NY Pub Auth L § 376 (2021)
2021 New York Laws PBA - Public Authorities Article 2 - Park, Parkway and Highway Authorities Title 9 - New York State Thruway Authority 376 - Further Additional Powers of the Authority.

§ 376. Further additional powers of the authority. The authority shall have  the  power, in addition to the powers granted in other sections of this title:   1. (a) To enter into a cooperative highway  contractual  agreement  or agreements  with the commissioner of transportation for the financing by the authority of expenditures made in advance by the state  for  design, acquisition,  construction,  reconstruction  or  the  reconditioning and preservation of transportation facilities pursuant to the provisions  of section  eighty-eight-b  of the state finance law, state highways, state parkways, state arterial highways in cities and related  facilities  and structures   thereon,   including   bridges,   the   reconditioning  and preservation of structures separating highways and  railroads,  and  the traffic  operations  program to increase capacity and safety on existing street and highway systems in urban areas, capacity  and  infrastructure improvements  to  state,  county, town, city or village roads, highways, parkways and bridges, in any case where the expense thereof is  paid  in whole or in part by the state.  (b)  To  issue  use  permits to the commissioner of transportation for projects financed by the authority of expenditures made  in  advance  by the  state  in  accordance  with the provisions of a cooperative highway contractual agreement or agreements provided,  that  such  projects  are maintained  and  operated  under  the  supervision  of the department of transportation or the municipal agency designated by the commissioner of transportation without cost to the New York State thruway authority  for the  full  term  of  such agreement or agreements, and, provided further that such use permit shall be granted by the authority for  the  use  of such  projects  by  the  department  of  transportation or the municipal agency designated by the commissioner of transportation on a  toll  free basis.   2.  From  time  to  time to issue emergency highway reconditioning and preservation bonds and notes for the purposes of this section.  All  the provisions  of  this  title  relating  to bonds and notes, which are not inconsistent with the provisions of this section,  shall  apply  to  the bonds  and  notes  authorized  by  this section. The authority shall not issue emergency highway reconditioning and preservation bonds and  notes in  an  aggregate  principal  amount  exceeding: (a) one hundred million dollars, excluding bonds issued to  refund  outstanding  notes,  in  the period  from  April  first,  nineteen  hundred seventy-two through March thirty-first, nineteen hundred eighty-two; and  (b)  an  additional  one hundred  thirty-six  million  dollars,  excluding bonds issued to refund outstanding notes, on or after April first, nineteen hundred  eighty-two but before April first, nineteen hundred eighty-six.   2-a.  From  time  to  time  issue  emergency  highway construction and reconstruction bonds and notes for the purposes of this section. All the provisions of this title relating to  bonds  and  notes  which  are  not inconsistent  with  the  provisions  of  this section shall apply to the bonds and notes authorized by this  section.  The  authority  shall  not issue  emergency highway construction and reconstruction bonds and notes in an aggregate principal amount  exceeding:  (a)  one  hundred  million dollars,  excluding bonds or notes issued to refund outstanding bonds or notes, before April first, nineteen hundred ninety and (b) an additional thirty-four million dollars, excluding bonds or notes issued  to  refund outstanding  bonds  or  notes, on or after April first, nineteen hundred ninety and (c) an additional  ninety-three  million  dollars,  excluding bonds  or notes, issued to refund outstanding bonds or notes on or after April first, nineteen hundred ninety-one and (d)  an  additional  ninety million  dollars,  excluding bonds or notes issued to refund outstanding bonds or notes, on or after April first, nineteen hundred ninety-two.    2-b. From time to time to enter into agreements with the  commissioner of  transportation  to  finance the capital costs of projects authorized pursuant to section eighty-eight-b of the  state  finance  law,  and  to issue  bonds  and  notes  for  capital projects approved by metropolitan planning   organizations   or   transportation  coordinating  committees pursuant to the provisions  of  such  section  eighty-eight-b.  All  the provisions  of  this  title  relating  to  bonds and notes which are not inconsistent with the provisions of this  section  shall  apply  to  the bonds  and  notes authorized by this section. No bonds or notes shall be issued for  the  purposes  authorized  by  this  subdivision  after  the thirty-first day of March, two thousand.   2-c.   From  time  to  time  to  issue  additional  emergency  highway reconditioning and preservation bonds and notes for the purposes of this section. All the provisions of this title relating to bonds  and  notes, which  are  not  inconsistent with the provisions of this section, shall apply to the bonds and notes authorized by this section.  