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Representative Hood
Cosponsors:
Representatives Adams, J., Rosenberger, Brenner, Thompson, Becker, Young, Wachtmann, Lynch, Maag, Boose, Retherford, Roegner, Damschroder, Hottinger, Buchy
To amend sections 164.07, 307.022, 307.671, 307.673, 307.674, 307.696, 351.06, 1506.44, 1710.02, 4115.03, 4115.034, 4115.04, 4115.06, 4115.09, 4115.10, 4115.133, 5540.03, 6117.012, and 6121.061 of the Revised Code to increase the threshold to trigger the requirement that the prevailing wage be paid for work on vertical public improvement projects and to allow political subdivisions and state institutions of higher education to elect whether to be subject to the Prevailing Wage Law for a public improvement project. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO: Section 1. That sections 164.07, 307.022, 307.671, 307.673, 307.674, 307.696, 351.06, 1506.44, 1710.02, 4115.03, 4115.034, 4115.04, 4115.06, 4115.09, 4115.10, 4115.133, 5540.03, 6117.012, and 6121.061 of the Revised Code be amended to read as follows: Sec. 164.07.
Sec. 307.022. (A) The board of county commissioners of any county may do both of the following without following the competitive bidding requirements of section 307.86 of the Revised Code: (1) Enter into a lease, including a lease with an option to purchase, of correctional facilities for a term not in excess of forty years. Before entering into the lease, the board shall publish, once a week for three consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county or as provided in section 7.16 of the Revised Code, a notice that the board is accepting proposals for a lease pursuant to this division. The notice shall state the date before which the proposals are required to be submitted in order to be considered by the board. (2) Subject to compliance with this section, grant leases, easements, and licenses with respect to, or sell, real property owned by the county if the real property is to be leased back by the county for use as correctional facilities. The lease under division (A)(1) of this section shall require the county to contract, in accordance with Chapter 153. A lease entered into pursuant to division (A)(1) of this section by a board may provide for the county to maintain and repair the correctional facility during the term of the leasehold, may provide for the county to make rental payments prior to or after occupation of the correctional facilities by the county, and may provide for the board to obtain and maintain any insurance that the lessor may require, including, but not limited to, public liability, casualty, builder's risk, and business interruption insurance. The obligations incurred under a lease entered into pursuant to division (A)(1) of this section shall not be considered to be within the debt limitations of section 133.07 of the Revised Code. (B) The correctional facilities leased under division (A)(1) of this section may include any or all of the following: (1) Facilities in which one or more other governmental entities are participating or in which other facilities of the county are included; (2) Facilities acquired, constructed, renovated, or financed by the Ohio building authority and leased to the county pursuant to section 307.021 of the Revised Code; (3) Correctional facilities that are under construction or have been completed and for which no permanent financing has been arranged. (C) As used in this section: (1) "Correctional facilities" includes, but is not limited to, jails, detention facilities, workhouses, community-based correctional facilities, and family court centers. (2) "Construction" has the same meaning as in division (B) of section 4115.03 of the Revised Code. As used in division (C)(2) of this section: (a) "Public improvement" means all buildings, roads, streets, alleys, sewers, ditches, and other structures or works constructed by a public authority or by any person who, pursuant to a contract with a public authority, constructs any structure or work for a public authority. When a public authority rents or leases a newly constructed structure within six months after completion of its construction, any work performed on that structure to suit it for occupancy is a "public improvement." (b) "Public authority" means any officer, board, or commission of the state, or any political subdivision of the state, or any institution supported in whole or in part by public funds, authorized to enter into a contract for the construction of a public improvement or to construct a public improvement by the direct employment of labor. Sec. 307.671. (A) As used in this section: (1) "Bonds" means, as the context requires: general obligation bonds of the county, or notes in anticipation thereof, described in division (B)(1)(b) of this section; revenue bonds of the port authority described in division (B)(2)(a) of this section; and urban renewal bonds, or notes in anticipation thereof, of the host municipal corporation described in division (B)(3)(a) of this section. (2) "Corporation" means a nonprofit corporation that is organized under the laws of this state and that includes within the purposes for which it is incorporated the authorization to lease and operate facilities such as a port authority educational and cultural facility. (3) "Debt service charges" means, for any period or payable at any time, the principal of and interest and any premium due on bonds for that period or payable at that time whether due at maturity or upon mandatory redemption, together with any required deposits to reserves for the payment of principal of and interest on such bonds, and includes any payments required by the port authority to satisfy any of its obligations arising from any guaranty agreements, reimbursement agreements, or other credit enhancement agreements described in division (C) of this section. (4) "Host municipal corporation" means the municipal corporation within the boundaries of which the port authority educational and cultural facility is located. (5) "Port authority" means a port authority created pursuant to the authority of section 4582.02 of the Revised Code by a county and a host municipal corporation. (6) "Port authority educational and cultural facility" means a facility located within an urban renewal area that may consist of a museum, archives, library, hall of fame, center for contemporary music, or other facilities necessary to provide programs of an educational and cultural nature, together with all parking facilities, walkways, and other auxiliary facilities, real and personal property, property rights, easements, and interests that may be appropriate for, or used in connection with, the operation of the facility. (7) "Urban renewal area" means an area of a host municipal corporation that the legislative authority of the host municipal corporation has, at any time, designated as appropriate for an urban renewal project pursuant to Chapter 725. of the Revised Code. (B) The board of county commissioners of a county, a port authority, and a host municipal corporation may enter into a cooperative agreement with a corporation, under which: (1) The board of county commissioners agrees to do all of the following: (a) Levy a tax under division (D) of section 5739.09 of the Revised Code exclusively for the purposes described in divisions (B)(1)(c) and (d) of this section; (b) Issue general obligation bonds of the county, or notes in anticipation thereof, pursuant to Chapter 133. of the Revised Code, for the purpose of acquiring, constructing, and equipping the port authority educational and cultural facility and contribute the proceeds from the issuance to the port authority for such purpose. The cooperative agreement may provide that such proceeds be deposited with and administered by the trustee pursuant to the trust agreement provided for in division (C) of this section. (c) Following the issuance, sale, and delivery of the port authority revenue bonds provided for in division (B)(2)(a) of this section, and prior to the date certain stated in the cooperative agreement which shall be the date estimated for the completion of construction of the port authority educational and cultural facility, pledge and contribute to the port authority revenue from the tax levied pursuant to division (B)(1)(a) of this section, together with any investment earnings on that revenue, to pay a portion of the costs of acquiring, constructing, and equipping the port authority educational and cultural facility; (d) Following such date certain, pledge and contribute to the corporation all or such portion as provided for in the cooperative agreement of the revenue from the tax, together with any investment earnings on that revenue, to pay a portion of the costs of the corporation of leasing the port authority educational and cultural facility from the port authority. (2) The port authority agrees to do all of the following: (a) Issue revenue bonds of the port authority pursuant to Chapter 4582. of the Revised Code for the purpose of acquiring, constructing, and equipping the port authority educational and cultural facility; (b) Construct the port authority educational and cultural facility; (c) Lease the port authority educational and cultural facility to the corporation; (d) To the extent provided for in the cooperative agreement or the lease to the corporation, authorize the corporation to administer on behalf of the port authority the contracts for acquiring, constructing, or equipping a port authority educational and cultural facility; (e) Use the revenue derived from the lease of the port authority educational and cultural facility to the corporation solely to pay debt service charges on the revenue bonds of the port authority described in division (B)(2)(a) of this section. (3) The host municipal corporation agrees to do both of the following: (a) Issue urban renewal bonds of the host municipal corporation, or notes in anticipation thereof, pursuant to Chapter 725. of the Revised Code for the purpose of acquiring and constructing the port authority educational and cultural facility and contribute the proceeds from the issuance to the port authority for such purpose. The cooperative agreement may provide that such proceeds be deposited with and administered by the trustee pursuant to the trust agreement provided for in division (C) of this section. (b) To the extent provided for in the cooperative agreement, contribute to the county, for use by the county to pay debt service charges on the bonds of the county, or notes in anticipation thereof, described in division (B)(1)(b) of this section, any excess urban renewal service payments pledged by the host municipal corporation to the urban renewal bonds described in division (B)(3)(a) of this section and not required on an annual basis to pay debt service charges on the urban renewal bonds. (4) The corporation agrees to do all of the following: (a) Lease the port authority educational and cultural facility from the port authority; (b) Operate and maintain the port authority educational and cultural facility pursuant to the lease; (c) To the extent provided for in the cooperative agreement or the lease from the port authority, administer on behalf of the port authority the contracts for acquiring, constructing, or equipping a port authority educational and cultural facility. (C) The pledges and contributions described in divisions (B)(1)(c) and (d) of this section and provided for in the cooperative agreement shall be for the period stated in the cooperative agreement, but shall not be in excess of the period necessary to provide for the final retirement of the port authority revenue bonds provided for in division (B)(2)(a) of this section and any bonds issued by the port authority to refund such bonds, and for the satisfaction by the port authority of any of its obligations arising from any guaranty agreements, reimbursement agreements, or other credit enhancement agreements relating to such bonds or to the revenues pledged to such bonds. The cooperative agreement shall provide for the termination of the cooperative agreement including the pledges and contributions described in divisions (B)(1)(c) and (d) of this section if the port authority revenue bonds provided for in division (B)(2)(a) of this section have not been issued, sold, and delivered within two years of the effective date of the cooperative agreement. The cooperative agreement shall provide that any revenue bonds of the port authority shall be secured by a trust agreement between the port authority and a corporate trustee that is a trust company or bank having the powers of a trust company within or outside the state. The county may be a party to such trust agreement for the purpose of securing the pledge by the county of its contribution to the corporation pursuant to division (B)(1)(d) of this section. A tax levied pursuant to division (B)(1)(a) of this section is not subject to diminution by initiative or referendum or diminution by statute, unless provision is made therein for an adequate substitute therefor reasonably satisfactory to the trustee under the trust agreement that secures the revenue bonds of the port authority. (D) A pledge of money by a county under this section shall not be net indebtedness of the county for purposes of section 133.07 of the Revised Code. (E) If the terms of the cooperative agreement so provide, any contract for the acquisition, construction, or equipping of a port authority educational and cultural facility shall be made in such manner as is determined by the board of directors of the port authority, and unless the cooperative agreement provides otherwise, such a contract is not subject to division (A) of section 4582.12 of the Revised Code. The port authority may take the assignment of and assume any contracts for the acquisition, construction, and equipping of a port authority educational and cultural facility that previously have been authorized by either or both the host municipal corporation or the corporation. Such contracts likewise are not subject to division (A) of section 4582.12 of the Revised Code.
