Section 2431. Legislative findings  


Latest version.
  • 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 facilitate
    
      the 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.