Current Status Bill Number:4313 Ratification Number:339 Act Number:302 Type of Legislation:General Bill GB Introducing Body:House Introduced Date:19960109 Primary Sponsor:Fulmer All Sponsors:Fulmer, Littlejohn, Inabinett, Hutson, Cain, Vaughn, Riser Drafted Document Number:gjk\22140sd.96 Companion Bill Number:963 Date Bill Passed both Bodies:19960403 Date of Last Amendment:19960326 Governor's Action:U Became law without signature of Governor Date of Governor's Action:19960507 Subject:Citadel, revenue bonds
Body Date Action Description Com Leg Involved
______ ________ _______________________________________ _______ ____________
------ 19960515 Act No. A302
------ 19960507 Unsigned, became law without
signature of Governor
------ 19960430 Ratified R339
House 19960403 Concurred in Senate amendment,
enrolled for ratification
Senate 19960328 Read third time, returned to House
with amendment
Senate 19960327 Debate adjourned
Senate 19960326 Amended, read second time,
ordered to third reading
with notice of general amendments
Senate 19960321 Introduced, read first time,
placed on Calendar without reference
House 19960321 Read third time, sent to Senate
House 19960320 Read second time
House 19960314 Committee report: Favorable 30 HWM
House 19960109 Introduced, read first time, 30 HWM
referred to Committee
House 19951206 Prefiled, referred to Committee 30 HWM
View additional legislative information at the LPITS web site.
(A302, R339, H4313)
AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 59, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO EDUCATION, BY ADDING CHAPTER 147 SO AS TO ENACT THE HIGHER EDUCATION REVENUE BOND ACT WHICH PRESCRIBES THE MANNER IN WHICH AND CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH RESEARCH AND FOUR-YEAR PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION MAY ISSUE CERTAIN REVENUE BONDS; AND TO AMEND ACT 518 OF 1980, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO THE AUTHORIZATION TO ISSUE SPECIAL OBLIGATION BONDS FOR ATHLETIC FACILITIES AT THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA, SO AS TO REVISE CERTAIN DEFINITIONS IN REGARD THERETO INCLUDING THE TERMS "ATHLETIC FACILITIES" AND "IMPROVEMENTS", TO FURTHER PROVIDE FOR THE PURPOSES FOR WHICH SUCH BONDS MAY BE ISSUED, TO PERMIT THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A BOND RESERVE FUND RATHER THAN REQUIRE ITS ESTABLISHMENT, TO FURTHER PROVIDE FOR THE TYPES OF TAXES AND FEES FROM WHICH THESE BONDS AND THE INTEREST THEREON ARE EXEMPT, AND TO REVISE CERTAIN TERMS AND CONDITIONS IN REGARD TO THE ISSUANCE OF THESE BONDS.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
Higher Education Revenue Bond Act
SECTION 1. Title 59 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
Section 59-147-10. This chapter may be cited as the `Higher Education Revenue Bond Act'.
Section 59-147-20. As used in this chapter:
(1) `board' means the board of trustees of the university;
(2) `equipment' means items with a useful life of at least fifteen years;
(3) `facilities' means the real and personal property and equipment specified in Section 59-147-20(2) of this chapter whether or not the acquisition or construction thereof is financed from the proceeds of bonds issued pursuant to this chapter;
(4) `revenues' means the revenues derived or to be derived from the operation, sale, lease, or other disposition of the facilities; and
(5) `university' means all research and four-year public institutions of higher education.
Section 59-147-30. Subject to the approval of the State Budget and Control Board by resolution duly adopted, the university may issue revenue bonds of the university for the purpose of financing or refinancing in whole or in part the cost of acquisition, construction, reconstruction, renovation and improvement of land, buildings, and other improvements to real property and equipment for the purpose of providing facilities serving the needs of the university including, but not limited to, dormitories, apartment buildings, dwelling houses, bookstore and other university operated stores, laundry, dining halls, cafeterias, parking facilities, student recreational, entertainment and fitness related facilities, inns, conference and other nondegree educational facilities and similar auxiliary facilities of the university and any other facilities which are auxiliary to any of the foregoing excluding, however, athletic department projects which primarily serve varsity athletic teams of the university.