Sec. 307.673. This section applies only in a county in which a tax is levied under section 307.697, 4301.421, 5743.024, or 5743.323 of the Revised Code on (A) As used in this section: (1) "County taxes" means taxes levied by a board of county commissioners under division (D) of section 307.697, division (B) of section 4301.421, division (C) of section 5743.024, and section 5743.323 of the Revised Code. (2) "Corporation" means a nonprofit corporation organized under the laws of this state and that includes among the purposes for which it is incorporated the authority to acquire, construct, renovate, equip, lease, manage, or operate a sports facility. (3) "Cooperative agreement" means an agreement entered into pursuant to this section. (4) "Cost of a sports facility" means the cost of acquiring, constructing, renovating, equipping, or improving one or more sports facilities, including reconstructing, rehabilitating, remodeling, and enlarging; the cost of equipping and furnishing such a facility; and all financing costs pertaining thereto, including the cost of engineering, architectural, and other professional services, designs, plans, specifications and surveys, and estimates of costs; the costs of refinancing obligations issued by, or reimbursement of money advanced by, the parties to the cooperative agreement or other persons, the proceeds of which obligations were used to pay the costs of the sports facility; the cost of tests and inspections; the cost of any indemnity or surety bonds and premiums on insurance, all related direct and administrative costs pertaining thereto, fees and expenses of trustees, depositories, and paying agents for the obligations, capitalized interest on the obligations, amounts necessary to establish reserves as required by the obligation proceedings, the reimbursement of money advanced or applied by the parties to the cooperative agreement or other persons for the payment of any item of costs of the sports facility, and all other expenses necessary or incident to planning or determining the feasibility or practicability with respect to the sports facility; and any other such expenses as may be necessary or incident to the acquisition, construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, remodeling, renovation, enlargement, improvement, equipping, and furnishing of the sports facility, the financing of the sports facility, placing the sports facility in use and operation, including any one, part of, or combination of such classes of costs and expenses. (5) "Financing costs" has the same meaning as in section 133.01 of the Revised Code. (6) "Obligations" means obligations issued or incurred to pay the cost of a sports facility, including bonds, notes, certificates of indebtedness, commercial paper, and other instruments in writing, anticipatory securities as defined in section 133.01 of the Revised Code, issued or incurred by an issuer pursuant to Chapter 133. or 4582. of the Revised Code or this section, or otherwise, to evidence the issuer's obligation to repay borrowed money, or to pay interest, by, or to pay at any future time other money obligations of, the issuer of the obligations, including obligations of an issuer or lessee to make payments under an installment sale, lease, lease-purchase, or similar agreement. (7) "Owner" means any person that owns or operates a professional athletic or sports team, that is party to a cooperative agreement, or that has a lease or other agreement with a party to a cooperative agreement, and that commits to use the sports facility that is the subject of the cooperative agreement for all of the team's home games for the period specified in that agreement. (8) "Payments," when used with reference to obligations, means payments of the principal, including any mandatory sinking fund deposits and mandatory redemption payments, interest and any redemption premium, and lease rentals, lease-purchase payments and other amounts payable under obligations in the form of installment sale, lease, lease-purchase, or similar agreements. (9) "Person" has the same meaning as defined in section 133.01 of the Revised Code. (10) "Port authority" means a port authority created under Chapter 4582. of the Revised Code. (11) "Sports facility" means a facility, including a stadium, that is intended to house or provide a site for one or more major league professional athletic or sports teams or activities, together with all spectator facilities, parking facilities, walkways, and auxiliary facilities, real and personal property, property rights, easements, leasehold estates, and interests that may be appropriate for, or used in connection with, the operation of the sports facility. (B) The board of county commissioners of a county, the legislative authority of a municipal corporation, a port authority, a corporation, and an owner, or any combination thereof, may enter into one or more cooperative agreements under which the parties enter into one or more of the agreements described in divisions (B)(1) to (5) of this section. (1) The board of county commissioners agrees to do one or more of the following: (a) Levy a tax under division (D) of section 307.697, division (B) of section 4301.421, division (C) of section 5743.024, and section 5743.323 of the Revised Code and make available all or a portion of the revenue from those taxes for the payment of the cost of the sports facility or to make payments on obligations; (b) Issue or incur obligations of the county pursuant to Chapter 133. of the Revised Code or this section; (c) Make available all or a portion of the revenue from those taxes or of the proceeds from the issuance of those obligations to the municipal corporation, port authority, corporation, or otherwise for the payment of the cost of a sports facility or the payment of obligations; (d) Acquire, construct, renovate, equip, lease to or from another person, and operate, directly or by a lease or management contract with another person, one or more sports facilities; (e) To the extent provided in the cooperative agreement or a lease with respect to a sports facility, authorize the municipal corporation, port authority, corporation, or owner to administer contracts for designing, planning, acquiring, constructing, renovating, or equipping a sports facility. (2) The port authority agrees to do one or more of the following: (a) Issue or incur obligations of the port authority pursuant to Chapter 133. or 4582. of the Revised Code or this section; (b) Make available all or a portion of the proceeds from the issuance of those obligations to the municipal corporation, county, or corporation for the payment of the cost of a sports facility or the payment of obligations; (c) Acquire, construct, renovate, equip, lease to or from another person, and operate, directly or by a lease or management contract with another person, one or more sports facilities; (d) To the extent provided in the cooperative agreement or a lease with respect to a sports facility, authorize the municipal corporation, county, corporation, or owner to administer contracts for designing, planning, acquiring, constructing, renovating, or equipping a sports facility. (3) The legislative authority of the municipal corporation agrees to do one or more of the following: (a) Make available the revenue from taxes levied by the legislative authority for the payment of the cost of a sports facility or to make payments on obligations; (b) Issue or incur obligations of the municipal corporation pursuant to Chapter 133. of the Revised Code or otherwise; (c) Make available all or a portion of the proceeds from the issuance of those obligations to the county, port authority, corporation, or otherwise for the payment of the cost of a sports facility or the payment of obligations; (d) Acquire, construct, renovate, equip, lease to or from another person, and operate, directly or by a lease or management contract with another person, one or more sports facilities; (e) To the extent provided in the cooperative agreement or a lease with respect to a sports facility, authorize the county, port authority, corporation, or owner to administer contracts for designing, planning, acquiring, constructing, renovating, or equipping a sports facility. (4) The corporation agrees to do one or more of the following: (a) Issue or incur obligations; (b) Make available all or a portion of the proceeds from the issuance of those obligations to the county, port authority, municipal corporation, or otherwise for the payment of the cost of a sports facility or the payment of obligations; (c) Acquire, construct, renovate, equip, lease to or from another person, and operate, directly or by a lease or management contract with another person, one or more sports facilities; (d) To the extent provided in the cooperative agreement or a lease with respect to a sports facility, agree that the corporation will administer contracts for designing, planning, acquiring, constructing, renovating, or equipping a sports facility. (5) The owner agrees to do one or more of the following: (a) Use the sports facility that is the subject of the cooperative agreement for all of the home games of the owner's professional athletic or sports team for a specified period; (b) Administer contracts for designing, planning, acquiring, constructing, renovating, or equipping a sports facility. (C) Any obligations may be secured by a trust agreement between the issuer of obligations and a corporate trustee that is a trust company or bank having the powers of a trust company in or outside this state and authorized to exercise corporate trust powers in this state. Proceeds from the issuance of any obligations or the taxes levied and collected by any party to the cooperative agreement may be deposited with and administered by a trustee pursuant to the trust agreement.
