For the purpose of refunding all or any portion of the present and future bonded indebtedness of any county issued pursuant to this chapter or bonds payable from the revenue of an undertaking or loan program as defined in § 49-1, the director of finance of any county, upon authorization of the governing body, may from time to time issue general obligation refunding bonds of the county to pay or to provide for the payment of all or any part thereof, and may include various series and issues of the outstanding bonds in a single issue of refunding bonds and may include refunding bonds and bonds otherwise to be issued under this chapter, in a single issue of bonds.

The interest rate or rates of the refunding bonds shall not be limited by the interest rate or rates borne by any of the bonds to be refunded thereby.

The refunding bonds may be issued and delivered on, or at any time before, the maturity or redemption date of the bonds to be refunded that the director of finance, with the approval of the governing body, determines to be in the best interest of the county. The refunding bonds shall be issued in accordance with this chapter with respect to bonds otherwise issued under this chapter, and all of the provisions of this chapter shall apply to the refunding bonds. Nothing in this section shall require or be deemed to require the county to elect to redeem or prepay bonds being refunded, or, if the county elects to redeem or prepay any such bonds, to redeem or prepay as of any particular date or dates.

Proceeds of the sale of the refunding bonds shall be applied solely to the payment of the principal of, and redemption premium, if any, and interest on the bonds to be refunded under this chapter and to the payment of all costs of issuance of such refunding bonds and interest accrued on the refunding bonds to the date of delivery thereof and payment therefor. Pending the time the proceeds derived from the sale of refunding bonds issued under this section are required for the purposes for which they were issued, the director of finance, upon authorization or approval of the governing body, may invest the proceeds in obligations of, or obligations unconditionally guaranteed by, the United States of America or in savings accounts, time deposits, or certificates of deposit of any bank or trust company, within or without the State, to the extent that the savings accounts, time deposits, or certificates of deposit are collaterally secured by a pledge of obligations of, or obligations unconditionally guaranteed by, the United States of America; or in obligations of any state of the United States of America or any agency, instrumentality or local government of any such state, the provision for payment of the principal of and interest on which shall have irrevocably been made by deposit of obligations of, or obligations unconditionally guaranteed by, the United States of America. To further secure the bonds being refunded the director of finance, upon authorization or approval of the governing body, may enter into a contract with any bank or trust company, within or without the State, with respect to the safekeeping and application of the proceeds of the refunding bonds, and the safekeeping and application of the earnings on the investment, which contract shall become a part of the contract with the holders of the bonds being refunded.