2023 New York Laws › EDN - Education › Title 2 - School District Organization › Article 35 - Union Free School Districts › 1726 - Lease and Lease-Purchase of Buildings.

§ 1726. Lease  and lease-purchase of buildings. 1. Notwithstanding any
  inconsistent provision of law, the board of education of any union  free
  school  district may enter into agreements pursuant to the provisions of
  this section for the lease or lease-purchase  of  buildings  for  school
  purposes, to be placed or erected on a site owned by the district.
1-a.  Notwithstanding  any inconsistent provision of law, the board of
  education of any union free school district  may  enter  into  agreement
  with  the dormitory authority for the lease or lease-purchase for school
  purposes from the dormitory  authority  of  a  dormitory  (or  any  part
  thereof),  as  defined  in  section  sixteen  hundred seventy-six of the
  public authorities law, including, if the agreement so  provides,  land,
  buildings,  any  attendant  facilities,  and  equipment,  provided  such
  dormitory (a) is  owned  by  or  in  the  possession  of  the  dormitory
  authority,  and (b) was originally provided or financed by the authority
  for an educational institution as defined in subdivision one of  section
  sixteen  hundred  eighty  of  the  public  authorities law and (c) is no
  longer being used by such educational institution.  Any  such  agreement
  may  provide for the alteration, reconstruction or rehabilitation of any
  such dormitory or part thereof by the school district or  the  authority
  as capital items. The provisions of subdivisions three, four, six, eight
  and  nine  of  this  section  shall  not apply to any agreement with the
  dormitory  authority   authorized   by   this   subdivision,   provided,
  nevertheless, that the lease or lease-purchase agreement may not be made
  for  a  period in excess of the applicable period of probable usefulness
  for  the  building  or  buildings,  as  so  altered,  reconstructed   or
  rehabilitated,  and provided, further, that the plans and specifications
  for  such  building  or  buildings,  as  so  altered,  reconstructed  or
  rehabilitated,  shall  be  subject  to  approval  of the commissioner of
  education, before such alteration, reconstruction or rehabilitation  may
  be authorized by the board of education of such school district.
2.  Before  executing any such agreement, the board of education shall
  adopt a resolution determining  that  such  agreement  is  in  the  best
  financial interests of the school district and stating the basis of that
  determination.
3. Such agreements shall be subject to the bidding requirements of the
  general municipal law, except that the provisions of section one hundred
  one   of  the  general  municipal  law  shall  not  apply  to  lease  or
  lease-purchase of pre-manufactured items  delivered  to  the  site,  but
  shall apply to installation and other work to be performed on the site.
4.  No  agreement for the lease of a building or buildings may be made
  for a term  of  more  than  five  years,  beginning  with  the  time  of
  occupancy.  No  lease-purchase  agreement  may  be  made  for  a  period
  exceeding the applicable period of probable usefulness pursuant  to  the
  provisions  of  the local finance law. Nothing herein contained shall be
  deemed to prohibit a board of education from entering into a renewal  of
  such  lease  agreement  of  such building or buildings for like periods,
  provided, however, that the total lease payments or the total amount  of
  lease-purchase  agreement payments over the period of any such agreement
  including all lease renewals, may not exceed the purchase price of  such
  building  or  buildings,  together  with  interest  of not to exceed six
  percent per annum on any unpaid balance.
5. A board of education may not enter into any lease or lease-purchase
  agreement authorized by this section without the  previous  approval  of
  the voters of the district; provided that a board of education may, with
  the  approval  of  the commissioner, lease necessary space in case of an
  unforeseeable emergency.
6. Any agreement by which a building is leased to  a  school  district
  for  installation  on  land owned by the district must include provision

  for the removal of such building by the lessor within ninety days  after
  termination  of  the lease, unless such lease is renewed or title to the
  building passes to the school district in accordance with the provisions
  of this section.
7.  The commissioner, with the approval of the director of the budget,
  shall establish a uniform procedure for  allocation  of  payments  under
  lease-purchase  agreements  for the purpose of determining operating aid
  and aid for building purposes, respectively; provided, however, that  no
  building  aid  shall  be  paid  unless and until the school district has
  legally  committed  itself  to  the  purchase  in  accordance  with  the
  provisions of this section.
8.  Plans  and specifications and the proposed lease, lease renewal or
  lease-purchase  agreement  for  buildings  to  be  leased  or  purchased
  pursuant  to  the  provisions  of  this  section must be approved by the
  commissioner before a board of education may authorize  or  execute  any
  agreement, or renewal thereof, for such purposes.
9.  The  term  "lease", as used in this section, shall include a lease
  with an option to purchase; provided, however, that in  the  case  of  a
  lease  with  an option to purchase, no part of any lease payments may be
  counted against the purchase price, in case the option  to  purchase  is
  exercised.
10.  The  term  of  no lease agreement including renewals thereof, may
  exceed the period of probable usefulness provided for such  building  or
  buildings by the local finance law.
11.  No  annual  installment  of lease-purchase payment may exceed any
  other such installment under any such agreement by more than  fifty  per
  centum thereof.
12.  Any  school  district  entering into any lease-purchase agreement
  under this section, shall pledge its full faith and credit for the  full
  performance  of  all  obligations  under  such  agreement, including all
  annual payments required to be made thereunder.
13. The annual payments to be made by the school  district  under  any
  such  agreement  shall  commence within two years after the execution of
  any such agreement, or within thirty days from the  time  the  board  of
  education  shall  have  approved  such building for occupancy, whichever
  shall be later.
14. The total amount of any unpaid annual payments of a lease-purchase
  agreement in relation to the principal of any such indebtedness, in case
  of a school district in a city as defined in the local finance law shall
  be deemed to be indebtedness  of  the  school  district  for  a  capital
  improvement  within the meaning of subparagraph (b) of subdivision three
  of paragraph a of section 135.00 of the local finance law.
15. The annual payments by  such  a  school  district  in  a  city  in
  relation  to  such  indebtedness  and  interest  shall  be  deemed to be
  "indebtedness" and "interest" within  the  meaning  of  section  ten  of
  article eight of the state constitution.
16.  No such agreement shall be renegotiated or amended in such manner
  as to constitute a refunding  within  the  meaning  of  section  two  of
  article eight of the state constitution.