Sec. 307.674. (A) As used in this section: (1) "Bonds" means: (a) Revenue bonds of the port authority described in division (B)(2)(a) of this section; (b) Securities as defined in division (KK) of section 133.01 of the Revised Code issued by the host municipal corporation, described in division (B)(3)(a) of this section; (c) Any bonds issued to refund any of those revenue bonds or securities. (2) "Corporation" means a nonprofit corporation that is organized under the laws of this state and that includes within the purposes for which it is incorporated the authorization to lease and operate facilities such as a port authority educational and cultural performing arts facility. (3) "Cost," as applied to a port authority educational and cultural performing arts facility, means the cost of acquiring, constructing, renovating, rehabilitating, equipping, or improving the facility, or any combination of those purposes, collectively referred to in this section as "construction," and the cost of acquisition of all land, rights of way, property rights, easements, franchise rights, and interests required for those purposes, the cost of demolishing or removing any buildings or structures on land so acquired, including the cost of acquiring any land to which those buildings or structures may be moved, the cost of public utility and common carrier relocation or duplication, the cost of all machinery, furnishings, and equipment, financing charges, interest prior to and during construction and for not more than three years after completion of construction, costs arising under guaranty agreements, reimbursement agreements, or other credit enhancement agreements relating to bonds, engineering, expenses of research and development with respect to such facility, legal expenses, plans, specifications, surveys, studies, estimates of costs and revenues, other expenses necessary or incident to determining the feasibility or practicability of acquiring or constructing the facility, administrative expense, and other expenses as may be necessary or incident to that acquisition or construction and the financing of such acquisition or construction, including, with respect to the revenue bonds of a port authority, amounts to be paid into any special funds from the proceeds of those bonds, and repayments to the port authority, host county, host municipal corporation, or corporation of any amounts advanced for the foregoing purposes. (4) "Debt service charges" means, for any period or payable at any time, the principal of and interest and any premium due on bonds for that period or payable at that time whether due at maturity or upon mandatory redemption, together with any required deposits to reserves for the payment of principal of and interest on those bonds, and includes any payments required by the port authority to satisfy any of its obligations under or arising from any guaranty agreements, reimbursement agreements, or other credit enhancement agreements described in division (C) of this section. (5) "Host county" means the county within the boundaries of which the port authority educational and cultural performing arts facility is or will be located. (6) "Host municipal corporation" means the municipal corporation within the boundaries of which the port authority educational and cultural performing arts facility is or will be located. (7) "Port authority" means a port authority created pursuant to section 4582.22 of the Revised Code. (8) "Port authority educational and cultural performing arts facility" means a facility that consists of a center for music or other performing arts, a theater or other facilities to provide programs of an educational, recreational, or cultural nature, or any combination of those purposes as determined by the parties to the cooperative agreement for which provision is made in division (B) of this section to fulfill the public educational, recreational, and cultural purposes set forth therein, together with all parking facilities, walkways, and other auxiliary facilities, real and personal property, property rights, easements, and interests that may be appropriate for, or used in connection with, the operation of the facility. (B) A host county, a host municipal corporation, and a port authority may enter into a cooperative agreement with a corporation under which, as further provided for in that agreement: (1) The host county may agree to do any or all of the following: (a) Levy and collect a tax under division (E) and division (F) of section 5739.09 of the Revised Code for the purposes, and in an amount sufficient for those purposes, described in divisions (B)(1)(b) and (c) of this section; (b) Pay to the port authority all or such portion as provided for in the cooperative agreement of the revenue from the tax, together with any investment earnings on that revenue, to be used to pay a portion of the costs of acquiring, constructing, renovating, rehabilitating, equipping, or improving the port authority educational and cultural performing arts facility; (c) Pledge and pay to the corporation all or such portion as provided for in the cooperative agreement of the revenue from the tax, together with any investment earnings on that revenue, to be used to pay a portion of the costs to the corporation of leasing the port authority educational and cultural performing arts facility from the port authority. (2) The port authority may agree to do any or all of the following: (a) Issue its revenue bonds pursuant to section 4582.48 of the Revised Code for the purpose of paying all or a portion of the costs of the port authority educational and cultural performing arts facility; (b) Acquire, construct, renovate, rehabilitate, equip, and improve the port authority educational and cultural performing arts facility; (c) Lease the port authority educational and cultural performing arts facility to the corporation; (d) To the extent provided for in the cooperative agreement or the lease to the corporation, authorize the corporation to administer on behalf of the port authority the contracts for acquiring, constructing, renovating, rehabilitating, or equipping the port authority educational and cultural performing arts facility; (e) Use the revenue derived from the lease of the port authority educational and cultural performing arts facility to the corporation solely to pay debt service charges on revenue bonds of the port authority issued pursuant to division (B)(2)(a) of this section and to pay its obligations under or arising from any guaranty agreements, reimbursement agreements, or other credit enhancement agreements provided for in this section. (3) The host municipal corporation may agree to do either or both of the following: (a) Issue its bonds for the purpose of paying all or a portion of the costs of the port authority educational and cultural performing arts facility, and pay the proceeds from the issuance to the port authority for that purpose; (b) Enter into a guaranty agreement, a reimbursement agreement, or other credit enhancement agreement with the port authority to provide a guaranty or other credit enhancement of the port authority revenue bonds referred to in division (B)(2)(a) of this section pledging taxes, other than ad valorem property taxes, or other revenues for the purpose of providing the funds required to satisfy the host municipal corporation's obligations under that agreement. The cooperative agreement may provide that the proceeds of such securities or of such guaranty agreement, reimbursement agreement, or other credit enhancement agreement be deposited with and administered by the trustee pursuant to the trust agreement authorized in division (C) of this section. (4) The corporation may agree to do any or all of the following: (a) Lease the port authority educational and cultural performing arts facility from the port authority; (b) Operate and maintain the port authority educational and cultural performing arts facility pursuant to the lease; (c) To the extent provided for in the cooperative agreement or the lease from the port authority, administer on behalf of the port authority the contracts for acquiring, constructing, renovating, rehabilitating, or equipping the port authority educational and cultural performing arts facility. (C) The pledge and payments referred to in divisions (B)(1)(b) and (c) of this section and provided for in the cooperative agreement shall be for the period stated in the cooperative agreement but shall not extend longer than the period necessary to provide for the final retirement of the port authority revenue bonds referred to in division (B)(2)(a) of this section, and for the satisfaction by the port authority of any of its obligations under or arising from any guaranty agreements, reimbursement agreements, or other credit enhancement agreements relating to those bonds or to the revenues pledged to them. The cooperative agreement shall provide for the termination of the cooperative agreement, including the pledge and payment referred to in division (B)(1)(c) of this section, if the port authority revenue bonds referred to in division (B)(2)(a) of this section have not been issued, sold, and delivered within five years of the effective date of the cooperative agreement. The cooperative agreement shall provide that any port authority revenue bonds shall be secured by a trust agreement between the port authority and a corporate trustee that is a trust company or bank having the powers of a trust company within or outside the state but authorized to exercise trust powers within the state. The host county may be a party to that trust agreement for the purpose of better securing the pledge by the host county of its payment to the corporation pursuant to division (B)(1)(c) of this section. A tax levied pursuant to section 5739.09 of the Revised Code for the purposes specified in division (B)(1)(b) or (c) of this section is not subject to diminution by initiative or referendum or diminution by statute, unless provision is made for an adequate substitute reasonably satisfactory to the trustee under the trust agreement that secures the port authority revenue bonds. (D) A pledge of money by a host county under this section shall not be net indebtedness of the host county for purposes of section 133.07 of the Revised Code. A guaranty or other credit enhancement by a host municipal corporation under this section shall not be net indebtedness of the host municipal corporation for purposes of section 133.05 of the Revised Code. (E) If the terms of the cooperative agreement so provide, any contract for the acquisition, construction, renovation, rehabilitation, equipping, or improving of a port authority educational and cultural performing arts facility shall be made in such manner as is determined by the board of directors of the port authority, and unless the cooperative agreement provides otherwise, such a contract is not subject to division (R)(2) of section 4582.31 of the Revised Code. The port authority may take the assignment of and assume any contracts for the acquisition, construction, renovation, rehabilitation, equipping, or improving of a port authority educational and cultural performing arts facility that had previously been authorized by any of the host county, the host municipality, or the corporation. Such contracts are not subject to division (R)(2) of section 4582.31 of the Revised Code.
