HB2190 - 532R

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1. Section 48-901, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE48-901. Definitions

In this article, unless the context otherwise requires:

1. "Assessment" or "assessment roll" means a special assessment made under this article.

2. "Block" means a parcel of ground, regular or irregular, bounded by streets or by streets and district boundary lines.

3. "Chairman of the board" means the person designated to preside over meetings of the board of directors.

4. "Clerk" or "district clerk" means the clerk of the board of supervisors, who shall be the clerk under this article and in whose office shall be filed all papers directed or required to be filed with the clerk.

5. "Commercial farming" means the intensive cultivation of arable land by the raising of agricultural or horticultural products as a principal source of the owner's livelihood.

6. "Commercial stock raising" means the breeding, raising and care of domestic animals as a principal source of the owner's livelihood.

7. "Contractor" includes personal representatives or assignee of the contractor.

8. "Delinquency" means delinquency in the payment of an assessment.

9. "Engineer" or "district engineer" means a person designated or employed by the board of directors of a district to perform any or all of the engineering work authorized to be done by the district under this article.

10. "Improvement bond" means a bond issued under this article.

11. "Lighting plants" includes electric light plants, electric power plants, gas plants, distribution systems, poles, parts, pipes, conduits, wires, tanks, reservoirs, generators for gas or electricity, transmission lines, towers, lamps, transformers of every character, machinery, apparatus, equipment and all appliances and structures necessary or incidental to the construction, installation or operation of a complete electric light, power and gas plant and distribution system placed on the streets improved, though extended beyond.

12. "Lot" includes any portion, piece, parcel or subdivision of land, but not property owned or controlled by any person as a railroad right of way.

13. "Owner" means the person in whom legal title appears by recorded deed, or the person in possession under claim or title, or the person exercising acts of ownership for himself or as the personal representative of the owner, including the boards of trustees of school districts and the boards of education of high school districts owning property within the proposed improvement district.

14. "Sewers" include includes wastewater treatment facilities, tunnels, excavations, ditches, drains, conduits, channels, outlets, outfalls, cesspools, manholes, catch basins, flush tanks, septic tanks, connecting sewers of every character, machinery, apparatus, equipment and all appliances and structures necessary or incidental to the construction, installation or operation of a complete sewer system for either sanitary or drainage purposes.

15. "Street" includes avenues, alleys, highways, lanes, crossings, intersections, courts, places and grounds opened or dedicated to public use and public ways.

16. "Street superintendent" or "superintendent" means a county employee designated by the board of supervisors to perform the duties of street superintendent for all the districts organized under this article in any county.

17. "Time of delinquency" means the time when assessments become delinquent.

18. "Treasurer" or "district treasurer" means the treasurer of the county in which a district is situated, who shall be the treasurer of the district.

19. "Unincorporated area" means any portion of a county not within the limits of an incorporated city or town, so situated that any of the improvements provided for in this article might reasonably or properly be made or constructed for the benefit of the inhabitants of the area under existing special assessment statutes if the area were situated within an incorporated city or town.

20. "Wastewater systems" means sewers and other wastewater treatment facilities.

21. "Waterworks" means works for the storage or development of water for domestic uses, and includes including drinking water treatment facilities, wells, pumping machinery, power plants, pipelines and all equipment necessary for the purpose those purposes.

22. "Work" or "improvement" includes any of the improvements mentioned and authorized to be made in this article, the construction, reconstruction and repair of all or any portion of any such improvement, and labor, services, expenses and material necessary or incidental thereto. END_STATUTE

Sec. 2. Section 48‑909, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE48-909. Purposes for which public improvements may be undertaken; powers incidental to public improvements

A. When the public interest or convenience requires, the board of directors of an improvement district may order:

1. The whole or any portion, either in length or width, of one or more of the streets of the district graded or regraded, paved or repaved, landscaped or otherwise maintained, improved or reimproved.

2. The acquisition, construction, reconstruction or repair of any street, tunnel, subway, viaduct or conduit in, on, under or over which the district may have an easement or right‑of‑way therefor.

3. The construction or reconstruction of sidewalks, crosswalks, curbs, gutters, culverts, bridges, tunnels, siphons, manholes, steps, parkings and parkways.

