Administrative Rules of Montana › Department 36 - NATURAL RESOURCES AND CONSERVATION › Chapter 36.24 - WATER POLLUTION CONTROL STATE REVOLVING FUND ACT › Subchapter 36.24.1 - Financial Assistance › Rule 36.24.102 - DEFINITIONS AND CONSTRUCTION OF RULES

Current through Register Vol. 13, July 5, 2024
In this subchapter, the following terms have the meanings
				  indicated below and, in certain cases, are supplemental to the definitions
				  contained in Title 75, chapter 5, part 11, MCA, sections 601 through 607 of the
				  Federal Water Pollution Control Act,
				  33 USC
				  1251 through
				  1387, as amended, and ARM
				  17.40.302. Terms used but not
				  defined have the meanings prescribed in ARM
				  17.40.302 or the indenture of
				  trust. Any conflict between this subchapter and the indenture of trust shall be
				  resolved in favor of the indenture of trust.
(1) "Act" means Water Pollution Control State
				Revolving Fund Act, Title 75, chapter 5, part 11, MCA.
(2) "Administrative expense surcharge" means
				a surcharge on each loan charged by the department to the borrower expressed as
				a percentage per annum on the outstanding principal amount of the loan, payable
				by the borrower on the same dates that payments of principal and interest on
				the loan are due, calculated in accordance with these rules.
(3) "Administrative fee" means the fee
				expressed as a percentage of the initial committed amount of the loan retained
				by the department from the proceeds of the loan at closing, calculated in
				accordance with these rules.
(4)
				"Application" means the form of application provided by the department and the
				department of environmental quality which must be completed and submitted in
				order to request a loan.
(5)
				"Binding commitment" means an executed commitment agreement.
(6) "Bond" means an obligation issued by a
				municipality pursuant to the provisions of Montana law and the code.
(7) "Borrower" means a municipality or
				private person to whom a loan is made.
(8) "Borrower obligation" means a bond or
				loan agreement.
(9) "Borrower
				resolution" means a resolution of a borrower authorizing the issuance of bonds
				or a loan agreement.
(10) "Closing"
				means, with respect to a loan, the date of delivery of the borrower resolution
				and the borrower obligation to the department.
(11) "Code" means the Internal Revenue Code
				of 1986, as amended.
(12)
				"Commitment agreement" means a written agreement between the borrower and the
				department pursuant to which the department agrees to make a loan to the
				borrower in a specified principal amount on or before the date and subject to
				the terms and conditions specified in the agreement.
(13) "Debt" means debt incurred to acquire,
				construct, extend, improve, add to, or otherwise pay expenses related to the
				system, without regard to the source of payment and security for such debt
				(i.e., without regard to whether it is, for example, general obligation revenue
				or special assessment debt).
(14)
				"Department" means the Montana department of natural resources and
				conservation.
(15) "Department of
				environmental quality" means the Montana department of environmental
				quality.
(16) "Eligible water
				pollution control project" means projects that meet the requirements of the
				federal act and that are approved by the department of environmental quality,
				including, without limitation, certain wastewater collection and treatment
				system projects, sewage system projects, storm sewer or storm drainage
				projects, and solid waste management projects and other nonpoint source
				projects.
(17) "EPA" means the
				United States environmental protection agency.
(18) "EPA agreement" means the operating
				agreement between the state and the EPA.
(19) "Federal act" means the Federal Water
				Pollution Control Act, also known as the Clean Water Act,
				33 U.S.C.
				1251 through
				1387, as amended.
(20) "General obligation" means an obligation
				of a municipality pledging the full faith and credit of and unlimited taxing
				power of the municipality.
(21)
				"Governing body" means the duly elected or appointed board, council, or
				commission or other body authorized by law to govern the affairs of the
				municipality.
(22) "Gross revenues"
				means with respect to revenue bonds, all revenues derived from the operation of
				a sewage, wastewater, storm sewer or storm drainage system, from a non-point
				source project, including but not limited to rates, fees, charges, and rentals
				imposed for connections with and for the availability, benefit, and use of the
				water, sewage, wastewater, storm sewer or storm drainage system, or nonpoint
				source project as now constituted and of all replacements and improvements
				thereof and additions thereto, and from penalties and interest thereon, and
				from any sales of property acquired for the system or for or in connection with
				the nonpoint source project and all income received from the investment of all
				moneys on deposit in system accounts.
(23) "Indenture of trust" means the indenture
				of trust between the board of examiners and a trustee establishing and
				implementing the program, establishing certain terms and conditions for the
				sale and issuance of the state's bonds to fund the program, providing for the
				application of the proceeds of the state's bonds and the repayments of the
				state's bonds and establishing the funds and accounts for the
				program.
(24) "Intended use plan"
				means the document prepared by the department of environmental quality, which
				identifies uses of the funds in the program and describes how those uses
				support the goals of the program.
(25) "Loan" means the loan of money from the
				department to a municipality or private person from the state revolving fund in
				accordance with the provision of the act and these rules.
(26) "Loan agreement" means an agreement
				entered into between a borrower that is a private person and the department
				evidencing the loan.