Notwithstanding any provisions to the contrary in section 3383.07 of the Revised Code, construction services and general building services for a port authority educational and cultural performing arts facility funded completely or in part with money appropriated by the state to the Ohio cultural facilities commission may be provided by a port authority or a corporation that occupies, will occupy, or is responsible for that facility, as determined by the commission. The construction services and general building services to be provided by the port authority or the corporation shall be specified in an agreement between the commission and the port authority or corporation. That agreement, or any actions taken under it, are not subject to Chapters 123. or 153. of the Revised Code Sec. 307.696. (A) As used in this section: (1) "County taxes" means taxes levied by the county pursuant to sections 307.697, 4301.421, 5743.024, and 5743.323 of the Revised Code. (2) "Corporation" means a nonprofit corporation that is organized under the laws of this state for the purposes of operating or constructing and operating a sports facility in the county and that may also be organized under the laws of this state for the additional purposes of conducting redevelopment and economic development activities within the host municipal corporation. (3) "Sports facility" means a sports facility that is intended to house major league professional athletic teams, including a stadium, together with all parking facilities, walkways, and other auxiliary facilities, real and personal property, property rights, easements, and interests that may be appropriate for, or used in connection with, the operation of the facility. (4) "Construction" includes, but is not limited to, providing fixtures, furnishings, and equipment. (5) "Debt service charges" means the interest, principal, premium, if any, carrying and redemption charges, and expenses on bonds issued by either the county or the corporation to: (a) Construct a sports facility or provide for related redevelopment or economic development as provided in this section; (b) Acquire real and personal property, property rights, easements, or interests that may be appropriate for, or used in connection with, the operation of the facility; and (c) Make site improvements to real property, including, but not limited to, demolition, excavation, and installation of footers, pilings, and foundations. (6) "Host municipal corporation" means the municipal corporation within the boundaries of which the sports facility is located, and with which a national football league, major league baseball, or national basketball association sports franchise is associated on (B) A board of county commissioners of a county that levies a tax under section 307.697, 4301.421, or 5743.024 of the Revised Code may enter into an agreement with a corporation operating in the county, and, if there is a host municipal corporation all or a part of which is located in the county, shall enter into an agreement with a corporation operating in the county and the host municipal corporation, under which: (1)(a) The corporation agrees to construct and operate a sports facility in the county and to pledge and contribute all or any part of the revenues derived from its operation, as specified in the agreement, for the purposes described in division (C)(1) of this section; and (b) The board agrees to levy county taxes and pledge and contribute any part or all of the revenues therefrom, as specified in the agreement, for the purposes described in division (C)(1) of this section; or (2)(a) The corporation agrees to operate a sports facility constructed by the county and to pledge and contribute all or any part of the revenues derived from its operation, as specified in the agreement, for the purposes described in division (C)(2) of this section; and (b) The board agrees to issue revenue bonds of the county, use the proceeds from the sale of the bonds to construct a sports facility in the county, and to levy county taxes and pledge and contribute all or any part of the revenues therefrom, as specified in the agreement, for the purposes described in division (C)(2) of this section; and, if applicable (3) The host municipal corporation agrees to expend the unused pledges and contributions and surplus revenues as described in divisions (C)(1) and (2) of this section for redevelopment and economic development purposes related to the sports facility. (C)(1) The primary purpose of the pledges and contributions described in division (B)(1) of this section is payment of debt service charges. To the extent the pledges and contributions are not used by the county or corporation for payment of debt service charges, the county or corporation, pursuant to the agreement provided for in division (B) of this section, shall provide the unused pledges and contributions, together with surplus revenues of the sports facility not needed for debt service charges or the operation and maintenance of the sports facility, to the host municipal corporation, or a nonprofit corporation, which may be the corporation acting on behalf of the host municipal corporation, for redevelopment and economic development purposes related to the sports facility. If the county taxes are also levied for the purpose of making permanent improvements, the agreement shall include a schedule of annual pledges and contributions by the county for the payment of debt service charges. The county's pledge and contribution provided for in the agreement shall be for the period stated in the agreement but not to exceed twenty years. The agreement shall provide that any such bonds and notes shall be secured by a trust agreement between the corporation or other bond issuer and a corporate trustee that is a trust company or bank having the powers of a trust company within or without the state, and the trust agreement shall pledge or assign to the retirement of the bonds or notes, all moneys paid by the county for that purpose under this section. A county tax, all or any part of the revenues from which are pledged under an agreement entered into by a board of county commissioners under this section shall not be subject to diminution by initiative or referendum, or diminution by statute, unless provision is made therein for an adequate substitute therefor reasonably satisfactory to the trustee under the trust agreement that secures the bonds and notes. (2) The primary purpose of the pledges and contributions described in division (B)(2) of this section is payment of debt service charges. To the extent the pledges and contributions are not used by the county for payment of debt service charges, the county or corporation, pursuant to the agreement provided for in division (B) of this section, shall provide the unused pledges and contributions, together with surplus revenues of the sports facility not needed for debt service charges or the operation and maintenance of the sports facility, to the host municipal corporation, or a nonprofit corporation, which may be the corporation, acting on behalf of the host municipal corporation, for redevelopment and economic development purposes related to the sports facility. The corporation's pledge and contribution provided for in the agreement shall be until all of the bonds issued for the construction of the facility have been retired. (D) A pledge of money by a county under this section shall not be indebtedness of the county for purposes of Chapter 133. of the Revised Code. (E) If the terms of the agreement so provide, the board of county commissioners may acquire, make site improvements to, including, but not limited to, demolition, excavation, and installation of footers, pilings, and foundations, and lease real property for the sports facility to a corporation that constructs a sports facility under division (B)(1) of this section. The agreement shall specify the term, which shall not exceed thirty years and shall be on such terms as are set forth in the agreement. The purchase, improvement, and lease may be the subject of an agreement between the county and a municipal corporation located within the county pursuant to section 153.61 or 307.15 of the Revised Code, and are not subject to the limitations of sections 307.02 and 307.09 of the Revised Code. (F) The corporation shall not enter into any construction contract or contract for the purchase of services for use in connection with the construction of a sports facility prior to the corporation's adoption and implementation of a policy on the set aside of contracts for bidding by or award to minority business enterprises, as defined in division (E)(1) of section 122.71 of the Revised Code. (G) Not more than one-half of the total costs, including debt service charges and cost of operation, of a project undertaken pursuant to an agreement entered into under division (B) of this section shall be paid from county taxes. Nothing in this section authorizes the use of revenues from county taxes or proceeds from the sale of bonds issued by the board of county commissioners for payment of costs of operation of a sports facility. Sec. 351.06. No convention facilities authority shall construct a facility under this chapter unless the plans for the facility provide for parking and transportation determined by the board of county commissioners as adequate to serve that facility. A convention facilities authority may do all of the following: (A) Adopt bylaws for the regulation of its affairs and the conduct of its business; (B) Adopt an official seal; (C) Maintain a principal office within its territory; (D) Acquire, purchase, construct, reconstruct, enlarge, furnish, equip, maintain, repair, sell, exchange, lease or rent to, lease or rent from, operate, or contract for the operation by others of, facilities within its territory, and make charges for the use of the facilities; (E) Make available the use or services of any facility to persons or governmental agencies on such terms and conditions as the authority shall determine; (F) By resolution of its board of directors, issue convention facilities authority revenue bonds beyond the limit of bonded indebtedness provided by law, payable solely from revenues as provided in section 351.14 of the Revised Code, unless the bonds are refunded by refunding bonds, for the purpose of providing funds to pay the costs of any facility or facilities or parts of any facility or facilities, and, if moneys raised by taxation are not obligated or pledged for the payment of those revenue bonds, to pay the costs of any facility or facilities or parts of any facility or facilities pursuant to Section 13 of Article VIII, Ohio Constitution, and in order to create or preserve jobs and employment opportunities and improve the economic welfare of the people of the state; (G) Maintain such funds as it determines necessary; (H) Direct its agents or employees, when properly identified in writing and after at least five days' written notice, to enter upon lands within its territory in order to make surveys and examinations preliminary to location and construction of facilities, or other work for the purposes of the convention facilities authority, without liability of the authority or its agents or employees except for actual damage done; (I) Promote, advertise, and publicize the authority and its facilities; (J)(1) Adopt rules, not in conflict with general law, governing the use of its property, grounds, buildings, equipment, and facilities, and the conduct of its employees and the public, in order to promote the public safety and convenience in and about its facilities and grounds, and to maintain order. Any such rule shall be posted at a prominent place in each of the buildings or facilities to which it applies. (2) No person shall violate any lawful rule adopted and posted as provided in this division. (K) Acquire by gift or purchase, hold, lease, and dispose of real and personal property and interests in the property in the exercise of its powers and the performance of its duties under this chapter; (L) Acquire, in the name of the authority, by purchase or otherwise, on such terms and in such manner as the authority finds proper, or by the exercise of the right of appropriation in the manner provided by section 351.22 of the Revised Code, such public or private lands, including public parks, playgrounds, or reservations, or parts thereof or rights therein, rights-of-way, rights, franchises, easements, and interests as it finds necessary or proper for carrying out this chapter, and compensation shall be paid for public or private lands so taken; (M) Make and enter into all contracts