67.16 General obligation-local improvement bonds.

(1) In this section:

(a) “Debt service fund" means the fund, however derived, set aside for the payment of principal and interest on bonds issued under this section.

(b) “Governing body" means the body or board vested by statute with the power to levy special assessments for public improvement.

(c) “Local governmental unit" means a county, city, village, town, farm drainage board, sanitary district, utility district, public inland lake protection and rehabilitation district or any other public board, commission or district, except a 1st class city, authorized by law to levy special assessments for public improvements against the property benefited by the special improvements.

(d) “Public improvement" means the result of the performance of work or the furnishing of materials or both, for which special assessments are authorized to be levied against the property benefited by the special assessment.

(2)

(a) For the purpose of anticipating the collection of special assessments payable in installments under s. 66.0715 (3), the governing body of a local governmental unit, after the installments have been determined, may issue general obligation-local improvement bonds under this section.

(b) The issue of general obligation-local improvement bonds shall be in an amount not exceeding the aggregate unpaid special assessments levied for the public improvement that the issue is to finance. A single issue of the bonds may be used to finance one or more different local improvements for which special assessments are authorized to be made in the same year. Sections 67.035, 67.06, 67.07, 67.08 and 67.11, where not contrary to the provisions of this section, apply to the bonds. The bonds shall mature in the same number of installments as the underlying special assessments, but the date of maturity of each installment of the bonds shall be fixed in October, November or December. The first maturity of the bonds may be in the 2nd year following the date of levy of the first installment of the underlying special assessment. At the time that the bonds are authorized, the governing body of the local governmental unit shall levy a tax upon all the taxable property of the local governmental unit sufficient to provide for the payment of the principal and interest of the bonds at maturity. The tax levy is irrepealable. All collections of installments of the special assessments levied to pay for the public improvement, either before or after delinquency, shall be placed by the treasurer of the local governmental unit in a special debt service fund, designated and identified for the issue of the bonds, and shall be used only for the payment of the bonds and interest of the issue. The annual installment of the irrepealable tax levied for the purpose of payment of the bonds and interest on the bonds shall be diminished by the amount on hand in the debt service fund on November 1 of each tax levy year after deducting any unpaid interest and principal due in that year, and the amount on hand in the fund shall be applied to the payment of the next succeeding installment of principal and interest named on the bonds. Any deficiency in the debt service fund for the payment of the bonds and interest at maturity shall be paid out of the general fund of the local governmental unit and the general fund shall be reimbursed from the collection of that part of the irrepealable tax that is actually levied. Any surplus in the debt service fund after all bonds and interest are fully paid shall be paid into the general fund.

(c) If any installment of the special assessment that is entered in the tax roll is not paid to the treasurer of the local governmental unit with the other taxes, it shall be returned to the county treasurer as delinquent in trust for collection.

(3) After the expiration of 90 days from the date of a general obligation-local improvement bond, the bond is conclusive evidence of the legality of all proceedings up to and including the issue of the bond and prima facie evidence of the proper construction of the improvement.

History: 1999 a. 150 ss. 518, 623; 2001 a. 30; 2005 a. 253.