall mean any and all moneys received from the
collection of tolls authorized by Code Sections 32-10-64 and 32-10-65, any
federal highway or transit funds and reimbursements, any other federal highway
or transit assistance received from time to time by the authority,
and
any other moneys of the authority pledged for such
purpose, and
any other moneys received by the authority pursuant to the Georgia
Transportation Infrastructure
Bank."
SECTION
2.
Said
article is further amended by adding at its end a new Part 3 to read as
follows:
"Part
3
32-10-120.
This
part shall be known and may be cited as the 'Georgia Transportation
Infrastructure Bank Act.'
32-10-121.
(a)
There shall be created within the State Road and Tollway Authority an
instrumentality of the state to be known as the Georgia Transportation
Infrastructure Bank.
(b)
The bank shall be governed by the board of the State Road and Tollway Authority
as provided in this chapter.
(c)
The corporate purpose of the bank is to assist in financing qualified projects
by providing loans and other financial assistance to government units for
constructing and improving highway and transportation facilities necessary for
public purposes, including economic development. The exercise by the bank of a
power conferred in this part is an essential public function.
(d)
The bank shall establish and maintain at least the four following accounts in
the authority fund:
(1)
State and local roadway account;
(2)
State and local nonroadway account;
(3)
Federal roadway account; and
(4)
Federal nonroadway account.
32-10-122.
As
used in this part, the term:
(1)
'Bank' means the Georgia Transportation Infrastructure Bank.
(2)
'Board' means the board of the State Road and Tollway Authority.
(3)
'Department of Transportation' means the Georgia Department of Transportation
and its successors.
(4)
'Eligible costs' means, as applied to a qualified project to be financed from
the federal roadway account, the costs that are permitted under applicable
federal laws, requirements, procedures, and guidelines in regard to
establishing, operating, and providing assistance from the bank. As applied to
a qualified project to be financed from the state and local roadway account,
these costs include the costs of preliminary engineering, traffic and revenue
studies, environmental studies, right of way acquisition, legal and financial
services associated with the development of the qualified project, construction,
construction management, facilities, and other costs necessary for the qualified
project. As applied to any qualified project to be financed from the federal
nonroadway account, these costs include the costs of preliminary engineering,
traffic and revenue studies, environmental studies, right of way acquisition,
legal and financial services associated with the development of the qualified
project, construction, construction management, equipment, facilities, and other
nonoperating costs necessary for the qualified project. As applied to any
qualified project to be financed from the state and local nonroadway account,
these costs include the costs of preliminary engineering, traffic and revenue
studies, environmental studies, right of way acquisition, legal and financial
services associated with the development of the qualified project, construction,
construction management, equipment, facilities, and other nonoperating costs
necessary for the qualified project.
(5)
'Eligible project' means a highway, including bridges, air transport and airport
facilities, and rails, or transit or bicycle facility project which provides
public benefits by either enhancing mobility and safety, promoting economic
development, or increasing the quality of life and general welfare of the
public. The term 'eligible project' also includes mass transit systems
including, but not limited to, monorail and monobeam mass transit systems.
There may be included as part of any such project all improvements necessary to
the full utilization thereof, including site preparation, roads and streets,
sidewalks, water supply, outdoor lighting, belt line railroad sidings and lead
tracks, bridges, causeways, terminals for railroad, automotive, and air
transportation, transportation facilities incidental to the project, and the
dredging and improving of harbors and waterways, none of which foregoing
descriptive words shall be construed to constitute a limitation.
(6)
'Federal accounts' means, collectively, the separate account for federal roadway
funds and federal nonroadway funds.
(7)
'Financing agreement' means any agreement entered into between the bank and a
qualified borrower pertaining to a loan or other financial assistance. This
agreement may contain, in addition to financial terms, provisions relating to
the regulation and supervision of a qualified project, or other provisions as
the board may determine. The term 'financing agreement' includes, without
limitation, a loan agreement, trust indenture, security agreement, reimbursement
agreement, guarantee agreement, bond or note, ordinance or resolution, or
similar instrument.
