Relates to certain matters relating to the issuance of debt and associated matters of the Oneida Public Library

Section 2 of the bill amends Chapter 493 of the Laws of 1996 which established the Public Library to permit debt on behalf of the Public Library to be issued on pro-rata basis by the city of Oneida and the five towns within which the Library District is located. Public approval of debt issuance continues to be required as currently provided.

Section 3 of the bill amends Chapter 493 of the Laws of 1996 to clarify assessment for public library district purposes.

Section 4 of the bill amends Chapter 493 of the Laws of 1996 to clarify the applicability of the education law to the public library district. The bill adds the Oneida Public Library to the list of institutions eligible for financing through the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York. To the extent that bonds or notes are issued by the Dormitory Authority for the benefit of the Oneida Public Library serving the Oneida Public Library District, the provisions of Title 4 of Article 8 of the Public Authorities Law (rather than the provisions of the Local Finance Law) shall govern the Dormitory Authority's handling of the proceeds of such bonds or notes until they are disbursed to the library district.

Section 5 of the bill provides that it shall take effect immediately.

Justification

The Oneida Public Library located at 220 Broad Street, in Oneida, New York occupies a facility built in 1954 which is presently inadequate for its purposes. The library wishes to develop a parcel of land located at 456 Elizabeth Street, in Oneida, New York and to construct a new public library facility, such project to be paid from proceeds of a bond financing or financings. As one of the relatively few special library districts in the State that was established for an area comprising multiple jurisdictions (parts of five towns including three villages together with the city of Oneida, all located within one city school district but not affiliated with the territorially equivalent school district itself), it can neither sell debt in its own name, nor require a single school district for municipality to do so on its behalf. Under its present statute, the library also cannot request the city of Oneida and each of the towns (nor the villages within) to issue a prorate share of the aggregate indebtedness required for the project; although it may require and must rely upon the issuance of joint indebtedness by the city and the five towns, an awkward, rare and more expensive form of general obligation indebtedness in the state. However, existing, the legislation does include a method to determine the pro-rata liability of the city and each town for such debt service. Participation in the existing public library financing program of the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York, as well as authority for the city and each town to issue a pro-rata share of the debt, would solve this dilemma. Public approval of debt issuance was obtained in a vote on March 3, 2015. As the Legislature has approved similar legislation in the past for other public libraries in the state, there is precedent in this legislation.

Prior legislative history

New Bill

Fiscal implications

None to the State.

Effective date

This act shall take effect immediately.