§ 4756. Eligibility certification

(a) No construction loan or loan for the purchase of land or conservation easements to a municipality shall be made under this chapter, nor shall any part of any revolving fund that is designated for project construction be expended under section 4757 of this title, until such time as:

(1) The Secretary shall certify to the Bond Bank that all water supply and wastewater permits, land use, subdivision, public building, and discharge permits necessary to construct the improvements to be financed by the loan will be issued to the applicant municipality prior to disbursement of funds under the loan for construction;

(2) The applicant municipality shall certify to the Bond Bank that it will have secured all State and federal permits, licenses, and approvals necessary to construct the improvements to be financed by the loan prior to expending funds under the loan;

(3) The applicant municipality shall certify to the Bond Bank that it has established a rate charge or assessment schedule that will generate annually sufficient revenue to pay the principal of and interest on the municipal bond or other debt instrument that evidences the construction loan made by the Bond Bank to the municipality under this chapter and to pay reasonably anticipated costs of operating and maintaining the financed project and the system of which it is a part. A covenant by the municipality to set, collect, and apply rates, charges, and assessments under section 3313, 3348, 3616, or 3679 of this title shall be sufficient for the purposes of this certification requirement. When the financing of the project anticipates revenues from the sale of electricity, evidence shall be submitted showing that construction of the project has been authorized and that rates for the project have been approved by the Public Utility Commission;

(4) The applicant municipality shall certify to the Bond Bank that it has created a fund under section 2804 of this title, or by any other means permitted by law, including adoption of a resolution or covenant by the legislative branch of the applicant municipality, which fund shall be used only to repair, replace, improve, or enlarge the project for which the loan is made;

(5) The applicant municipality, and the project to be financed by the proceeds of the loan, have been designated by the Agency, or a department thereof, as eligible to participate in a construction or implementation program funded wholly or in part by the State or the United States of America;

(6) The Secretary shall certify to the Bond Bank that any management program to be financed under subdivision 4753(a)(1) and section 4754 of this title is in conformance with all applicable State and federal laws, and all rules and regulations adopted thereunder;

(7) The Secretary shall certify to the Bond Bank that the loan eligibility priority established under section 4758 of this chapter entitles the applicant municipality to immediate financing or assistance under this chapter;

(8) The Secretary shall certify to the Bond Bank the outstanding balance of engineering planning advances paid to the applicant municipality under 24 Vt. Stat. Ann. chapter 120 and included within the loan application submitted under section 4754 of this chapter;

(9) The applicant municipality, in the case of applications by towns, cities, and incorporated villages, and with respect to all loans awarded after July 1, 1992, shall certify to the Bond Bank that the project conforms to a duly adopted capital budget and program, consistent with chapter 117 of this title, for meeting the water supply, pollution control, or solid waste needs of the municipality; and

(10) The applicant municipality, in the case of an application by a district, shall certify to the Bond Bank that the project conforms to a capital budget and program duly adopted by the district in accordance with the provisions of its charter.

(b) The Bond Bank may make loans to a municipality for the preparation of final engineering plans and specifications subject to the following conditions and limitations:

(1) The loan shall be evidenced by a note, executed by the municipality, payable over a term not to exceed 30 years at zero percent interest in equal annual payments.

(2) The Secretary of Natural Resources shall have certified to the Bond Bank that the project:

(A) has priority for award of a planning loan;

(B) for which final engineering plans are to be prepared, is described in a preliminary engineering plan or facilities plan that has been approved by the Secretary; and

(C) is in conformance with applicable State and federal law and rules and regulations adopted thereunder.

(c) The Bond Bank may make loans to a municipality for the preparation of preliminary engineering planning studies or facilities plans subject to the conditions and limitations of subdivisions (b)(1) and (2)(A) of this section.

(d) Loans awarded from the same revolving fund under subsections (b) and (c) of this section may be consolidated, and may also be consolidated with loans awarded under subsection (a) of this section. One loan may be issued for construction and preparation of final engineering plans and specifications.

(e) The legislative body of a municipality may execute notes and incur debt on behalf of the municipality under subsections (b) and (c) of this section without public approval, provided that such debt shall be included in any subsequent public authorization of municipal indebtedness necessary to construct the project for which the planning loans were used. A municipality desiring to secure public authorization of debt incurred under subsections (b) and (c) of this section may utilize procedures authorized under section 1786a of this title, and may be refunded through a consolidation under subsection (d) of this section.

(f) The Bond Bank may adopt simplified procedures for processing and awarding loans authorized under subsections (b) and (c) of this section.

(g) The Secretary shall not certify a solid waste project without first finding that the proposed project conforms to the State and local solid waste management plans adopted in accordance with 10 Vt. Stat. Ann. chapter 159. Until such plans are adopted the Secretary shall certify that the project will promote the goals and purposes of 10 Vt. Stat. Ann. chapter 159 and the Solid Waste Task Force report. (Added 1987, No. 75, § 1; amended 1987, No. 246 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. June 13, 1988; 1993, No. 180 (Adj. Sess.), § 2; 1995, No. 185 (Adj. Sess.), § 53, eff. May 22, 1996; 1997, No. 62, § 70, eff. June 26, 1997; 1997, No. 134 (Adj. Sess.), § 2; 1997, No. 148 (Adj. Sess.), § 54, eff. April 29, 1998; 2015, No. 26, § 41, eff. May 18, 2015; 2015, No. 97 (Adj. Sess.), § 59; 2017, No. 74, § 109.)