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S. B. No. 261 As IntroducedAs Introduced
127th General Assembly | Regular Session | 2007-2008 |
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Cosponsor:
Senator Goodman
A BILL
To amend section 755.14 and to enact section 755.141
of the Revised Code to authorize a joint
recreation district operating on the site of the
United States Christopher Columbus Quincentenary
Jubilee to issue revenue bonds, maintain lines of
credit, and enter into lease purchase agreements
for property; to expand the district's powers with
respect to its own property; and to make certain
appointments to the district's board permissive
rather than mandatory.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That section 755.14 be amended and section 755.141
of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:
Sec. 755.14. (A) If the legislative authority of a
municipal
corporation determines that the power to equip,
operate,
and
maintain parks, playgrounds, playfields, gymnasiums,
public
baths, swimming pools, or recreation centers shall be
exercised by
a recreation board, it may establish such a board,
which shall
possess all the powers and be subject to all the
responsibilities
of the respective local authorities under
sections 755.12 to
755.18 of the Revised Code. The board shall
consist of five
persons, two of whom shall be members of the
board of education of
the city or village school district or
shall be appointed by that
board
of education. The other members of the recreation board
shall be appointed by the mayor or manager as executive of such
municipal corporation with the consent of its council. The members
who are
board of education members and members appointed by a
board of education shall
be residents of the school district
making the appointment but need not be
residents of the municipal
corporation. All other
members of the board shall be residents of
the municipal
corporation. All members of the board shall serve
for terms of five years, except that
the members first appointed
shall be appointed for such terms
that the term of one member
shall expire annually thereafter.
Members of the board shall
serve without pay. Vacancies in the
board, occurring otherwise
than by expiration of term, shall be
for the unexpired term and
shall be filled in the same manner as
original appointments.
(B)(1) The legislative authorities of the municipal
corporations, boards of township trustees of the townships,
boards
of township park commissioners, boards of county
commissioners of
the counties, and boards of education of the
school districts
joined in the operation and maintenance of parks
or recreation
facilities under section 755.16 of the Revised Code
may, by
resolution, establish a joint recreation board which may
possess
all the powers and be subject to all the responsibilities
of the
respective local authorities under sections 755.12 to
755.18 of
the Revised Code. The resolutions shall specify the
number of
members of the joint recreation board, other than any
members who
may be appointed under division (B)(2) of this
section, and the
method of appointing members and filling
vacancies. Members of the
board shall serve without pay.
(2) If a park or recreational facility owned, operated, or
maintained by a joint recreation board created under division
(B)(1) of this section is the site where an exhibition sanctioned
by the United States Christopher
Columbus quincentenary jubilee
commission
is being or has been held and the exhibition is or was
sponsored
by an organization that is also sponsoring or has
sponsored an
exhibition sanctioned by the international
association of
horticulture producers, then the governor, speaker
of the house
of representatives, and president of the senate shall
each
appoint one member to the board. The members appointed by the
speaker of the house of representatives and the president of the
senate may be members of the general assembly, but any members of
the general assembly appointed to the board shall be nonvoting
members and shall serve only while they remain members of the
general assembly. Members appointed under division (B)(2) of
this
section shall serve terms of three years and serve without
pay,
and all vacancies in their positions on the board, whether
for an
unexpired term or at the end of a term, shall be filled in
the
same manner as the original appointments.
(C) The legislative authorities of the several
subdivisions
joined in the operation and maintenance of
recreation facilities
under section 755.16 of the Revised Code
may, by resolution,
establish a joint recreation district,
consisting of all the
territory of the subdivisions so joined.
The joint recreation
district board of trustees shall be the
governing body of a
district and shall possess all the powers of
a legislative
authority of an individual subdivision under
sections 755.12 to
755.18 of the Revised Code. The Subject to section 755.141 of the
Revised Code, the number of
trustees shall be fixed by the
resolutions creating the district
and may be any number so long as
there is representation of all
participating subdivisions.
Sec. 755.141. If a park or recreational facility owned,
operated, or maintained by a joint recreation district created
under division (C) of section 755.14 of the Revised Code is the
site where an exhibition sanctioned by the United States
Christopher Columbus quincentenary jubilee commission is being or
has been held and the exhibition is or was sponsored by the
organization that is also sponsoring or has sponsored an
exhibition sanctioned by the international association of
horticulture producers, the following provisions shall apply, in
addition to the provisions of sections 755.12 to 755.18 of the
Revised Code:
(A) The governor, speaker of the house of representatives,
and president of the senate may each appoint one member to the
board of trustees of the district. These members may be members of
the general assembly, but any members of the general assembly
appointed to the board of trustees shall be nonvoting members and
shall serve only while they remain members of the general
assembly. Members appointed under this division shall serve terms
of three years and serve without pay, and all vacancies in their
positions on the board, whether for an unexpired term or at the
end of a term, shall be filled in the same manner as the original
appointments.
