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REFERENCE TITLE: county bonding; regional committee |
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State of Arizona House of Representatives Fiftieth Legislature Second Regular Session 2012
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HB 2656 |
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Introduced by Representatives Proud, Gowan, Judd, Stevens, Williams, Senators Antenori, Griffin, Smith: Representative Vogt, Senators Melvin, Shooter
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AN ACT
Amending title 11, chapter 4, Arizona Revised Statutes, by adding article 6; relating to the regional bond accountability committee.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Title 11, chapter 4, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding article 6, to read:
ARTICLE 6. REGIONAL BOND ACCOUNTABILITY COMMITTEE
11-691. Regional bond accountability committee; membership; duties; applicability; definitions
A. Any county with a population of at least nine hundred thousand persons but not more than one million five hundred thousand persons shall establish a regional bond accountability committee consisting of the following members:
1. One member appointed by the county board of supervisors, who may be a member of the board of supervisors.
2. One member appointed by the city council of each incorporated city in the county, who may be a member of the city council.
3. One member appointed by the town council of each incorporated town in the county, who may be a member of the town council.
B. Members of the regional bond accountability committee serve at the pleasure of the governing body that appointed the member.
C. The regional bond accountability committee shall select from the committee membership a chairperson and may adopt all rules and procedures necessary or convenient for the conduct of the committee's business.
D. All meetings of the regional bond accountability committee are subject to title 38, chapter 3, article 3.1.
E. All working papers and records of the regional bond accountability committee are public records and subject to title 39, chapter 1.
F. The clerk of the county board of supervisors shall act as the clerk of the regional bond accountability committee, and is responsible for maintaining the records of the regional bond accountability committee and performing all reasonable administrative functions supporting the regional bond accountability committee.
G. The county shall pay all reasonable administrative costs authorized by the regional bond accountability committee as necessary for the committee to carry out its functions as described in this section, including facility usage fees, publication costs, printing costs, mileage reimbursement fees, office equipment costs, independent auditor fees and attorney fees. Administrative costs shall be minimized by using existing member jurisdiction facilities and staff whenever it is reasonably feasible to do so. Member jurisdiction facilities and staff shall be reimbursed at the member jurisdiction's actual cost.
H. In addition to any other requirements of law and before any required vote of the qualified electors of the county, the county shall not issue or sell general obligation bonds until the following has occurred:
1. The board of supervisors shall submit to the regional bond accountability committee a report identifying the proposed allocation of amounts and specific project uses of the county general obligation bonds.
2. The regional bond accountability committee shall hold a public hearing on the report after publishing notice of the public hearing in an advertisement that is no less than one‑eighth of a full page in a newspaper with general circulation published in the county where the hearing will be held or, if no newspaper with general circulation is regularly published, in a newspaper with statewide general circulation.
3. At the conclusion of the public hearing, the regional bond accountability committee shall, by a majority vote of the full membership of the committee, do one of the following:
(a) Hold another public hearing at a later time and date.
(b) Authorize the county to issue or sell the proposed bonds.
(c) Return the report to the county board of supervisors for revision or additional information.
(d) Reject the proposed bonds. If the committee fails to take one of the other actions authorized in this paragraph, the proposed bonds are deemed rejected.
I. After a general obligation bond has been issued or sold or approved by a vote of the qualified electors of the county, the county shall not change the proposed amounts allocated for a specific project use or the specific project uses of any county general obligation bonds from the amounts and uses authorized by the regional bond accountability committee without the prior approval of the regional bond accountability committee, pursuant to the following procedure:
1. The county board of supervisors shall submit to the regional bond accountability committee a report identifying the proposed changes to the amounts allocated for a specific project use and the specific project uses of the county general obligation bonds. Any proposed changes to the amounts or uses of a county general obligation bond shall be consistent with the amounts and uses approved in the election authorizing the bonds.
2. The regional bond accountability committee shall hold a public hearing on the report after publishing notice of the public hearing in an advertisement that is no less than one‑eighth of a full page in a newspaper with general circulation published in the county where the hearing will be held or, if no newspaper with general circulation is regularly published, in a newspaper with statewide general circulation.
3. At the conclusion of the public hearing, the regional bond accountability committee shall, by a majority of the full membership of the committee, do one of the following:
(a) Hold another public hearing at a later time and date.
(b) Approve the proposed changes to the amounts allocated for a specific project use or specific project uses of the general obligation bonds.
(c) Return the report to the county board of supervisors for revision or additional information.
(d) Reject the proposed changes to the amounts or uses of the general obligation bonds. If the committee fails to take one of the other actions authorized in this paragraph, the proposed bonds are deemed rejected.
J. The regional bond accountability committee may order an audit of the county's bond program at any time by majority vote of the full membership of the regional bond accountability committee, the costs of which shall be paid by the county pursuant to subsection G of this section.
K. The governing body of any jurisdiction represented on the regional bond accountability committee may order an audit of the county's bond program at any time by adopting a resolution ordering and committing to pay all costs of the audit.
L. For the purposes of this section, a city or town is considered to be in the county if any portion of its jurisdictional limits is located in the county.
M. For the purposes of this section:
1. "An audit of the county's bond program" means an audit examining the uses of all proceeds of all county general obligation bonds that are not fully redeemed on the date the audit is ordered.
2. "General obligation bonds" means all bonds, obligations or other indebtedness for which the full faith and credit of the county are pledged as a source of repayment.
N. Nothing in this section authorizes a county or the regional bond accountability committee to change the total amount or general use of any general obligation bond approved by a vote of the qualified electors of the county.