The  authority shall  not  issue  such  additional emergency highway reconditioning and preservation bonds and notes in an aggregate principal amount  exceeding (a)  forty-eight  million  dollars,  excluding  bonds or notes issued to refund outstanding bonds or notes, on or  after  April  first,  nineteen hundred  ninety,  and  (b)  an  additional  eighty-four  million dollars excluding bonds or notes issued to refund outstanding bonds or notes  on or after April first, nineteen hundred ninety-one, and (c) an additional eighty-five  million  dollars, excluding bonds or notes issued to refund outstanding bonds or notes, on or after April  first,  nineteen  hundred ninety-two.   3.  In  addition  to  the  provisions  authorized  by  this  title any resolution or  resolutions  authorizing  any  bonds  or  notes  for  the purposes  of  this section may contain provisions which may be a part of the contract with the holders of such bonds providing for  the  creation and  establishment and maintenance of reserve funds and payments to such reserve funds as hereinafter in this subdivision set forth.   The authority may create and establish reserve funds to  be  known  as the  emergency  highway  reconditioning  and  preservation  debt service reserve fund, the emergency highway construction and reconstruction debt service reserve  fund  and  the  suburban  transportation  debt  service reserve  fund  and  may  pay  into  such  reserve  funds (a) moneys made available by the state for the purposes of such funds from the emergency highway reconditioning and preservation fund, or the  emergency  highway construction and reconstruction fund or the suburban transportation fund as  created  by  section eighty-nine, eighty-nine-a or eighty-eight-b of the state finance law, respectively; (b) any proceeds of sale  of  bonds and  notes  to  the  extent  provided in the resolution of the authority authorizing the issuance thereof; and (c) any other moneys which may  be made  available to the authority for the purposes of such funds from any other source or sources. The moneys held in or  credited  to  such  debt service  reserve  funds  established  under  this subdivision, except as hereinafter provided, shall be  used  solely  for  the  payment  of  the principal  of  bonds  of the authority secured by such reserve funds, as the same mature, the purchase  of  such  bonds  of  the  authority,  the payment of interest on such bonds of the authority or the payment of any redemption  premium  required  to  be  paid when such bonds are redeemed prior to maturity; provided, however, that  moneys  in  any  such  funds shall  not  be  withdrawn  therefrom at any time in such amount as would reduce the amount of such funds to  less  than  the  maximum  amount  of principal  and  interest  maturing  and  becoming  due in any succeeding calendar year on the bonds of the authority then outstanding and secured by such reserve funds, except for the purpose of  paying  principal  and  interest  on  the  bonds  of the authority secured by such reserve funds maturing and becoming due and for the payment of which other  moneys  of the  authority  are  not available. Any income or interest earned by, or increment  to, any such debt service reserve funds due to the investment thereof may be transferred to any other fund or account of the authority established for the purposes of this section to the extent it  does  not reduce  the  amount of such debt service reserve funds below the maximum amount of principal and  interest  maturing  and  becoming  due  in  any succeeding  calendar year on all bonds of the authority then outstanding and secured by such reserve funds.   4. The authority shall not issue bonds at any time for the purposes of this section if the maximum amount of principal  and  interest  maturing and  becoming due in a succeeding calendar year on the bonds outstanding and then to be issued and secured by any debt service reserve fund  will exceed  the  amount of such reserve fund at the time of issuance, unless the authority at the time of issuance of such bonds,  shall  deposit  in such  reserve  fund  from  the proceeds of the bonds so to be issued, or otherwise, an amount which together with the amount then in such reserve fund, will be not less than the maximum amount of principal and interest maturing and becoming due in any succeeding calendar year on  the  bonds then  to  be  issued  and  on  all  other  bonds  of  the authority then outstanding and secured by such reserve fund.   5. (a) To assure the continued operation and solvency of the authority for the carrying out of the purposes relating to this section  provision is made in this section for the accumulation in the debt service reserve fund  of an amount equal to the maximum amount of principal and interest maturing and becoming due in any succeeding calendar year on  all  bonds of  the  authority then outstanding and secured by such reserve fund. In order further to assure the maintenance of  such  debt  service  reserve fund,  with  respect  to  bonds of the authority issued pursuant to this section prior to April first, nineteen hundred ninety,  there  shall  be annually  apportioned and paid to the authority for deposit in such debt service reserve fund such sum, if any, as  shall  be  certified  by  the chairman  of  the  authority  to  the governor and state director of the budget as necessary to restore such reserve fund to an amount  equal  to the  maximum  amount of principal and interest maturing and becoming due in any succeeding calendar year on  the  bonds  of  the  authority  then outstanding  and  secured  by  such  reserve  fund.  