and agreements and execute all instruments necessary or incidental to the performance of its duties and the execution of its powers under this chapter provided that no construction contract or contract for the purchase of goods or services shall be approved or entered into by the authority prior to the adoption and implementation of a policy on the set aside of contracts for bidding by or award to minority business enterprises, as defined in division (E)(1) of section 122.71 of the Revised Code; (N) Employ managers, superintendents, and other employees and retain or contract with consulting engineers, financial consultants, accounting experts, architects, attorneys, and such other consultants and independent contractors as are necessary in its judgment to carry out this chapter, and fix their compensation. All expenses of doing so shall be payable solely from the proceeds of convention facilities authority bonds and notes issued under this chapter, or from excise taxes and revenues. (O) Receive and accept from any governmental agency grants for or in aid of the purposes of the authority, and receive and accept aid or contributions from any source of money, property, labor, or other things of value, to be held, used, and applied only for the purposes for which such grants and contributions are made; (P) Engage in research and development with respect to facilities; (Q) Purchase fire and extended coverage and liability insurance for any facility and for the offices of the authority, insurance protecting the authority and its officers and employees against liability for damage to property or injury to or death of persons arising from its operations, and any other insurance the authority may agree to provide under any resolution authorizing its convention facilities authority revenue bonds or in any trust agreement securing the same; (R) Charge, alter, and collect rentals and other charges for the use or services of any facility as provided in section 351.09 of the Revised Code; (S) If a tax proposed under section 5739.026 of the Revised Code is disapproved by the electors, request the board of county commissioners to dissolve the authority pursuant to section 351.03 of the Revised Code; (T) By resolution of its board of directors, levy any of the excise taxes authorized by division (B) or (C) of section 351.021 of the Revised Code if authorized by the county commissioners, and issue convention facilities authority tax anticipation bonds beyond any limit of bonded indebtedness provided by law, payable solely from excise taxes levied pursuant to division (B) or (C) of section 351.021 of the Revised Code and revenues as provided in section 351.141 of the Revised Code. (U) Do all acts necessary or proper to carry out the powers expressly granted in this chapter. Sec. 1506.44. (A) A board of county commissioners may use a loan obtained under division (C) of this section to provide financial assistance to any person who owns real property in a coastal erosion area and who has received a permit under section 1506.40 of the Revised Code to construct an erosion control structure in that coastal erosion area. The board shall enter into an agreement with the person that complies with all of the following requirements: (1) The agreement shall identify the person's real property for which the erosion control structure is being constructed and shall include a legal description of that property and a reference to the volume and page of the deed record in which the title of that person to that property is recorded. (2) In accordance with rules adopted by the Ohio water development authority under division (V) of section 6121.04 of the Revised Code for the purposes of division (C) of this section and pursuant to an agreement between the board and the authority under that division, the board shall agree to cause payments to be made by the authority to the contractor hired by the person to construct an erosion control structure in amounts not to exceed the total amount specified in the agreement between the board and the person. (3) The person shall agree to pay to the board, or to the authority as the assignee pursuant to division (C) of this section, the total amount of the payments plus administrative or other costs of the board or the authority at times, in installments, and bearing interest as specified in the agreement. The agreement may contain additional provisions that the board determines necessary to safeguard the interests of the county or to comply with an agreement entered into under division (C) of this section. (B) Upon entering into an agreement under division (A) of this section, the board shall do all of the following: (1) Cause the agreement to be recorded in the county deed records in the office of the county recorder of the county in which the real property is situated. Failure to record the agreement does not affect the validity of the agreement or the collection of any amounts due under the agreement. (2) Establish by resolution an erosion control repayment fund into which shall be deposited all amounts collected under division (B)(3) of this section. Moneys in that fund shall be used by the board for the repayment of the loan and for administrative or other costs of the board or the authority as specified in an agreement entered into under division (C) of this section. If the amount of money in the fund is inadequate to repay the loan when due, the board of county commissioners, by resolution, may advance money from any other fund in order to repay the loan if that use of the money from the other fund is not in conflict with law. If the board so advances money in order to repay the loan, the board subsequently shall reimburse each fund from which the board advances money with moneys from the erosion control repayment fund. (3) Bill and collect all amounts when due under the agreement entered into under division (A) of this section. The board shall certify amounts not paid when due to the county auditor, who shall enter the amounts on the real property tax list and duplicate against the property identified under division (A)(1) of this section. The amounts not paid when due shall be a lien on that property from the date on which the amounts are placed on the tax list and duplicate and shall be collected in the same manner as other taxes. (C) A board may apply to the authority for a loan for the purpose of entering into agreements under division (A) of this section. The loan shall be for an amount and on the terms established in an agreement between the board and the authority. The board may assign any agreements entered into under division (A) of this section to the authority in order to provide for the repayment of the loan and may pledge any lawfully available revenues to the repayment of the loan, provided that no moneys raised by taxation shall be obligated or pledged by the board for the repayment of the loan. Any agreement with the authority pursuant to this division is not subject to Chapter 133. of the Revised Code or any requirements or limitations established in that chapter. (D) The authority, as assignee of any agreement pursuant to division (C) of this section, may enforce and compel the board and the county auditor by mandamus pursuant to Chapter 2731. of the Revised Code to comply with division (B) of this section in a timely manner. (E) The construction of an erosion control structure by a contractor hired by an individual homeowner, group of individual homeowners, or homeowners association that enters into an agreement with a board under division (A) of this section Sec. 1710.02. (A) A special improvement district may be created within the boundaries of any one municipal corporation, any one township, or any combination of contiguous municipal corporations and townships for the purpose of developing and implementing plans for public improvements and public services that benefit the district. A district may be created by petition of the owners of real property within the proposed district, or by an existing qualified nonprofit corporation. If the district is created by an existing qualified nonprofit corporation, the purposes for which the district is created may be supplemental to the other purposes for which the corporation is organized. All territory in a special improvement district shall be contiguous; except that the territory in a special improvement district may be noncontiguous if at least one special energy improvement project is designated for each parcel of real property included within the special improvement district. Additional territory may be added to a special improvement district created under this chapter for the purpose of developing and implementing plans for special energy improvement projects if at least one special energy improvement project is designated for each parcel of real property included within such additional territory and the addition of territory is authorized by the initial plan proposed under division (F) of this section or a plan adopted by the board of directors of the special improvement district under section 1710.06 of the Revised Code. The district shall be governed by the board of trustees of a nonprofit corporation. This board shall be known as the board of directors of the special improvement district. No special improvement district shall include any church property, or property of the federal or state government or a county, township, or municipal corporation, unless the church or the county, township, or municipal corporation specifically requests in writing that the property be included within the district, or unless the church is a member of the existing qualified nonprofit corporation creating the district at the time the district is created. More than one district may be created within a participating political subdivision, but no real property may be included within more than one district unless the owner of the property files a written consent with the clerk of the legislative authority, the township fiscal officer, or the village clerk, as appropriate. The area of each district shall be contiguous; except that the area of a special improvement district may be noncontiguous if all parcels of real property included within such area contain at least one special energy improvement thereon. (B) Except as provided in division (C) of this section, a district created under this chapter is not a political subdivision. A district created under this chapter shall be considered a public agency under section 102.01 (C) Each district created under this chapter shall be considered a political subdivision for purposes of section 4905.34 of the Revised Code. Membership on the board of directors of the district shall not be considered as holding a public office. Directors and their designees shall be entitled to the immunities provided by Chapter 1702. and to the same immunity as an employee under division (A)(6) of section 2744.03 of the Revised Code, except that directors and their designees shall not be entitled to the indemnification provided in section 2744.07 of the Revised Code unless the director or designee is an employee or official of a participating political subdivision of the district and is acting within the scope of the director's or designee's employment or official responsibilities. District officers and district members and directors and their designees or proxies shall not be required to file a statement with the Ohio ethics commission under section 102.02 of the Revised Code. All records of the district shall be treated as public records under section 149.43 of the Revised Code, except that records of organizations contracting with a district shall not be considered to be public records under section 149.43 or section 149.431 of the Revised Code solely by reason of any contract with a district. (D) Except as otherwise provided in this section, the nonprofit corporation that governs a district shall be organized in the manner described in Chapter 1702. of the Revised Code. Except in the case of a district created by an existing qualified nonprofit corporation, the corporation's articles of incorporation are required to be approved, as provided in division (E) of this section, by resolution of the legislative authority of each participating political subdivision of the district. A copy of that resolution shall be filed along with the articles of incorporation in the secretary of state's office. In addition to meeting the requirements for articles of incorporation set forth in Chapter 1702. of the Revised Code, the articles of incorporation for the nonprofit corporation governing a district formed under this chapter