(8)
'Government unit' means a municipal corporation, county, community improvement
district, or any public operator of transit, including combinations of two or
more of these entities, acting jointly to construct, own, or operate a qualified
project, or any other state authority, board, commission, agency, or department
which may construct, own, or operate a qualified project.
(9)
'Loan' means an obligation subject to repayment which is provided by the bank to
a qualified borrower for all or a part of the eligible costs of a qualified
project. A loan may be disbursed in anticipation of reimbursement for or direct
payment of the eligible costs of a qualified project.
(10)
'Loan obligation' means a bond, note, or other evidence of an obligation issued
by a qualified borrower.
(11)
'Other financial assistance' includes, but shall not be limited to, grants,
contributions, credit enhancement, capital or debt reserves for bonds or debt
instrument financing, interest rate subsidies, provision of letters of credit
and credit instruments, provision of bond or other debt financing instrument
security, and other lawful forms of financing and methods of leveraging funds
that are approved by the board, and in the case of federal funds, as allowed by
federal law.
(12)
'Project revenues' or 'revenues' means all rates, rents, fees, assessments,
charges, and other receipts derived or to be derived by a qualified borrower
from a qualified project or made available from a special source, and, as
provided in the applicable financing agreement, derived from any system of which
the qualified project is a part or from any other revenue producing facility
under the ownership or control of the qualified borrower including, without
limitation, proceeds of grants, gifts, appropriations and loans, including the
proceeds of loans made by the bank, investment earnings, reserves for capital
and current expenses, proceeds of insurance or condemnation and proceeds from
the sale or other disposition of property and from any other special source as
may be provided by the qualified borrower.
(13)
'Qualified borrower' means any government unit authorized to construct, operate,
or own a qualified project.
(14)
'Qualified project' means an eligible project which has been selected by the
bank to receive a loan or other financial assistance from the bank to defray an
eligible cost.
(15)
'State and local accounts' means, collectively, the separate account for state
and local roadway funds and state and local nonroadway funds.
32-10-123.
In
administering the affairs of the bank, the board may exercise any or all of the
powers granted to the authority under Parts 1 and 2 of this article, as well as
the powers granted in this part. Without limiting the generality of the
foregoing, the board is specifically authorized to issue bonds for the purposes
of the bank, in the same general manner provided in Part 2 of this
article.
32-10-124.
(a)
In addition to the powers contained elsewhere in this article, the board has all
power necessary, useful, or appropriate to fund, operate, and administer the
bank, and to perform its other functions including, but not limited to, the
power to:
(1)
Have perpetual succession;
(2)
Adopt, promulgate, amend, and repeal bylaws, not inconsistent with provisions in
this part for the administration of the bank´s affairs and the
implementation of its functions, including the right of the board to select
qualifying projects and to provide loans and other financial
assistance;
(3)
Sue and be sued in the name of the bank;
(4)
Have a seal and alter it at its pleasure, although the failure to affix the seal
does not affect the validity of an instrument executed on behalf of the
bank;
(5)
Make loans to qualified borrowers to finance the eligible costs of qualified
projects and to acquire, hold, and sell loan obligations at prices and in a
manner as the board determines advisable;
(6)
Provide qualified borrowers with other financial assistance necessary to defray
eligible costs of a qualified project;
(7)
Enter into contracts, arrangements, and agreements with qualified borrowers and
other persons and execute and deliver all financing agreements and other
instruments necessary or convenient to the exercise of the powers granted in
this part;
(8)
Enter into agreements with a department, agency, or instrumentality of the
United States or of this state or another state for the purpose of providing for
the financing of qualified projects;
(9)
Establish:
(A)
Policies and procedures for the making and administering of loans and other
financial assistance; and
(B)
Fiscal controls and accounting procedures to ensure proper accounting and
reporting by the bank and government units;
(10)
Acquire by purchase, lease, donation, or other lawful means and sell, convey,
pledge, lease, exchange, transfer, and dispose of all or any part of its
properties and assets of every kind and character or any interest in it to
further the public purpose of the bank;
(11)
Procure insurance, guarantees, letters of credit, and other forms of collateral
or security or credit support from any public or private entity or
