Section 126.00. Exclusion of certain indebtedness for school purposes; New York City

a. In ascertaining the power of the  city  of  New  York  to  contract   indebtedness,   there   may   be   excluded  the  outstanding
  indebtedness contracted by such city for school purposes,  evidenced  by
  bonds,  to  the  extent  to  which  state  aid  for  common schools, not
  exceeding two million five hundred thousand dollars, shall be applied by
  such city to meet the interest  and  the  annual  requirements  for  the
  amortization  and  payment  of part or all of one or more issues of such
  bonds.
    b. Such exclusion shall be effective only during a fiscal year of  the
  city  in  which its expense budget provides for the payment of such debt
  service from such state aid for common schools.
    c. At any time during a fiscal year for which the  expense  budget  of
  the  city  provides for the payment of such debt service from such state
  aid or at any time prior to such  fiscal  year  but  after  the  expense
  budget for such fiscal year has been finally adopted, an application may
  be  filed  with  the  state  comptroller for the purpose of obtaining an
  exclusion of such outstanding indebtedness. Such  application  shall  be
  made  on  behalf  of  the  city  by  its  chief  fiscal  officer  in his
  discretion, or by its chief fiscal  officer  on  the  direction  of  its
  finance  board.    The application shall be verified by the chief fiscal
  officer or finance board making the application. The  application  shall
  be  in  such  form  and  shall  contain  such  information  as  shall be
  prescribed by the state comptroller.
    d. Within five days after the filing  of  such  application  with  the
  state  comptroller,  such  chief  fiscal  officer making the application
  shall cause a notice to be published  that  such  application  has  been
  filed  with the state comptroller. Such notice shall be published in the
  official newspaper or newspapers of the  city.  The  notice  also  shall
  contain  a statement of the amount of outstanding indebtedness sought to
  be excluded and a statement of the  amount  of  state  aid  for  schools
  allocated  to  the payment of debt service. Proof of publication of such
  notice shall be filed in the office of the state comptroller. A copy  of
  the application and of all financial statements, documents, computations
  and  other  data  and  information  which will be submitted by the chief
  fiscal officer of such city to the state comptroller in support of  such
  application  shall  be  filed in the office of such chief fiscal officer
  and shall be public records.
    e. After the filing of such application, the state  comptroller  shall
  review the facts set forth therein. The state comptroller shall have the
  power  to  examine  the accounts and records of the city with respect to
  such application. He may also require the chief fiscal officer and other
  public officers, boards and  agencies  of  such  city  to  furnish  such
  additional  data  and  information  in  their  possession  as  he  deems
  necessary to enable him to make his determination.
    f. The state comptroller shall issue  a  written  certificate  setting
  forth  his  determination as to the extent to which any such outstanding
  indebtedness may be excluded. If an exclusion is allowed  by  the  state
  comptroller, such certificate shall constitute the authorization for the
  exclusion  of such amount of such indebtedness in ascertaining the power
  of  such  city  to  contract  indebtedness.  If  the  state  comptroller
  disallows  the  application, the certificate shall set forth the reasons
  for such disallowances. The determination of the state comptroller shall
  be conclusive. The certificate of the state  comptroller  shall  not  be
  issued  until  ten days after the filing of such proof of publication in
  the office of the state comptroller and shall be  issued  within  twenty
  days  after  such  filing.  The  certificate  of  the  state comptroller
  granting an exclusion shall be effective until the close of  the  fiscal

  year  for  which  an  application  has been filed setting forth that the
  expense budget of the city provides for the payment of debt service from
  state aid for common schools. The certificate of the  state  comptroller
  shall  be  executed  under  his  hand and seal in duplicate. One of such
  certificates shall be filed in the department of audit and  control  and
  the  other  in the office of the chief fiscal officer of such city. Both
  of such certificates shall be public records.