Section 59-147-40. Revenue bonds issued under this chapter must be authorized by a resolution or resolutions of the board of the university. The resolution of the university may, in the discretion of the board, contain provisions which shall constitute a part of the contract between the university and the several holders of the bonds, as to any of the following:
(1) the custody, security, use, expenditure, or application of the proceeds of the bonds including, without limitation, the use of bond proceeds to pay the cost of acquisition, construction, reconstruction or renovation of facilities, expenses of issuance of the bonds, interest on the bonds for such period of time as the board may determine and the cost of bond insurance or other credit enhancement and to fund reserves established with respect to the bonds;
(2) the acquisition, renovation, construction, reconstruction, or completion of the facilities for which the bonds are issued;
(3) the use, regulation, operation, maintenance, insurance, or disposition of the facilities the revenues from which are pledged to secure payments with respect to the bonds or restrictions on the exercise of the powers of the board to dispose of or to limit or regulate the use of such facilities;
(4) the payment of the principal of, redemption premium, if any, or interest on the bonds and the sources and the methods of the payment, the rank or priority of the bonds as to any lien or security or the acceleration of the maturity of the bonds;
(5) the use and disposition of the revenues including, without limitation, the pledging, setting aside, or depositing with a trustee all or part of the revenues to secure the payment of the principal of, redemption premium, if any, and interest on the bonds and the payment of expenses of operation and maintenance of the facilities;
(6) the setting aside out of bond proceeds, the revenues or other available funds of reserves or sinking funds and the source, custody, security, regulation, and disposition of them;
(7) the determination of the revenues, subject to the provisions of Section 59-147-110 or other available funds to be pledged as security for payments with respect to the bonds and for the expenses of operation and maintenance of the facilities;
(8) the fixing, establishment, collection, and enforcement of the rentals, fees, or other charges from students, faculty members, and others using or being served by, or having the right to use or be served by, the facilities the revenues from which are pledged to secure payments with respect to the bonds and the disposition and application of the revenues so charged and collected;
(9) limitations on the issuance of additional bonds or any other obligations or the incurrence of indebtedness payable from the same revenues from which the bonds are payable;
(10) rules to ensure the use of the facilities by students or members of the faculty of the university to the maximum extent to which the building or equipment is capable of serving the students or faculty members;
(11) the procedure, if any, by which the terms of any covenant or contract with, or duty to, the holders of the bonds may be amended or abrogated, the amount of bonds to which the holders of which must consent, and the manner in which the consent may be given or evidenced; and
(12) any other matter or course of conduct which, by recital in the resolution or resolutions authorizing or providing for the bonds, is declared to further secure the payment of the principal of or the interest on the bonds or to further the purposes for which the facilities are being acquired, constructed, reconstructed, renovated, or equipped and the bonds being issued.
Section 59-147-50. Revenue bonds may be issued in one or more series at such prices, may bear such date or dates, may mature at such time or times, not exceeding forty years from their respective date, may bear interest at such fixed or variable rate or rates, may be payable in such medium of payment and at such place or places, may be in such denomination or denominations, may be in such form, either coupon or registered and either certified or uncertified, may carry such registration privileges, may be subject to such terms of redemption before maturity, with or without premium, and may contain such terms, covenants, and conditions as the resolution authorizing the issuance of the bonds may provide. Except as otherwise specified in the authorizing resolution, the bonds shall be fully negotiable within the meaning of and for all the purposes of the Uniform Commercial Code.
Section 59-147-60. The bonds shall be exempt from all state, county, municipal, and school taxes and franchise and license fees.