instrumentality of the United States for the payment of any bonds issued by it,
including the power to pay premiums or fees on any insurance, guarantees,
letters of credit, and other forms of collateral or security or credit
support;
(12)
Collect or authorize the trustee under any trust indenture securing any bonds to
collect amounts due under any loan obligations owned by it, including taking the
action required to obtain payment of any sums in default;
(13)
Unless restricted under any agreement with holders of bonds, consent to any
modification with respect to the rate of interest, time, and payment of any
installment of principal or interest, or any other term of any loan obligations
owned by it;
(14)
Borrow money through the issuance of bonds and other forms of indebtedness as
provided in this article;
(15)
Expend funds to obtain accounting, management, legal, financial consulting, and
other professional services necessary to the operations of the
bank;
(16)
Expend funds credited to the bank as the board determines necessary for the
costs of administering the operations of the bank;
(17)
Establish advisory committees as the board determines appropriate, which may
include individuals from the private sector with banking and financial
expertise, including the requirement that the bank shall consult with the
Department of Transportation for the purpose of implementing the project
accounting procedures required by subparagraph (a)(9)(B) of Code Section
32-10-124;
(18)
Procure insurance against losses in connection with its property, assets, or
activities including insurance against liability for its acts or the acts of its
employees or agents or to establish cash reserves to enable it to act as a
self-insurer against any and all such losses;
(19)
Collect fees and charges in connection with its loans or other financial
assistance;
(20)
Apply for, receive, and accept from any source, aid, grants, or contributions of
money, property, labor, or other things of value to be used to carry out the
purposes of this part subject to the conditions upon which the aid, grants, or
contributions are made;
(21)
Enter into contracts or agreements for the servicing and processing of financial
agreements;
(22)
Accept and hold, with or without payment of interest, funds deposited with the
bank by government units and private entities; and
(23)
Do all other things necessary or convenient to exercise powers granted or
reasonably implied by this part.
(b)
The bank shall not be authorized or empowered to be or to constitute a bank or
trust company within the jurisdiction or under the control of this state or an
agency of it or the Comptroller of the Currency or the Treasury Department of
the United States, or a bank, banker, or dealer in securities within the meaning
of, or subject to the provisions of, any securities, securities exchange, or
securities dealers´ law of the United States or of this state. The use of
the word 'bank' in the 'Georgia Transportation Infrastructure Bank' is required
by federal law. For the express purposes of this part, the use of the word
'bank' in the 'Georgia Transportation Infrastructure Bank Act' does not violate
Code Section 7-1-243. In addition, all deposits taken by the Georgia
Transportation Infrastructure Bank shall contain a notice stating that the
deposits are not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation.
32-10-125.
(a)
The following sources may be used to capitalize the bank and for the bank to
carry out its purposes:
(1)
Appropriations by the General Assembly;
(2)
Federal funds available to the state, as approved by the Department of
Transportation;
(3)
Contributions, donations, and deposits from government units, private entities,
and any other source as may become available to the bank;
(4)
All moneys paid or credited to the bank, by contract or otherwise, payments of
principal and interest on loans or other financial assistance made from the
bank, and interest earnings which may accrue from the investment or reinvestment
of the bank´s moneys;
(5)
Proceeds from the issuance of bonds as provided in this part; and
(6)
Other lawful sources not already dedicated for another purpose as determined
appropriate by the board.
(b)
Without limiting the provisions of subsection (a) of this Code section, it shall
be specifically provided that any local government may use the proceeds of any
local funds which may be hereafter made available by law for the purposes of
this part, including without limitation the funding of eligible projects and
contributions, donations, and deposits to the bank.
32-10-126.
(a)
Earnings on balances in the federal accounts must be credited and invested
according to federal law. Earnings on state and local accounts must be credited
to the state and local roadway account or state and local nonroadway account
that generates the earnings. The bank may establish accounts and subaccounts
within the state and local accounts and federal accounts as considered desirable
to effectuate the purposes of this part, or to meet the requirements of any
state or federal programs.