4. The placement, replacement or repair of pipes, hydrants and appliances for fire protection.

5. The acquisition, construction, reconstruction, maintenance or repair of wastewater treatment facilities, sewers, ditches, drains, conduits, pipelines and channels for sanitary and drainage purposes, with outlets, cesspools, manholes, catch basins, flush tanks, septic tanks, connecting sewers, ditches, drains, conduits, channels and other appurtenances in, under, over or through any street or any land of the district or any right‑of-way granted or obtained for such a purpose, either within or without the district limits.

6. The acquisition, construction, reconstruction, maintenance or repair of waterworks, including drinking water treatment facilities, for the delivery of water for domestic purposes, and of wells, ditches, canals, channels, conduits, pipelines and siphons, together with the necessary or usual appurtenances for carrying storm water or water from irrigation ditches, watercourses, streams or springs into, through or out of such the district in, under, over or through any street, or any land of the district or any right-of-way granted or obtained for such a purpose, either within or without the district limits. Nothing in This section shall be construed to does not prohibit the board of directors of an improvement district from purchasing an existing domestic water delivery system within the district or outside the district or constructing an initial or improving an existing domestic water delivery system inside or outside the district.

7. The construction, reconstruction or repair of breakwater levees or walls, riverbank protection or replacement of riverbanks and supporting land. A district established for this purpose shall cooperate and coordinate its plans and activities with the county flood control district established in the county and any incorporated city or town in which the district is established.

8. The acquisition, construction, reconstruction or repair of lighting plants and poles, wire conduits, lamps, standards and other appliances for the purpose of lighting and beautifying streets or other public lands.

9. The construction, reconstruction or repair of any work incidental to or connected with any such improvement.

10. The acquisition, in the name of the district, by gift, purchase or otherwise and the maintenance, repair, improvement or disposal of any real or personal property necessary or convenient for district operation for a community center, park or recreational area.

11. Pursuant to section 48‑902, the board of directors of an improvement district may contract for or in any other manner provide transportation services within the district.

B. In addition to the powers specifically granted by or reasonably inferred from this article, an improvement district through its board of directors may:

1. Acquire by gift, purchase, condemnation or otherwise in the name of the district and own, control, manage and dispose of any real or personal property or interest in such the property necessary or convenient for the construction, operation and maintenance of any of the improvements provided for by this article.

2. Join with any other improvement district, any city, town, governmental agency or Indian tribe, or any agency or instrumentality of an Indian tribe, or any person in the construction, operation or maintenance of any of the improvements hereby authorized.

3. Join with any other improvement district or any city, town, county or Indian tribe, or any agency or instrumentality of an Indian tribe, in improving streets running upon on or along the boundary of the district and levy assessments and issue bonds for the district's part of the cost of such those improvements.

4. Sell, lease or otherwise dispose of any property of the district or interest in such the property when the property is no longer required for the purposes of the district or the use of which may be permitted without interfering with the use thereof by the district.

5. Sell or otherwise dispose of any property or material acquired in the construction or operation of any improvements as a by-product or otherwise, and acquire rights‑of‑way for such the disposal by condemnation or otherwise.

6. Accept from the this state of Arizona or the federal government, or any agency, department or instrumentality of either, grants for or in aid of the construction of any of the improvements provided for by this chapter.

7. Notwithstanding any other law, sell improvement bonds to the federal government, or any agency, department or instrumentality of the federal government, for the construction of any of the improvements provided by this chapter.

8. Enter into contracts with the this state of Arizona or the federal government, or any agency, department or instrumentality of either or both, for the construction or supervision of construction by the state of Arizona or the federal government, or any agency, department or instrumentality of either or both, but reserving to the district the right to assess against the property benefited by the improvement, and located within the district, that portion of the cost of the improvement which that does not qualify for aid under a state or federal grant.

9. Operate, maintain and repair the streets within the district and any improvements made pursuant to this chapter.

10. Do all things incidental to the exercise of the powers granted by this article.

C. A county improvement district formed for the purpose of purchasing an existing or constructing a new domestic water delivery system within the district or outside the district shall have the same authority and responsibility as an incorporated city or town pursuant to title 45 and chapters 22 and 28 of this title.

D. An improvement district which that proposes to provide domestic water service within the certificated area of a public service corporation serving domestic water shall provide just compensation to the public service corporation pursuant to section 9‑516 for the facilities or certificated area taken. The right to compensation for a public service corporation from an improvement district shall not apply if no facilities of the public service corporation are actually acquired by the improvement district and either of the following conditions exist:

1. At the time the law providing for compensation became effective the certificated area for which compensation is sought is an area which that was within the boundaries of an improvement district.