The chairman of the authority shall annually, on or before December first, make and  deliver to the governor and state director of the budget his certificate stating the  sum,  if any, required to restore such debt service reserve fund to the amount aforesaid, and the sum or sums so certified, if any, shall be apportioned and paid to the authority  during  the  then  current  state fiscal year.  (b)  To  assure  the continued operation and solvency of the authority for the carrying out of the purposes relating to this section, provision is made in this section for the accumulation in the debt service reserve fund of an amount equal to the maximum amount of principal and  interest maturing  and  becoming due in any succeeding calendar year on all bonds of the authority then outstanding and  secured  by  such  reserve  fund; provided  however  for  such  bonds  issued by the authority after April first, nineteen hundred ninety-two, such debt service reserve  fund  may in  the  discretion  of  the authority and consistent with any covenants with any existing bondholders and without impairing the  rights  of  any existing  bondholders  be  sized  in  an  amount  equal to not less than one-half of the maximum amount of principal and  interest  maturing  and becoming  due  in  any  succeeding  calendar  year  on such bonds of the authority then outstanding and secured  by  such  debt  service  reserve  fund.  In  order  to further assure the maintenance of such debt service reserve fund, with respect to bonds of the authority issued pursuant  to subdivisions  two-a,  two-b and two-c of this section after April first, nineteen hundred ninety, the authority shall create a special subaccount in   each  revenue  fund  established  pursuant  to  any  resolution  or resolutions authorizing such bonds. Such subaccounts  shall  consist  of the  moneys  available  after  April  first,  nineteen  hundred  ninety, pursuant to sections two hundred eighty-two-b, two hundred eighty-two-c, two hundred eighty-four-a and two hundred eighty-four-c of the tax  law, respectively,  in  the emergency highway reconditioning and preservation fund  reserve  account  established  pursuant  to   paragraph   (b)   of subdivision  two  of section eighty-nine of the state finance law and in the emergency  highway  construction  and  reconstruction  fund  reserve account  established  pursuant  to  paragraph  (b) of subdivision two of section eighty-nine-a of the state finance law, apportioned and paid  to the  authority  for  deposit  in  such  subaccount  of the revenue fund. Amounts in each such subaccount shall be kept separate and shall not  be commingled  with  any  other  moneys  in  the  custody of the authority. Amounts in each such subaccount shall be applied solely to pay such sum, if any, as shall semi-annually, (on such dates as are established  under the  terms  of  any  cooperative  highway  contractual  agreement of the department of transportation with the New York state  thruway  authority entered  into  on or after April first, nineteen hundred ninety which is then in effect), be certified by the chairman of the  authority  to  the governor  and state director of the budget as necessary to provide funds in an amount sufficient together with  other  moneys  available  to  the authority  for  such  purpose,  to  pay  one-half  of  the  total annual principal and  interest  maturing  and  becoming  due  during  the  next succeeding  twelve  calendar months on all bonds of the authority issued pursuant to subdivisions two-a, two-b and two-c of  this  section  after April  first,  nineteen  hundred  ninety and maintaining or funding debt service reserve funds therefor. Any surplus of funds in excess  of  such certified amounts remaining in each such subaccount after such payments, if any, have been made shall on the dates established under the terms of such   cooperative   highway  agreements,  be  paid  over  for  deposit, respectively, in the emergency highway reconditioning  and  preservation fund   reserve   account   established  pursuant  to  paragraph  (b)  of subdivision two of section eighty-nine of the state finance law  and  in the  emergency  highway  construction  and  reconstruction  fund reserve account established pursuant to paragraph  (b)  of  subdivision  two  of section eighty-nine-a of the state finance law.   6. In computing the debt service reserve fund for the purposes of this section, securities in which all or a portion of such reserve fund shall be invested shall be valued at par, or if purchased at less than par, at their cost to the authority.   7.  The  authorization,  sale  and  issuance  of bonds, notes or other obligations pursuant to this section shall not be deemed  an  action  as such  term is defined in article eight of the environmental conservation law for the purposes of such article. Such exemption shall  be  strictly limited in its application to such financing activities of the authority and does not exempt the department of transportation or any other entity from compliance with such article.