§ 414-409. Indebtedness; long-term indebtedness and long-term contracts

(a) Submission to voters.

(1)(A) On a petition signed by at least ten percent of the voters of the District, the proposition of incurring a bonded debt or other indebtedness to pay for public improvements or of authorizing a long-term contract shall be submitted to the qualified voters of the District at any special meeting to be held for that purpose; or

(B) when the Board of Supervisors at a regular or special meeting called for such purpose shall determine by resolution passed by a vote of a majority of voters, present and voting, that the public interest or necessity demands improvements or a long-term contract, and that the cost of the same will be too great to be paid out of the ordinary annual income and revenue, it may order the submission of the proposition of incurring a bonded debt or other indebtedness or of authorizing a long-term contract to the qualified voters of the District at a meeting to be held for that purpose.

(2) As used in this charter, a "long-term contract" means a contract wherein the District incurs obligations for which the costs are too great to be paid out of the ordinary annual income and revenues of the District in the judgment of the Board of Supervisors.

(3) Bonded debt or other indebtedness or long-term contracts may be authorized for any purpose permitted by 24 V.S.A. chapter 53 or any other applicable statutes for any purpose for which the District is organized.

(4)(A) The warning calling the meeting shall state the object and purpose for which the indebtedness or long-term contract is proposed to be incurred or authorized, the estimated cost of the improvements or service, the amount of bonds or other evidence of indebtedness proposed to be issued, a summary of the terms of any contract proposed to be authorized, and the means of raising or apportioning all costs entailed thereby for debt service or payments under a long-term contract.

(B) The warning shall fix the places where and the date on which the meeting shall be held and the hours of opening and closing the polls.

(5) The District may not submit to the voters more than twice in the same calendar year or any 12-month period the proposition of incurring bonded or other indebtedness to pay for the same or similar public improvement or of the same or similar long-term contract.

(b) Notice of meeting; authorization.

(1) The Clerk of the District shall cause notice of a special meeting to be published in a newspaper of known circulation in the District once a week for three consecutive weeks on the same day of the week, the last publication to be not less than five nor more than ten days before the meeting. Notice of the meeting shall also be posted in at least five public places within each member municipality for two weeks immediately preceding the meeting and be filed with the town or city clerk of each member municipality.

(2) The Board of Supervisors in cooperation with the board of civil authority of each member municipality shall determine the number and location of polling places. When a majority of all the voters in the District present and voting on the question at the meeting vote to authorize the issuance of bonds or other evidence of indebtedness or to authorize a long-term contract, the District shall be authorized to issue bonds or other evidence of indebtedness as provided in 24 V.S.A. chapter 53 or other applicable statutes, or to enter into the long-term contract.

(3) The ballots cast in all the member municipalities shall be comingled and the counting of ballots shall be conducted by the Board of Supervisors together with the town or city clerk or designee from each member municipality. Blank and defective ballots shall not be counted in determining the question.

(4) Obligations incurred by the District shall be joint and several obligations of the District and of each member municipality but shall not affect any limitation on indebtedness of a member municipality.

(5) The cost of debt service or of payments under a long-term contract shall be included in the annual budget of the District, and shall be allocated among the member municipalities as provided in section 402c of this charter, unless otherwise provided by applicable law and in the vote authorizing the same.

(6) The applicable provisions of 24 V.S.A. chapter 53 or other enabling law under which debt is incurred or long-term contracts authorized shall apply to the issuance of bonds or other evidence of indebtedness by the District and for that purpose the Rutland County Solid Waste District shall be deemed a "municipal corporation," the Board of Supervisors shall be deemed a "legislative branch," and the district treasurer shall be deemed a "municipal treasurer" within the purview of 24 V.S.A. chapter 53.

(7) Bonds or other evidence of indebtedness and long-term contracts shall be signed by the Treasurer and Chair of the Board of Supervisors of the District.

(c) Special limitation. The Board of Supervisors shall not submit to the legal voters of the District any proposition to issue bonds or other long-term indebtedness or to authorize a long-term contract less than 18 months after the District has become a body politic and corporate. (Added 2019, No. M-2, § 2, eff. April 19, 2019.)