Section 59-147-70. The bonds must be signed in the corporate name of the university by the manual or facsimile signature of the acting chairman of the board of the university, under the corporate seal of the university attested by the manual or facsimile signature of the acting secretary of the board. Any interest coupons attached to the bonds must be signed by the facsimile signatures of these officers. The bonds may be issued notwithstanding that any of the officials signing them or whose facsimile signatures appear on the coupons have ceased to hold office at the time of the issue or at the time of the delivery of the bonds to the purchaser.
Section 59-147-80. The bonds must be sold at public or private sale upon such terms and conditions as the board of the university considers advisable.
Section 59-147-90. The board or its proper administrative officers shall file with the State Treasurer within thirty days from the date of their issuance a complete description of all obligations entered into by the board, with the rates of interest, maturity dates, annual payments, and all pertinent data.
Section 59-147-100. All provisions of a resolution authorizing or providing for the issuance of the bonds in accordance with Section 59-147-40 and of the covenants and agreements constitute valid and legally binding contracts between the university and the several holders of the bonds, regardless of the time of issuance of the bonds, and are enforceable by the holder or holders by mandamus or other appropriate action, suit, or proceeding at law or in equity in any court of competent jurisdiction.
Section 59-147-110. The bonds must be made payable solely from all or such portion of the revenues as the university in its discretion may designate pursuant to the authorizing resolution and also from any other available funds of the university designated by the university pursuant to the authorizing resolution except funds of the university derived from appropriations received from the General Assembly and any tuition funds pledged to the repayment of state institution bonds. The use of academic fees must be approved by the university's board. The bonds are not general obligations of the State. Neither the members of the board nor any person signing the bonds shall be personally liable for the bonds. No bonds may be issued pursuant to this chapter unless an identified source or sources of revenue are designated for the repayment of the bonds.
Section 59-147-120. This chapter may not be construed as allowing any research or four-year public institution of higher education to issue any revenue bonds of a type not otherwise allowed by law for the particular institution as of December 31, 1995."
USC Athletic Facility Bond provisions revised
SECTION 2. A. Items (2), (3), (7), and (9) of Section 9A., Act 518 of 1980, as amended by Section 2, Act 545 of 1986, are further amended to read:
"(2) The term `athletic facilities' means all facilities designated by the university as athletic facilities now owned or hereafter acquired by the university.
(3) The term `Bond Reserve Fund' means the special fund which may be established by the trustees pursuant to this act, which must be in the custody of the State Treasurer and which is primarily established for the purpose of providing a reserve with which to meet the payment of the principal of and interest on bonds issued pursuant to this act in the event that payments otherwise required for the Debt Service Fund are insufficient to meet the payment of the principal and interest as and when they become due and payable. Monies in the Bond Reserve Fund also may be used to pay costs of athletic facilities in accordance with the provisions of subsections N. and P. of this section.
(7) The term `improvements' means:
(i) the enlargement of and improvements to Carolina Stadium including all necessary equipment paid for with the proceeds of bonds; or
(ii) improvements to any other athletic facilities; or
(iii) the acquisition, construction, reconstruction, renovation, or equipping of any other athletic facility.
(9) Reserved."
B. Section 9C. of Act 518 of 1980, as last amended by Section 2, Act 545 of 1986, is further amended to read:
"C. May Issue Bonds.
Subject to obtaining the approval of the state board expressed by resolution duly adopted, the trustees are authorized to issue from time to time not exceeding twenty million dollars of bonds for the purpose of acquiring, constructing, reconstructing, renovating, or equipping athletic facilities. If the trustees, in authorizing the issuance of bonds pursuant to this section, prescribe by resolution that there must be on deposit in the Bond Reserve Fund certain sums at the time of the delivery of the bonds, the trustees are empowered to utilize a portion of the proceeds of any series of bonds issued pursuant to this section in order to meet the requirement."
C. The penultimate paragraph of Section 9N. of Act 518 of 1980, as last amended by Section 4, Act 545 of 1986, is further amended to read:
"Whenever the Bond Reserve Fund, if any, exceeds the reserve required for bonds then outstanding the trustees are empowered with the approval of the state board to withdraw the excess and apply it to other athletic facilities or improvements or for any other corporate purpose of the university."