(27) "Loan
				loss reserve surcharge" means a surcharge expressed as percentage per annum on
				the outstanding principal amount of the loan at the rate determined in these
				rules and imposed on all borrowers unless waived in accordance with the
				provisions of these rules.
(28)
				"Municipality" means municipality as defined in
				75-5-1102(6),
				MCA.
(29) "Net revenues" means the
				entire amount of gross revenues of the system or project less the actual
				operation and maintenance cost plus additional annual costs of operation and
				maintenance estimated to be incurred, including sums to be deposited in an
				operating reserve.
(30) "Nonpoint
				source" means the source of pollutants which originate from diffuse runoff,
				seepage, drainage or infiltration.
(31) "Nonpoint source management plan" means
				the department of environmental quality's approval management plan relating to
				nonpoint source projects.
(32)
				"Nonpoint source project" means a project that has been approved in the source
				management plan and that is eligible and has qualified for financing under the
				program pursuant to the federal act, the act, these rules, and applicable
				department of environmental quality rules.
(33) "Origination fee" means a fee in an
				amount equal to a percentage of the committed amount of the loan, as specified
				by the department, payable by the borrower at closing to the department either
				from proceeds of the loan or other funds of the borrower.
(34) "Outstanding bond" means any bonds
				currently outstanding payable from gross or net system revenues.
(35) "Priority list" means the list of
				projects expected to receive financial assistance under the program, ranked in
				accordance with a priority system developed under Section 1296 of the federal
				act.
(36) "Private person" shall
				have the meaning ascribed to such term in 75-5-1002(7), MCA.
(37) "Program" means the Montana water
				pollution control state revolving fund program.
(38) "Project" shall have the meaning
				ascribed to such term in
				75-5-1102(9),
				MCA.
(39) "Project costs" means the
				costs of a project which under accepted accounting practice are capital costs
				of projects authorized in accordance with law, including but not limited to
				payments due for work and materials performed and delivered under construction
				contract, architectural, engineering feasibility inspection, supervision,
				fiscal and legal expenses, the cost of lands and easements, interest accrued on
				bonds during the period of construction of facilities financed thereby and for
				six months thereafter, the establishment of reserve requirement, to the extent
				permitted by the EPA and payment of cost of issuing bonds.
(40) "Reserve requirement" means the amount
				required to be maintained in a reserve fund securing the payment of the bond as
				set forth in the commitment agreement, which amount shall be equal to the
				maximum annual debt service on the bond in the then current or any future
				fiscal year during the term of the bond (or if other bonds payable from the
				revenues of the system are then outstanding, the maximum aggregate annual debt
				service on all outstanding, the maximum additional bond proposed to be issued
				in the then current or any future fiscal year during the term of the
				outstanding bonds and the additional bond proposed to be issued).
(41) "Revenue" means revenues (gross or net)
				received by the borrower from or in connection with the operation of the system
				or project.
(42) "Revenue bonds"
				means bond payable from the net revenues derived from the system.
(43) "Sewage system" means a conduit intended
				to carry liquid and water carried wastes from residences, commercial buildings,
				industrial plants and institutions, together with minor quantities of ground,
				storm, and surface waters that are not admitted intentionally.
(44) "Solid waste management system" means
				any system that qualifies as a nonpoint source project which controls the
				storage, treatment, recycling, recovery, or disposal of solid waste, and for
				purposes of this chapter, improvements to such system that qualify as a
				nonpoint source project, that may include the acquisition of land, installation
				of liners, monitoring of wells, construction and closure of landfills, or
				composting facilities, and all necessary and related equipment.
(45) "Special assessments" means assessments
				imposed on a property benefited from the construction or operation of a project
				in accordance with Title 7, chapter 7, part 21, and Title 7, chapter 7, parts
				41 and 42, MCA.
(46) "Special
				improvement district bonds" means bonds payable from special
				assessments.
(47) "State bonds"
				means the state's general obligation water pollution control state revolving
				fund program bonds.
(48) "State
				revolving fund" means the water pollution control state revolving fund
				established under
				75-5-1106, MCA.
(49) "State allocation account" means the
				account in which state monies received through the sale of the state's bonds
				are deposited.
(50) "Storm drainage
				or storm sewer system" means any device or system for the collection,
				conveyance, disposal and treatment of storm waters and runoff.
(51) "System" means the sewage, wastewater,
				storm drainage or storm sewer system, or solid waste management system of a
				municipality or private person and all extensions, improvements, and
				betterments thereof.
(52) "Tax
				increment revenue bond" means a tax increment urban renewal revenue bond issued
				by a municipality pursuant to Title 7, chapter 15, parts 42 and 43, MCA, or
				other applicable law.
(53)
				"Treatment works" means treatment works as defined under Section 1292 of the
				federal act.
(54) "Wastewater"
				means sewage, industrial waste, other waste, and drainage of sewage from all
				sources, or any combination thereof.
(55) "Wastewater system" means a public
				sewage system or other system that collects, transports, treats, or disposes of
				wastewater.
75-5-1105, MCA; IMP,
					 75-5-1102 and
					 75-5-1113,
					 MCA;