shall provide all the following: (1) The name for the district, which shall include the name of each participating political subdivision of the district; (2) A description of the territory within the district, which may be all or part of each participating political subdivision. The description shall be specific enough to enable real property owners to determine if their property is located within the district. (3) A description of the procedure by which the articles of incorporation may be amended. The procedure shall include receiving approval of the amendment, by resolution, from the legislative authority of each participating political subdivision and filing the approved amendment and resolution with the secretary of state. (4) The reasons for creating the district, plus an explanation of how the district will be conducive to the public health, safety, peace, convenience, and welfare of the district. (E) The articles of incorporation for a nonprofit corporation governing a district created under this chapter and amendments to them shall be submitted to the municipal executive, if any, and the legislative authority of each municipal corporation or township in which the proposed district is to be located. Except in the case of a district created by an existing qualified nonprofit corporation, the articles or amendments shall be accompanied by a petition signed either by the owners of at least sixty per cent of the front footage of all real property located in the proposed district that abuts upon any street, alley, public road, place, boulevard, parkway, park entrance, easement, or other existing public improvement within the proposed district, excluding church property or property owned by the state, county, township, municipal, or federal government, unless a church, county, township, or municipal corporation has specifically requested in writing that the property be included in the district, or by the owners of at least seventy-five per cent of the area of all real property located within the proposed district, excluding church property or property owned by the state, county, township, municipal, or federal government, unless a church, county, township, or municipal corporation has specifically requested in writing that the property be included in the district. Pursuant to Section 2o of Article VIII, Ohio Constitution, the petition required under this division may be for the purpose of developing and implementing plans for special energy improvement projects, and, in such case, is determined to be in furtherance of the purposes set forth in Section 2o of Article VIII, Ohio Constitution. If a special improvement district is being created under this chapter for the purpose of developing and implementing plans for special energy improvement projects, the petition required under this division shall be signed by one hundred per cent of the owners of the area of all real property located within the proposed special improvement district, at least one special energy improvement project shall be designated for each parcel of real property within the special improvement district, and the special improvement district may include any number of parcels of real property as determined by the legislative authority of each participating political subdivision in which the proposed special improvement district is to be located. For purposes of determining compliance with these requirements, the area of the district, or the front footage and ownership of property, shall be as shown in the most current records available at the county recorder's office and the county engineer's office sixty days prior to the date on which the petition is filed. Each municipal corporation or township with which the petition is filed has sixty days to approve or disapprove, by resolution, the petition, including the articles of incorporation. In the case of a district created by an existing qualified nonprofit corporation, each municipal corporation or township has sixty days to approve or disapprove the creation of the district after the corporation submits the articles of incorporation or amendments thereto. This chapter does not prohibit or restrict the rights of municipal corporations under Article XVIII of the Ohio Constitution or the right of the municipal legislative authority to impose reasonable conditions in a resolution of approval. The acquisition, installation, equipping, and improvement of a special energy improvement project under this chapter shall not supersede any local zoning, environmental, or similar law or regulation. (F) Persons proposing creation and operation of the district may propose an initial plan for public services or public improvements that benefit all or any part of the district. Any initial plan shall be submitted as part of the petition proposing creation of the district or, in the case of a district created by an existing qualified nonprofit corporation, shall be submitted with the articles of incorporation or amendments thereto. An initial plan may include provisions for the following: (1) Creation and operation of the district and of the nonprofit corporation to govern the district under this chapter; (2) Hiring employees and professional services; (3) Contracting for insurance; (4) Purchasing or leasing office space and office equipment; (5) Other actions necessary initially to form, operate, or organize the district and the nonprofit corporation to govern the district; (6) A plan for public improvements or public services that benefit all or part of the district, which plan shall comply with the requirements of division (A) of section 1710.06 of the Revised Code and may include, but is not limited to, any of the permissive provisions described in the fourth sentence of that division or listed in divisions (A)(1) to (7) of that section; (7) If the special improvement district is being created under this chapter for the purpose of developing and implementing plans for special energy improvement projects, provision for the addition of territory to the special improvement district. After the initial plan is approved by all municipal corporations and townships to which it is submitted for approval and the district is created, each participating subdivision shall levy a special assessment within its boundaries to pay for the costs of the initial plan. The levy shall be for no more than ten years from the date of the approval of the initial plan; except that if the proceeds of the levy are to be used to pay the costs of a special energy improvement project, the levy of a special assessment shall be for no more than thirty years from the date of approval of the initial plan. In the event that additional territory is added to a special improvement district, the special assessment to be levied with respect to such additional territory shall commence not earlier than the date such territory is added and shall be for no more than thirty years from such date. For purposes of levying an assessment for this initial plan, the services or improvements included in the initial plan shall be deemed a special benefit to property owners within the district. (G) Each nonprofit corporation governing a district under this chapter may do the following: (1) Exercise all powers of nonprofit corporations granted under Chapter 1702. of the Revised Code that do not conflict with this chapter; (2) Develop, adopt, revise, implement, and repeal plans for public improvements and public services for all or any part of the district; (3) Contract with any person, political subdivision as defined in section 2744.01 of the Revised Code, or state agency as defined in section 1.60 of the Revised Code to develop and implement plans for public improvements or public services within the district; (4) Contract and pay for insurance for the district and for directors, officers, agents, contractors, employees, or members of the district for any consequences of the implementation of any plan adopted by the district or any actions of the district. The board of directors of a special improvement district may, acting as agent and on behalf of a participating political subdivision, sell, transfer, lease, or convey any special energy improvement project owned by the participating political subdivision upon a determination by the legislative authority thereof that the project is not required to be owned exclusively by the participating political subdivision for its purposes, for uses determined by the legislative authority thereof as those that will promote the welfare of the people of such participating political subdivision; to improve the quality of life and the general and economic well-being of the people of the participating political subdivision; better ensure the public health, safety, and welfare; protect water and other natural resources; provide for the conservation and preservation of natural and open areas and farmlands, including by making urban areas more desirable or suitable for development and revitalization; control, prevent, minimize, clean up, or mediate certain contamination of or pollution from lands in the state and water contamination or pollution; or provide for safe and natural areas and resources. The legislative authority of each participating political subdivision shall specify the consideration for such sale, transfer, lease, or conveyance and any other terms thereof. Any determinations made by a legislative authority of a participating political subdivision under this division shall be conclusive. Any sale, transfer, lease, or conveyance of a special energy improvement project by a participating political subdivision or the board of directors of the special improvement district may be made without advertising, receipt of bids, or other competitive bidding procedures applicable to the participating political subdivision or the special improvement district under Chapter 153. or 735. or section 1710.11 of the Revised Code or other representative provisions of the Revised Code. Sec. 4115.03. As used in sections 4115.03 to 4115.16 of the Revised Code: (A)(1) "Public authority" means any officer, board, or commission of the state (2) "Public authority" does not mean either of the following: (a) A political subdivision or special district, unless the political subdivision or special district elects to be subject to the requirements of sections 4115.03 to 4115.16 of the Revised Code pursuant to section 4115.04 of the Revised Code. (b) A state institution of higher education, unless the state institution of higher education elects to be subject to the requirements of sections 4115.03 to 4115.16 of the Revised Code pursuant to section 4115.04 of the Revised Code. (B) "Construction" means any of the following: (1) Except as provided in division (B)(2) or (3) of this section, any new construction of a public improvement,