(B) The board of trustees of a joint recreation district may
designate the amounts and forms of property and casualty insurance
protection to be
provided. The expense of providing the
protection shall be paid
from operating funds of the joint
recreation district.
(C) The board of trustees of a joint recreation district may
acquire, construct, maintain, and operate horticultural
facilities, public banquet facilities, greenhouses, and such other
facilities as are authorized in section 755.16 of the Revised
Code.
(D)(1) By resolution of its board of trustees, the joint
recreation district may issue revenue bonds beyond the limit of
bonded indebtedness provided by law, for the acquisition,
construction, furnishing, or equipping of any real or personal
property, or any combination thereof which it is authorized to
acquire, construct, furnish, or equip, including all costs in
connection with or incidental thereto.
(2) The revenue bonds of the joint recreation district shall
be secured only by a pledge of and a lien on the revenues of the
joint recreation revenues that are designated in the resolution,
including, but not limited to, any property to be acquired,
constructed, furnished, or equipped with the proceeds of the bond
issue, after provision only for the reasonable cost of operating,
maintaining, and repairing the property of the joint recreation
district so designated. The bonds may further be secured by the
covenant of the joint recreation district to maintain rates or
charges that will produce revenues sufficient to meet the costs of
operating, maintaining, and repairing such property and to meet
the interest and principal requirements of the bonds and to
establish and maintain reserves for the foregoing purposes. The
board of trustees of the joint recreation district, by resolution,
may provide for the issuance of additional revenue bonds from time
to time, to be secured equally and ratably, without preference,
priority, or distinction, with outstanding revenue bonds, but
subject to the terms and limitations of any trust agreement
described in this section, and of any resolution authorizing bonds
then outstanding, The board of trustees, by resolution, may
designate additional property of the district, the revenues of
which shall be pledged and be subject to a lien for the payment of
the debt charges on revenue bonds theretofore authorized by
resolution of the board of trustees, to the same extent as the
revenues above described.
(3) In the discretion of the board of trustees, the revenue
bonds of the district may be secured by a trust agreement between
the joint recreation district and a corporate trustee, that may be
any trust company or bank having powers of a trust company, within
or without the state.
(4) The trust agreement may provide for the pledge or
assignment of the revenues to be received, but shall not pledge
the general credit and taxing power of the joint recreation
district. The trust agreement or the resolution providing for the
issuance of revenue bonds may set forth the rights and remedies of
the bondholders and trustees, and may contain other provisions for
protecting and enforcing their rights and remedies that are
determined in the discretion of the board of trustees to be
reasonable and proper. The agreement or resolution may provide for
the custody, investment, and disbursement of all moneys derived
from the sale of such bonds, or from the revenues of the joint
recreation district, other than those moneys received from taxes
levied pursuant to section 755.171 of the Revised Code, and may
provide for the deposit of such funds without regard to Chapter
135. of the Revised Code.
(5) All bonds issued under authority of this section,
regardless of form or terms and regardless of any other law to the
contrary, shall have all qualities and incidents of negotiable
instruments, subject to provisions for registration, and may be
issued in coupon, fully registered, or other form, or any
combination thereof, as the board of trustees determines.
Provision may be made for the registration of any coupon bonds as
to principal alone or as to both principal and interest, and for
the conversion into coupon bonds of any fully registered bonds or
bonds registered as to both principal and interest.
(6) The revenue bonds shall bear interest at such rate or
rates, shall bear such date or dates, and shall mature within
thirty years following the date of issuance and in such amount, at
such time or times, and in such number of installments, as may be
provided in or pursuant to the resolution authorizing their
issuance. Any original issue of revenue bonds shall mature not
later than thirty years from their date of issue. Such resolution
also shall provide for the execution of the bonds, which may be by
facsimile signatures unless prohibited by the resolution, and the
manner of sale of the bonds. The resolution shall provide for, or
provide for the determination of, any other terms and conditions
relative to the issuance, sale, and retirement of the bonds that
the board of trustees in its discretion determines to be
reasonable and proper.
(7) Whenever a joint recreation district considers it
expedient, it may issue renewal notes and refund any bonds,
whether the bonds to be refunded have or have not matured. The
final maturity of any notes, including any renewal notes, shall
not be later than five years from the date of issue of the
original issue of notes. The final maturity of any refunding bonds
shall not be later than the later of thirty years from the date of
issue of the original issue of bonds or the date by which it is
expected, at the time of issuance of the refunding bonds, that the
useful life of all of the property, other than interests in land,
refinanced with proceeds of the bonds will have expired. The
refunding bonds shall be sold and the proceeds applied to the
purchase, redemption, or payment of the bonds to be refunded and
the costs of issuance of the refunding bonds. The bonds and notes
issued under this section, their transfer, and the income
therefrom, shall at all times be free from taxation within the
state.
