2023 New York Laws › PBA - Public Authorities › Article 5 - Public Utility Authorities › Title 2-B - Buffalo Municipal Water Finance Authority › 1048-I - Agreement Among the Water Board, the City and the Authority for the Provision of Water Projects.

§  1048-i. Agreement among the water board, the city and the authority
for the provision of water projects. 1. The authority, the  water  board
and  the  city,  acting by resolution of the common council of the city,
may  enter  into  agreements  for  the  purpose  of  providing  for  the
construction and financing of a water project.
2.  Any  such  agreements  (i) shall describe in sufficient detail for
reasonable identification the particular water project to be financed in
whole or in part by the authority, (ii) shall describe the plan for  the
financing  of  the  cost  of  the  construction  of  such water project,
including the amount, if any, to be provided by the water board and  the
source or sources thereof, (iii) shall set forth the method by which and
by  whom  and the terms and conditions upon which moneys provided by the
authority shall be disbursed, (iv) may require, in the discretion of the
authority, the payment to the authority of the proceeds of any state and
federal grants available to the water board, (v) shall provide  for  the
establishment  of  user  fees,  rates,  rents  and other charges and the
charging and collection thereof by the water board for the  use  of,  or
services furnished, rendered or made available by such system such as to
provide  that  such board receive revenues at least sufficient, together
with other revenues of the board, if any, to meet  the  requirements  of
subdivision  one  of  section  one thousand forty-eight-j of this title,
provided that revenues received by such board shall be  deposited  in  a
special  fund  established  pursuant to this title and disbursed to, and
upon certification of, the authority, (vi) may provide for the  transfer
by  the  city  to  the  water  board  pursuant  to  section one thousand
forty-eight-h of this title of ownership of the water  system  of  which
such  project will form a part, (vii) shall provide for the construction
and completion of such water project by the city and for the  operation,
maintenance  and  repair  thereof as an integrated part of the system of
which such water project  forms  a  part,  subject  to  such  terms  and
conditions, not inconsistent with this title, which may be in the public
interest  and  necessary  or desirable properly and adequately to secure
the holders of bonds of the authority, provided, however, all  contracts
for  public work and all purchase contracts shall be awarded by the city
as provided by law for the award of such contracts by the city and  that
all  contracts  for  construction  shall  be  let in accordance with the
provisions of state law pertaining to prevailing wages, labor  standards
and  working  hours. Except as otherwise provided in section two hundred
twenty-two of the labor law, when the  entire  cost  of  constructing  a
building as part of any water project shall exceed five hundred thousand
dollars,   the  city  shall  prepare  separate  specifications  for  the
following three subdivisions of the work to be performed:  (a)  plumbing
and  gas  fitting; (b) steam heating, hot water heating, ventilating and
air  conditioning  apparatus;  and  (c)  electric  wiring  and  standard
illuminating  fixtures,  (viii)  shall provide for the discontinuance or
disconnection of the supply of water for  non-payment  of  fees,  rates,
rents  or  other  charges  therefor imposed by the water board, provided
such discontinuance or disconnection of any supply of water shall not be
carried out except in the manner and upon the notice as is required of a
waterworks corporation pursuant to  subdivisions  three-a,  three-b  and
three-c  of section eighty-nine-b and section one hundred sixteen of the
public service law, and (ix) in the discretion of the authority, require
reports concerning the project from the water board to the authority and
the city.
2-a. Each bidder on a public work contract, where the  preparation  of
separate  specifications  is  not  required, shall submit with its bid a
separate sealed list that names each subcontractor that the bidder  will
use  to  perform  work on the contract, and the agreed-upon amount to be