D. Subsection P.(1) of Section 9 of Act 518 of 1980 is amended to read:
"(1)(a) To use proceeds of the bonds to acquire, construct, reconstruct, or renovate athletic facilities, to pay the cost of issuance of the bonds, to pay the cost of bond insurance and other credit enhancement and defray the cost of interest accruing on the bonds for such time as determined by the trustees.
(b) To covenant and agree throughout the life of the bonds, that the admission fee and the special student fee must be imposed, maintained, and revised when necessary, in such amount, without limitation as to rate, as is sufficient to meet the payment of the principal of and interest on the bonds as they become due, and to create the reserve, if any, required by such resolutions for outstanding bonds in the Bond Reserve Fund. The Bond Reserve Fund, except as provided, must be used only to meet the payment of the principal of and interest on the bonds when monies in the Debt Service Fund is insufficient, and must be maintained in a manner to ensure it's availability for such purposes. Whenever the Debt Service Fund shall equal all payments of principal and interest due and to become due in the then current fiscal year, and the Bond Reserve Fund, if any, shall exceed the reserve prescribed for bonds then outstanding, the State Treasurer with the approval of the trustees and the state board may apply such excess to the defeasance of bonds then outstanding in the manner prescribed by Section T. in this section."
E. Subsection P.(10) of Section 9 of Act 518 of 1980, as last amended by Section 5, Act 545 of 1986, is further amended to read:
"(10) To operate and maintain all athletic facilities in good repair."
F. Subsections G., I., L., N.(2), and O. of Section 9, Act 518 of 1980 are amended to read:
"G. Bonds must be issued as serial or term bonds at such prices, maturing in equal or unequal amounts at such times and on such occasions and must be in denominations as the trustees determine. They shall bear such rate or rates of interest, payable on such occasions as the trustees shall prescribe, and are payable in such medium of payment, and at such place or places as such resolutions prescribe. Bonds may be issued with provisions permitting their redemption before their stated maturity at such time and under such conditions as the trustees prescribe. Bonds made subject to redemption before their stated maturities may contain a provision requiring the payment of a premium for the privilege of exercising the right or redemption, in such amount as the trustees prescribe. Bonds that are subject to redemption shall contain a statement to that effect on the face of each bond. Any resolution authorizing redeemable bonds shall contain provisions, specifying the manner of call for redemption and the notice thereof that must be given.
I. Bonds and all interest to become due on them are exempt from all state, county, municipal, and school taxes, and franchise and license fees.
L. Bonds must be disposed of in such manner as the trustees determine, except that no sale privately negotiated without public advertisement shall be made unless the approval of the state board shall be obtained. If the trustees elect to sell the bonds at public sale, at least one advertisement of the sale shall appear in a financial paper published in the City of New York, State of New York, or in a newspaper of general circulation in South Carolina not less than seven days before the occasion fixed for the opening of bids.
N. (2) The trustees may establish the Bond Reserve Fund. At the time of the issuance of any bonds pursuant to this section, the trustees may prescribe by resolution the required sums which must be deposited and maintained in the Bond Reserve Fund.
O. The trustees are empowered to deposit, in either the Debt Service Fund, or in the Bond Reserve Fund, before the issuance of any bonds, monies derived from other sources, including funds raised by the athletic department of the university. The trustees further are empowered to deposit in either the Debt Service Fund or Bond Reserve Fund, at any time proceeds from the sale of any athletic revenue bonds and any other athletic funds available to the university. They also are empowered throughout the life of the bonds to make payments from such other sources to the Debt Service Fund or into the Bond Reserve Fund. In calculating the amount or rate of the admission fee and special student fee for any year, the trustees may take into account monies then actually paid into the Debt Service Fund from such other sources which are then available to meet the payment of the principal of and interest on the bonds for such fiscal year."
Time effective
SECTION 3. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
Became law without the signature of the Governor -- 5/7/96.