(E) A joint recreation district described in this section may
do all of the following:
(1) Operate or appoint agents to operate, or otherwise
provide for the operation of, its properties and its facilities,
activities, and programs and to enter into agreements and
arrangements related thereto, and to receive and apply the net
proceeds thereof solely to the management, operation, development,
maintenance, and repair of its properties, its buildings,
facilities, improvements, and grounds;
(2) Impose and collect a charge for admission for selective
events, exhibits, and facilities;
(3) Offer memberships of various denominations for selective
activities or facilities;
(4) Form advisory and other support committees to the board
of trustees to provide counsel and assistance to the board in the
management, operation, and development of its properties,
buildings, facilities, improvements, and grounds;
(5) Grant licenses, or enter into leases or contracts, for
the use of any part of its properties, facilities, buildings, and
grounds for such length of time and upon such terms and conditions
as the board of trustees deems appropriate and necessary, and
grant easements in, through, or over its property;
(6) Receive and accept from any federal, state, county,
municipal, or local government or agency, any grant or
contribution of money, property, labor, or other things of value,
to be held, used, and applied for the purpose for which such
grants and contributions are made; and
(7) Accept and expend gifts, grants, devises, and bequests of
money and property on behalf of the board of trustees and hold,
use, and apply such gifts, grants, devises, and bequests according
to the terms thereof.
(F)(1) For purposes of division (F)(2) of this section:
(a) "Bank" has the same meaning as in section 1101.01 of the
Revised Code.
(b) "Savings and loan association" has the same meaning as in
section 1151.01 of the Revised Code.
(c) "Savings bank" has the same meaning as in section 1161.01
of the Revised Code.
(2) The board of trustees may enter into a contract for a
secured line of credit with a bank, savings and loan association,
or savings bank if the contract meets all of the following
requirements:
(a) The term of the contract does not exceed one year, except
that the contract may provide for the automatic renewal of the
contract for up to four additional one-year periods.
(b) The contract provides that the bank, savings and loan
association, or savings bank shall not commence a civil action
against the board, any member of the board, or the county or the
municipal corporation to recover the principal, interest, or any
charges or other amounts that remain outstanding on the secured
line of credit at the time of any default by the board.
(c) The contract provides that no assets other than those of
the joint recreation district can be used to secure the line of
credit.
(d) The terms and conditions of the contract comply with all
state and federal statutes and rules governing the extension of a
secured line of credit.
(3) Any obligation incurred by a board of trustees of a joint
recreation district pursuant to division (B) of this section is an
obligation of that board only and not a general obligation of the
board of county commissioners, the county, or the municipal
corporation within the meaning of division (Q) of section 133.01
of the Revised Code.
(G)(1) For purposes of division (G)(2) of this section:
(a) "Lease-purchase agreement" has the same meaning as a
lease with an option to purchase.
(b) "Public obligation" has the same meaning as in section
133.01 of the Revised Code.
(2) For any purpose for which a board of trustees of a joint
recreation district described in this section is authorized to
acquire real or personal property, that board may enter into a
lease-purchase agreement in accordance with this section to
acquire the property.
The lease-purchase agreement shall provide for a series of
terms in which no term extends beyond the end of the fiscal year
of the joint recreation district in which that term
commences. In
total, the terms provided for in the agreement shall
be for not
more than the useful life of the real or personal
property that
is the subject of the agreement. A property's useful
life shall
be determined either by the maximum number of
installment
payments permitted under the statute that authorizes
the board to
acquire the property or, if there is no such
provision, by the
maximum number of years to maturity provided for
the issuance of
bonds in division (B) of section 133.20 of the
Revised Code if
bonds were to be issued by a subdivision under
that section to
finance such facilities. If the useful life cannot
be determined
under either of those statutes, it shall be
estimated as provided
in division (C) of section 133.20 of the
Revised Code.
The lease-purchase agreement shall provide that, at the end
of the final term in the agreement, if all obligations of the
joint recreation district have been satisfied, the title to the
leased property shall vest in the joint recreation district if
that title has not vested in the joint recreation district before
or during the lease terms; except that the lease-purchase
agreement may require the joint recreation district to pay an
additional lump sum payment as a condition of obtaining that
title.
(3) A board of trustees of a joint recreation district that
enters into a lease-purchase agreement under this section may do
any of the following with the property that is the subject of the
agreement:
(a) If the property is personal property, assign the board's
rights to that property;
(b) Grant the lessor a security interest in the property;
(c) If the property is real property, grant leases,
easements, or licenses for underlying land or facilities under the
board's control for terms not exceeding five years beyond the
final term of the lease-purchase agreement.
(4) The authority granted in division (G) of this section is
in addition to and not in derogation of, any other financing
authority provided by law.
(H) The board of trustees of a joint recreation district
described in this section may exercise such other powers as shall
have been granted to it in the agreement between the municipal
corporation and the board of county commissioners establishing the
joint recreation district entered into pursuant to division (C) of
section 755.14 of the Revised Code.
Section 2. That existing section 755.14 of the Revised Code
is hereby repealed.
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