2. A certificate is issued to a public service corporation for any area which that is within an improvement district at the time the certificate is issued.

E. If the county board of supervisors determines that the public interest or convenience so requires, an improvement district that is formed for the purposes of providing domestic water service pursuant to article 4 of this chapter may also provide domestic wastewater service. END_STATUTE

Sec. 3. Section 48-909.01, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE48-909.01. Wastewater treatment facility; waterworks; sewer collection system and nonpoint source projects; financial assistance loan repayment agreements; definition

A. Notwithstanding any other law, a county improvement district, including a domestic wastewater improvement district, may construct or improve a wastewater treatment facility, sewer collection system, waterworks, including a drinking water treatment facility, or nonpoint source project or any combination of those projects with monies borrowed from or financial assistance provided by the water infrastructure finance authority of Arizona pursuant to title 49, chapter 8.

B. To repay financial assistance from the water infrastructure finance authority of Arizona, a county improvement district, including a domestic wastewater improvement district, may enter into a financial assistance loan repayment agreement with the authority to repay any financial assistance provided by the water infrastructure finance authority of Arizona. A financial assistance loan repayment agreement is payable from any revenues otherwise authorized by law to be pledged to repay long‑term indebtedness. A financial assistance loan repayment agreement may be secured either by assessments or by a pledge of revenues of the district or any combination of those sources. If the financial assistance loan repayment agreement is secured in whole or in part by assessments levied pursuant to this article, the financial assistance loan repayment agreement shall be treated as a series of bonds to the extent that they are secured by those assessments and the board of directors of the district has all powers and duties to collect assessment installments and enforce delinquent assessments through sale and eventual issuance of deeds in the same manner as if the assessments were evidenced by bonds.

C. The board of directors of the district shall obtain approval for the financial assistance loan repayment agreement in the same manner provided by law for approving and issuing bonds or other long‑term indebtedness that is secured by those assessments or revenues or a combination of assessments and revenues that are to be pledged to repay the loan.

D. A financial assistance loan repayment agreement entered into pursuant to this section shall contain the covenants and conditions pertaining to constructing a wastewater treatment facility, sewer collection system, waterworks, including a drinking water treatment facility, or nonpoint source project or any combination of those projects and repaying the loan as the water infrastructure finance authority of Arizona deems proper. Financial assistance loan repayment agreements may provide for paying interest on the unpaid principal balance of the agreement at the rates established in the agreement. The agreement may also provide for paying the district's proportionate share of the expenses of administering the clean water revolving fund established by section 49‑1221 and may provide that the district pay financing and loan administration fees approved by the water infrastructure authority of Arizona. These costs may be included in the assessment and revenue amounts pledged to repay the financial assistance loan repayment agreement. Districts are bound by and shall fully perform the financial assistance loan repayment agreements, and the agreements are incontestable after the loan is funded by the water infrastructure finance authority of Arizona. The district shall also agree to pay the authority's costs in issuing bonds or otherwise borrowing to fund a loan.

E. The water infrastructure finance authority of Arizona shall not require that payment of a financial assistance loan repayment agreement be made from other than those sources permitted in subsection B of this section. The financial assistance loan repayment agreement may also include covenants concerning the operation of the system, the setting of rates and provisions for the appointment of a receiver to take charge of and operate a sewer collection system, a waterworks, including a drinking water treatment facility, and a wastewater treatment system if the financial assistance loan repayment agreement is not paid in a timely manner and, in the sole discretion of the water infrastructure finance authority of Arizona, if the district will not be able to cure the default.

F. A district may employ or contract for the services of attorneys, accountants, financial consultants and other experts in their fields as deemed necessary to perform services with respect to the financial assistance loan repayment agreement. These costs are incidental expenses and shall be included in any assessments.

G. This section is supplemental and alternative to any other law under which a district may borrow money monies or issue bonds. This section shall not be construed as is not the exclusive authorization to enter into loan agreements with the water infrastructure finance authority of Arizona.

H. A district may borrow additional monies or enter into additional financial assistance loan repayment agreements with the water infrastructure finance authority in an amount up to the amount approved pursuant to subsection C of this section less the amount that the district is obligated to repay to the water infrastructure finance authority of Arizona pursuant to a financial assistance loan repayment agreement.

I. For the purposes of this section, "nonpoint source project" has the same meaning prescribed in section 49‑1201. END_STATUTE