A. The authority is authorized to issue and sell from time to time revenue bonds, known as "energy efficiency bonds", in an amount outstanding at any one time not to exceed twenty million dollars ($20,000,000), payable solely from the fund, in compliance with the Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Bonding Act and the New Mexico Finance Authority Act [Chapter 6, Article 21 NMSA 1978] for the purpose of installing energy efficiency measures when the department has certified the need for the bonds and the conditions of Subsection C of this section have been satisfied.

B. The net proceeds from the bonds are appropriated to the authority for the purpose of making distributions to one or more state agencies or school districts that, pursuant to an energy efficiency assessment by the department, have committed to install energy efficiency measures or entered into contracts for the installation of the measures. Upon receipt of a distribution, the state agency or school district shall deposit into the energy efficiency assessment revolving fund the cost incurred by the department to make the energy efficiency assessment on the building and shall use the remainder for the installation of energy efficiency measures pursuant to the Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Bonding Act, provided that, after the installation of the energy efficiency measures, any unexpended balance of the bond proceeds shall revert to the energy efficiency and renewable energy bonding fund.

C. Bonds shall not be issued pursuant to this section unless:

(1) a state agency or school district has committed to install or has entered into one or more contracts pursuant to Section 6-21D-4 NMSA 1978 for the installation of energy efficiency measures and the department has certified that the resulting energy cost savings will be realized within a reasonable time;

(2) considering the timeliness and amount of energy cost savings estimated to be realized from the energy efficiency measures, the department has certified the approximate date when the energy cost savings are most likely to equal or exceed the debt service due on the bonds to be issued to fund the energy efficiency measures;

(3) the life of energy efficiency measures meets or exceeds the life of the bonds allocable to those energy efficiency measures as determined by the department and the authority; and

(4) based on the department's certification, the debt service on the bonds has been structured by the authority to preclude the annual debt service payments due until the date that the cost savings equal or exceed the debt service.

D. Each series of bonds shall be issued pursuant to the provisions of the New Mexico Finance Authority Act, except as otherwise provided in the Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Bonding Act.

History: Laws 2005, ch. 176, § 7; 2007, ch. 171, § 4.

The 2007 amendment, effective June 15, 2007, provided for distributions to state agencies and school districts that, pursuant to an energy efficiency assessment, have committed to or entered into a contract to install energy efficiency measures.