paid to each, for: (a) plumbing and gas fitting, (b) steam heating,  hot
water  heating,  ventilating  and  air  conditioning  apparatus  and (c)
electric wiring and standard illuminating fixtures. After the low bid is
announced, the sealed list of subcontractors submitted with such low bid
shall be opened and the names of such subcontractors shall be announced,
and  thereafter  any change of subcontractor or agreed-upon amount to be
paid to each shall require the approval of  the  public  owner,  upon  a
showing  presented  to  the public owner of legitimate construction need
for such change, which shall be open to  public  inspection.  Legitimate
construction  need  shall  include,  but  not be limited to, a change in
project specifications, a  change  in  construction  material  costs,  a
change  to  subcontractor status as determined pursuant to paragraph (e)
of subdivision two of section two hundred twenty-two of the  labor  law,
or   the   subcontractor  has  become  otherwise  unwilling,  unable  or
unavailable  to  perform  the   subcontract.   The   sealed   lists   of
subcontractors  submitted by all other bidders shall be returned to them
unopened after the contract award.
3. If the  city  executes  an  agreement  pursuant  to  this  section,
relating  to  the financing of water projects by revenue bonds, it shall
have and shall be deemed to have annulled its power to levy  user  fees,
rents and other charges on participating properties or customers for the
cost  of  financing, operating and maintaining such water projects under
its jurisdiction until all bonds of the authority shall have  been  paid
or discharged in accordance with the agreement and the resolution of the
authority  authorizing  such  bonds. If the city has outstanding general
obligation bonds issued for acquiring or constructing water  facilities,
whether  the  bonds  are  payable from revenues, special assessments, or
taxes, it may authorize the authority pursuant to the agreement to issue
its revenue bonds under this title  for  the  purpose  of  retiring  the
outstanding bonds.
4.  No such agreement shall be executed until the city and water board
shall have held a public hearing at which  users  of  the  water  system
shall   have  had  opportunity  to  be  heard  concerning  the  proposed
provisions thereof. Notice of such hearing shall be published  at  least
thirty  days in advance in the state register, in the official newspaper
or newspapers of the city, and in at  least  one  newspaper  of  general
circulation in each of the areas served by the water system.
5.  Such  agreement  shall  be  effective  upon  the  issuance  by the
authority of notes and bonds to finance the cost of  constructing  water
projects of the city.
6.  Any  such  agreement  may  be  amended,  revised  or  extended  by
supplemental agreements authorized and executed in the  same  manner  as
the  original  agreement,  provided that any such supplemental agreement
shall not be inconsistent with the provisions of this title.
7. (a) Following the execution of the agreement  by  and  between  the
authority,  the  water  board and the city pursuant to this section, the
clerk of the city, shall publish a notice in substantially the following
form:  "Notice  is  hereby  given  that  the   city   of   Buffalo   has
on         day  of                 entered  into  an  agreement with the
Buffalo  municipal  water  finance  authority   in   relation   to   the
construction  and  financing  of (here insert a brief description of the
water facility or facilities to which such agreement  relates)  pursuant
to  the Buffalo Municipal Water Finance Authority Act for the purpose of
placing its water system on an  independent  basis,  imposing  fees  and
rents  on  water  system  users  which,  together  with  other  revenues
available for such purpose,  if  any,  are  sufficient  to  pay  to  the
authority  debt service on bonds issued by the authority pursuant to the
agreement and for operation and maintenance of the  facility  (title  to

which is transferred to the water board pursuant to the agreement). Such
agreement  in general terms provides (here insert a brief summary of the
substantive provisions of  such  agreement).  A  copy  of  the  complete
agreement is on file for public inspection in the office of the clerk of
the  city where the same may be examined by any interested person during
regular business hours. The validity of this agreement may be  hereafter
contested  only  upon  the  ground  or  grounds that: (i) such agreement
violates, or the performance of  any  provision  thereof  by  any  party
thereto   would  violate,  the  provisions  of  any  law  or  the  state
constitution, or (ii) the provisions  of  law  which  should  have  been
complied  with  in  relation to the authorization and execution were not
substantially complied with,  and  in  any  event  an  action,  suit  or
proceeding is commenced within sixty days after the date of this notice.                                              Clerk or other official
designated by the common council
of the city of Buffalo)"
(b)  The  publication  authorized  by this subdivision shall be in the
state register and in the official newspaper or newspapers of the city.
(c) After the expiration of the sixty day period  set  forth  in  such
notice the validity of such agreement shall be conclusively presumed and
the  validity  thereof  shall  not  thereafter be questioned by either a
party  plaintiff  or  a  party  defendant  and  no  court   shall   have
jurisdiction in any action, suit or proceeding contesting such validity.
(d)  Neither  any  error  or  omission  in  the  notice of publication
provided for in this subdivision shall affect or impair the validity  of
an  agreement  executed  pursuant  to this section so long as the notice
substantially conforms to the provisions of this section.