(C) "Public improvement" includes all buildings, roads, streets, alleys, sewers, ditches, sewage disposal plants, water works, and all other structures or works constructed by a public authority of the state (D) "Locality" means the county wherein the physical work upon any public improvement is being performed. (E) "Prevailing wages" means the sum of the following: (1) The basic hourly rate of pay; (2) The rate of contribution irrevocably made by a contractor or subcontractor to a trustee or to a third person pursuant to a fund, plan, or program; (3) The rate of costs to the contractor or subcontractor which may be reasonably anticipated in providing the following fringe benefits to laborers and mechanics pursuant to an enforceable commitment to carry out a financially responsible plan or program which was communicated in writing to the laborers and mechanics affected: (a) Medical or hospital care or insurance to provide such; (b) Pensions on retirement or death or insurance to provide such; (c) Compensation for injuries or illnesses resulting from occupational activities if it is in addition to that coverage required by Chapters 4121. and 4123. of the Revised Code; (d) Supplemental unemployment benefits that are in addition to those required by Chapter 4141. of the Revised Code; (e) Life insurance; (f) Disability and sickness insurance; (g) Accident insurance; (h) Vacation and holiday pay; (i) Defraying of costs for apprenticeship or other similar training programs which are beneficial only to the laborers and mechanics affected; (j) Other bona fide fringe benefits. None of the benefits enumerated in division (E)(3) of this section may be considered in the determination of prevailing wages if federal, state, or local law requires contractors or subcontractors to provide any of such benefits. (F) "Interested party," with respect to a particular contract for construction of a public improvement, means: (1) Any person who submits a bid for the purpose of securing the award of the contract; (2) Any person acting as a subcontractor of a person described in division (F)(1) of this section; (3) Any bona fide organization of labor which has as members or is authorized to represent employees of a person described in division (F)(1) or (2) of this section and which exists, in whole or in part, for the purpose of negotiating with employers concerning the wages, hours, or terms and conditions of employment of employees; (4) Any association having as members any of the persons described in division (F)(1) or (2) of this section. (G) Except as used in division (A) of this section, "officer" means an individual who has an ownership interest or holds an office of trust, command, or authority in a corporation, business trust, partnership, or association. (H) "Political subdivision" has the same meaning as in section 9.23 of the Revised Code. (I) "State institution of higher education" has the same meaning as in section 3345.011 of the Revised Code. Sec. 4115.034. On January 1, 1996, and the first day of January of every even-numbered year thereafter, the director of commerce shall adjust the threshold levels for which public improvement projects are subject to sections 4115.03 to 4115.16 of the Revised Code as set forth in Sec. 4115.04. (A)(1) Every public authority authorized to contract for or construct with its own forces a public improvement, before advertising for bids or undertaking such construction with its own forces, shall have the director of commerce determine the prevailing rates of wages of mechanics and laborers in accordance with section 4115.05 of the Revised Code for the class of work called for by the public improvement, in the locality where the work is to be performed. Except as provided in division (A)(2) of this section, that schedule of wages shall be attached to and made part of the specifications for the work, and shall be printed on the bidding blanks where the work is done by contract. A copy of the bidding blank shall be filed with the director before the contract is awarded. A minimum rate of wages for common laborers, on work coming under the jurisdiction of the department of transportation, shall be fixed in each county of the state by the department of transportation, in accordance with section 4115.05 of the Revised Code. (2) In the case of contracts that are administered by the department of natural resources, the director of natural resources or the director's designee shall include language in the contracts requiring wage rate determinations and updates to be obtained directly from the department of commerce through electronic or other means as appropriate. Contracts that include this requirement are exempt from the requirements established in division (A)(1) of this section that involve attaching the schedule of wages to the specifications for the work, making the schedule part of those specifications, and printing the schedule on the bidding blanks where the work is done by contract. (B) (1) Public improvements in any case where the federal government or any of its agencies furnishes by loan or grant all or any part of the funds used in constructing such improvements, provided that the federal government or any of its agencies prescribes predetermined minimum wages to be paid to mechanics and laborers employed in the construction of such improvements; (2) A participant in a work activity, developmental activity, or an alternative work activity under sections 5107.40 to 5107.69 of the Revised Code when a public authority directly uses the labor of the participant to construct a public improvement if the participant is not engaged in paid employment or subsidized employment pursuant to the activity; (3) Public improvements undertaken by, or under contract for,
(C) Except as otherwise provided in division (D) of this section, a political subdivision, a special district, including a special improvement district created in section 1710.02 of the Revised Code, or a state institution of higher education may elect to apply sections 4115.03 to 4115.16 of the Revised Code to a public improvement undertaken by, or under contract for, the political subdivision, the special district, or the state institution of higher education, including any of the following: (1) A contract financed in whole or in part under Chapter 164. of the Revised Code; (2) The construction, improvement, furnishing, and equipping of a correctional facility to be leased pursuant to section 307.022 of the Revised Code; (3) Any contract for the acquisition, construction, or equipping of a port authority educational and cultural facility entered into, assigned, or assumed pursuant to section 307.671 of the Revised Code; (4) Any contract for the acquisition, construction, or equipping of a sports facility entered into, assigned, or assumed pursuant to section 307.673 of the Revised Code; (5) Construction services for a port authority educational and cultural performing arts facility under section 307.674 of the Revised Code; (6) Construction of a sports facility under section 307.696 of the Revised Code; (7) A facility constructed under Chapter 351. of the Revised Code; (8) A public improvement undertaken by, or under contract for, a lake facilities authority under Chapter 353. of the Revised Code; (9) Projects described under section 6117.012 of the Revised Code performed by a county; (10) Projects undertaken with funding provided under Chapter 6121. of the Revised Code. (D)(1) Under no circumstances shall a public authority apply the prevailing wage requirements of this chapter to a public improvement that (2) A political subdivision or special district may not elect to apply sections 4115.03 to 4115.16 of the Revised Code to any of the following: (a) An improvement authorized by section 1515.08 of the Revised Code that is constructed pursuant to a contract with a soil and water conservation district, as defined in section 1515.01 of the Revised Code, or performed as a result of a petition filed pursuant to Chapter 6131., 6133., or 6135. of the Revised Code, wherein no less than seventy-five per cent of the project is located on private land and not less than seventy-five per cent of the cost of the improvement is paid for by private property owners pursuant to Chapter 1515., 6131., 6133., or 6135. of the Revised Code; (b) The construction of an erosion control structure under section 1506.44 of the Revised Code; (c) An improvement undertaken by, or under contract for, a transportation improvement district created in Chapter 5540. of the Revised Code. Sec. 4115.06. In all cases where any public authority fixes a prevailing rate of wages under section 4115.04 of the Revised Code, and the work is done by contract, the contract executed between the public authority and the successful bidder shall contain a provision requiring the successful bidder and all Where a public authority constructs a public improvement with its own forces, such public authority shall pay a rate of wages which shall not be less than the rate of wages fixed as provided in section 4115.04 of the Revised Code, except in those instances provided for in Sec. 4115.09. No member of a Sec. 4115.10. (A) No person, firm, corporation, or public authority that constructs a public improvement with its own forces, the total overall project cost of which is fairly estimated to be more than the amounts set forth in division (B) of section 4115.03 of the Revised Code, adjusted biennially by the director of commerce pursuant to section 4115.034 of the Revised Code (B) Any employee upon any public improvement who is paid less than the prevailing rate of wages applicable thereto may file a complaint in writing with the director upon a form furnished by the director. The complaint shall include documented evidence to demonstrate that the employee was paid less than the prevailing wage in violation of this chapter. Upon receipt of a properly completed written complaint of any employee paid less than the prevailing rate of wages applicable, the director shall take an assignment of a claim in trust for the assigning employee and bring any legal action necessary to collect the claim. The employer shall pay the costs and reasonable attorney's fees allowed by the court if the employer is found in violation of sections 4115.03 to 4115.16 of the Revised Code. (C) If after investigation pursuant to section 4115.13 of the Revised Code, the director determines there is a violation of sections 4115.03 to 4115.16 of the Revised Code and a period of sixty days has elapsed from the date of the determination, and if: (1) No employee has brought suit pursuant to division (A) of this section; (2) No employee has requested that the director take an assignment of a wage claim pursuant to division (B) of this section. The director shall bring any legal action necessary to collect any amounts owed to employees and the director. The director shall pay over to the affected employees the amounts collected to which the affected employees are entitled under division (A) of this section. In any action in which the director prevails, the employer shall pay the costs and reasonable attorney's fees allowed by the court. (D) Where persons are employed and their rate of wages has been determined as provided in section 4115.04 of the Revised Code, no person, either for self or any other person, shall request, demand, or receive, either before or after the person is engaged, that the person so engaged pay back, return, donate, contribute, or give any part or all of the person's wages, salary, or thing of value, to any person, upon the statement, representation, or understanding that failure to comply with such request or demand will prevent the procuring or retaining of employment, and no person shall, directly or indirectly, aid, request, or authorize any other person to violate this section. This division does not apply to any agent or representative of a duly constituted labor organization acting in the collection of dues or assessments of such organization. (E) The director shall enforce sections 4115.03 to 4115.16 of the Revised Code. (F) For the purpose of supplementing existing resources and to assist in enforcing division (E) of this section, the director may contract with a person registered as a public accountant under Chapter 4701. of the Revised Code to conduct an audit of a person, firm, corporation, or public authority. (G) No contractor or subcontractor shall be responsible for the payment of the penalties provided in division (A) of this section resulting from a violation of sections 4115.03 to 4115.16 of the Revised Code by its subcontractor, provided that the contractor or subcontractor has made a good faith effort to ensure that its subcontractor complied with the requirements of sections 4115.03 to 4115.16 of the Revised Code. Sec. 4115.133. (A) The director of commerce shall file with the secretary of state a list of contractors, subcontractors, and officers of contractors and subcontractors who have been prosecuted and convicted for violations of or have been found to have intentionally violated sections 4115.03 to 4115.16 of the Revised Code. The director shall not include on the list a contractor, subcontractor, or officer of a contractor or subcontractor until the expiration of any applicable appeal period relative to the finding, or if appealed, until the date of the final judgment of a court. (B) Each contractor, subcontractor, or officer of a contractor or subcontractor who has been prosecuted and convicted for violations of or is found to have intentionally violated sections 4115.03 to 4115.16 of the Revised Code is prohibited from contracting directly or indirectly with any public authority for the construction of a public improvement or from performing any work on the same as a contractor, subcontractor, or officer of a contractor or subcontractor for a period of one year from the date of the expiration of the applicable period for filing an appeal, or if appealed, from the date of the final judgment of a court. If the contractor, subcontractor, or officer of a contractor or subcontractor is found to have intentionally violated sections 4115.03 to 4115.16 of the Revised Code another time within five years after the date specified under division (B) of this section, the contractor, subcontractor, or officer of a contractor or subcontractor is prohibited from so contracting or performing work for a period of three years from the date of the expiration of