(b)
For necessary and convenient administration of the bank, the board shall
establish federal and state and local accounts and subaccounts within the bank
necessary to meet any applicable federal law requirements or as the bank shall
determine necessary or desirable in order to implement the provisions of this
part.
(c)
The bank shall comply with all applicable federal laws and regulations
prohibiting the commingling of certain federal funds deposited in the
bank.
32-10-127.
(a)
The bank may provide loans and other financial assistance to a government unit
to pay for all or part of the eligible costs of a qualified project. The term
of the loan or other financial assistance shall not exceed the useful life of
the project. The bank may require the government unit to enter into a financing
agreement in connection with its loan obligation or other financial assistance.
The board shall determine the form and content of loan applications, financing
agreements, and loan obligations including the term and rate or rates of
interest on a financing agreement. The terms and conditions of a loan or other
financial assistance from federal accounts shall comply with applicable federal
requirements.
(b)
The board shall determine which projects are eligible projects and then select
from among the eligible projects qualified projects. Preference may be given to
eligible projects which have local financial support.
32-10-128.
(a)
Qualified borrowers are authorized to obtain loans or other financial assistance
from the bank through financing agreements. Qualified borrowers entering into
financing agreements and issuing loan obligations to the bank may perform any
acts, take any action, adopt any proceedings, and make and carry out any
contracts or agreements with the bank as may be agreed to by the bank and any
qualified borrower for the carrying out of the purposes contemplated by this
part.
(b)
In addition to the authorizations contained in this part, all other statutes or
provisions permitting government units to borrow money and issue obligations,
including, but not limited to Article 3 of Chapter 82 of Title 36, the 'Revenue
Bond Law,' may be utilized by any government unit in obtaining a loan or other
financial assistance from the bank to the extent determined necessary or useful
by the government unit in connection with any financing agreement and the
issuance, securing, or sale of loan obligations to the bank.
(c)
A qualified borrower may receive, apply, pledge, assign, and grant security
interests in project revenues to secure its obligations as provided in this
part. A qualified borrower may fix, revise, charge, and collect fees, rates,
rents, assessments, and other charges of general or special application for the
operation or services of a qualified project, the system of which it is a part,
and any other revenue producing facilities from which the qualified borrower
derives project revenues to meet its obligations under a financing agreement or
to provide for the construction and improving of a qualified
project.
32-10-129.
The
bank is performing an essential governmental function in the exercise of the
powers conferred upon it and shall not be required to pay taxes or assessments
upon property or upon its operations or the income therefrom, or taxes or
assessments upon property or loan obligations acquired or used by the bank or
upon the income therefrom.
32-10-130.
(a)
If a government unit fails to collect and remit in full all amounts due to the
bank on the date these amounts are due under the terms of any note or other
obligation of the government unit, the bank shall notify the appropriate state
officials who shall withhold all or a portion of the funds of the state and all
funds administered by the state and its agencies, boards, and instrumentalities
allotted or appropriated to the government unit and apply an amount necessary to
the payment of the amount due.
(b)
Nothing contained in this Code section mandates the withholding of funds
allocated to a government unit which would violate contracts to which the state
is a party, the requirements of federal law imposed on the state, or judgments
of a court binding on the state.
32-10-131.
Neither
the board nor any officer, employee, or committee of the bank acting on behalf
of it, while acting within the scope of this authority, is subject to any
liability resulting from carrying out any of the powers given in this
part.
32-10-132.
Notice,
proceeding, or publication, except those required in this part, shall not be
necessary to the performance of any act authorized in this part nor shall any
act of the bank be subject to any referendum.
32-10-133.
Following
the close of each state fiscal year, the bank shall submit an annual report of
its activities for the preceding year to the Governor, the Lieutenant Governor,
and the Speaker of the House of Representatives and make such report available
to the General Assembly. The bank also shall submit an annual report to the
appropriate federal agency in accordance with requirements of any federal
program."
SECTION
3.
This
Act shall become effective upon its approval by the Governor or upon its
becoming law without such approval.
SECTION
4.
All
laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.