the applicable period for filing an appeal, or if appealed, from the date of the final judgment of a court. (C) No public authority shall award a contract for a public improvement to any contractor, subcontractor, or officer of a contractor or subcontractor during the time that the contractor's, subcontractor's, or officer's name appears on such list. The filing of the notice of conviction or of the finding with the secretary of state constitutes notice to all public authorities. (D) Notwithstanding section 4115.03 of the Revised Code, as used in this section, "public authority" means any officer, board, or commission of the state, or any political subdivision of the state, authorized to enter into a contract for the construction of a public improvement or to construct the same by the direct employment of labor, or any institution supported in whole or in part by public funds and said sections apply to expenditures of such institutions made in whole or in part from public funds. Sec. 5540.03. (A) A transportation improvement district may: (1) Adopt bylaws for the regulation of its affairs and the conduct of its business; (2) Adopt an official seal; (3) Sue and be sued in its own name, plead and be impleaded, provided any actions against the district shall be brought in the court of common pleas of the county in which the principal office of the district is located, or in the court of common pleas of the county in which the cause of action arose, and all summonses, exceptions, and notices of every kind shall be served on the district by leaving a copy thereof at its principal office with the secretary-treasurer; (4) Purchase, construct, maintain, repair, sell, exchange, police, operate, or lease projects; (5) Issue either or both of the following for the purpose of providing funds to pay the costs of any project or part thereof: (a) Transportation improvement district revenue bonds; (b) Bonds pursuant to Section 13 of Article VIII, Ohio Constitution; (6) Maintain such funds as it considers necessary; (7) Direct its agents or employees, when properly identified in writing and after at least five days' written notice, to enter upon lands within its jurisdiction to make surveys and examinations preliminary to the location and construction of projects for the district, without liability of the district or its agents or employees except for actual damage done; (8) Make and enter into all contracts and agreements necessary or incidental to the performance of its functions and the execution of its powers under this chapter; (9) Employ or retain or contract for the services of consulting engineers, superintendents, managers, and such other engineers, construction and accounting experts, financial advisers, trustees, marketing, remarketing, and administrative agents, attorneys, and other employees, independent contractors, or agents as are necessary in its judgment and fix their compensation, provided all such expenses shall be payable solely from the proceeds of bonds or from revenues; (10) Receive and accept from the federal or any state or local government, including, but not limited to, any agency, entity, or instrumentality of any of the foregoing, loans and grants for or in aid of the construction, maintenance, or repair of any project, and receive and accept aid or contributions from any source or person of money, property, labor, or other things of value, to be held, used, and applied only for the purposes for which such loans, grants, and contributions are made. Nothing in division (A)(10) of this section shall be construed as imposing any liability on this state for any loan received by a transportation improvement district from a third party unless this state has entered into an agreement to accept such liability. (11) Acquire, hold, and dispose of property in the exercise of its powers and the performance of its duties under this chapter; (12) Establish and collect tolls or user charges for its projects; (13) Do all acts necessary and proper to carry out the powers expressly granted in this chapter. (B) Chapters 123., 124., 125., and 153., Sec. 6117.012. (A) A board of county commissioners may adopt rules requiring owners of property within the district whose property is served by a connection to sewers maintained and operated by the board or to sewers that are connected to interceptor sewers maintained and operated by the board to do any of the following: (1) Disconnect storm water inflows to sanitary sewers maintained and operated by the board and not operated as a combined sewer, or to connections with those sewers; (2) Disconnect non-storm water inflows to storm water sewers maintained and operated by the board and not operated as a combined sewer, or to connections with those storm water sewers; (3) Reconnect or relocate any such disconnected inflows in compliance with board rules and applicable building codes, health codes, or other relevant codes; (4) Prevent sewer back-ups into properties that have experienced one or more back-ups of sanitary or combined sewers maintained and operated by the board; (5) Prevent storm water from entering a combined sewer and causing an overflow or an inflow to a sanitary sewer, which prevention may include projects or programs that separate the storm water from a combined sewer or that utilize a prevention or replacement facility to prevent or minimize storm water from entering a combined sewer or a sanitary sewer. (B) Any inflow required to be disconnected or any sewer back-up required to be prevented under a rule adopted pursuant to divisions (A)(1) to (4) of this section constitutes a nuisance subject to injunctive relief and abatement pursuant to Chapter 3767. of the Revised Code or as otherwise permitted by law. (C) A board of county commissioners may use sewer district funds; county general fund moneys; the proceeds of bonds issued under Chapter 133. or 165. of the Revised Code; and, to the extent permitted by their terms, loans, grants, or other moneys from appropriate state or federal funds, for either of the following: (1) The cost of disconnections, reconnections, relocations, combined sewer overflow prevention, or sewer back-up prevention required by rules adopted pursuant to division (A) of this section, performed by the county or under contract with the county; (2) Payments to the property owner or a contractor hired by the property owner pursuant to a competitive process established by district rules, for the cost of disconnections, reconnections, relocations, combined sewer overflow prevention, or sewer back-up prevention required by rules adopted pursuant to division (A) of this section after the board, pursuant to its rules, has approved the work to be performed and after the county has received from the property owner a statement releasing the county from all liability in connection with the disconnections, reconnections, relocations, combined sewer overflow prevention, or sewer back-up prevention. (D) Except as provided in division (E) of this section, the board of county commissioners shall require in its rules regarding disconnections, reconnections, relocations of sewers, combined sewer overflow prevention, or sewer back-up prevention the reimbursement of moneys expended pursuant to division (C) of this section by either of the following methods: (1) A charge to the property owner in the amount of the payment made pursuant to division (C) of this section for immediate payment or payment in installments with interest as determined by the board not to exceed ten per cent, which payments may be billed as a separate item with the rents charged to that owner for use of the sewers. The board may approve installment payments for a period of not more than fifteen years. If charges are to be paid in installments, the board shall certify to the county auditor information sufficient to identify each subject parcel of property, the total of the charges to be paid in installments, and the total number of installments to be paid. The auditor shall record the information in the sewer improvement record until these charges are paid in full. Charges not paid when due shall be certified to the county auditor, who shall place the charges upon the real property tax list and duplicate against that property. Those charges shall be a lien on the property from the date they are placed on the tax list and duplicate and shall be collected in the same manner as other taxes. (2) A special assessment levied against the property, payable in the number of years the board determines, not to exceed fifteen years, with interest as determined by the board not to exceed ten per cent. The board shall certify the assessments to the county auditor, stating the amount and time of payment. The auditor shall record the information in the county sewer improvement record, showing separately the assessments to be collected, and shall place the assessments upon the real property tax list and duplicate for collection. The assessments shall be a lien on the property from the date they are placed on the tax list and duplicate and shall be collected in the same manner as other taxes. (E) The county may adopt a resolution specifying a maximum amount of the cost of any disconnection, reconnection, relocation, combined sewer overflow prevention, or sewer back-up prevention required pursuant to division (A) of this section that may be paid by the county for each affected parcel of property without requiring reimbursement. That amount may be allowed only if there is a building code, health code, or other relevant code, or a federally imposed or state-imposed consent decree that is filed or otherwise recorded in a court of competent jurisdiction, applicable to the affected parcel that prohibits in the future any inflows, combined sewer overflows, or sewer back-ups not allowed under rules adopted pursuant to division (A)(1), (4), or (5) of this section. The board, by rule, shall establish criteria for determining how much of the maximum amount for each qualifying parcel need not be reimbursed. (F) Disconnections, reconnections, relocations, combined sewer overflow prevention, or sewer back-up prevention required under this section performed by a contractor under contract with the property owner shall not be subject to competitive bidding or public bond laws. (G) Property owners shall be responsible for maintaining any improvements made or facilities constructed on private property to reconnect or relocate disconnected inflows, for combined sewer overflow prevention, or for sewer back-up prevention pursuant to this section unless a public easement or other agreement exists for the county to maintain that improvement or facility. (H) A board of county commissioners may provide rate reductions of and credits against charges for the use of sewers to a property owner that implements a project or program that prevents storm water from entering a combined sewer and causing an overflow. Such a project or program may include the use of a prevention or replacement facility to handle storm water that has been separated from a combined sewer. The revised rates or charges shall be collected and paid to the county treasurer in accordance with section 6117.02 of the Revised Code. Sec. 6121.061. The Ohio water development authority shall not issue any bonds or otherwise participate in any project authorized by this chapter or Chapter 6123. of the Revised Code unless the contract, resolution, or other written document setting forth the board's participation specifies that all wages paid to laborers and mechanics employed on the projects shall be paid at the prevailing rates of wages of laborers and mechanics for the class of work called for by the project, which wages shall be determined in accordance with the requirements of Chapter 4115. of the Revised Code for determination of prevailing wage rates, provided that the requirements of this section do not apply Section 2. That existing sections 164.07, 307.022, 307.671, 307.673, 307.674, 307.696, 351.06, 1506.44, 1710.02, 4115.03, 4115.034, 4115.04, 4115.06, 4115.09, 4115.10, 4115.133, 5540.03, 6117.012, and 6121.061 of the Revised Code are hereby repealed. Section 3. The amendments by Section 1 of this act of sections 164.07, 307.022, 307.671, 307.673, 307.674, 307.696, 351.06, 1506.44, 1710.02, 4115.03, 4115.034, 4115.04, 4115.06, 4115.09, 4115.10, 4115.133, 5540.03, 6117.012, and 6121.061 of the Revised Code, with respect to the application of sections 4115.03 to 4115.16 of the Revised Code, do apply to contracts governed by this act that are entered into before the effective date of this act. |
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