This bill amends the Sports Arena Facility Financing Assistance Act by updating provisions related to state assistance limitations for eligible sports arena facilities. Key changes include the extension of funding periods for certain projects, specifically increasing the maximum funding duration for sports complexes located in cities of the second class or villages from five years to ten years. Additionally, the bill allows for up to one hundred percent of the final project cost to be funded for large public stadiums approved after July 19, 2024. The bill also clarifies the use of state assistance, specifying that it can be utilized for promoting arts and cultural events, as well as sporting events, provided they are open to the general public.

Furthermore, the bill establishes a new funding structure for state assistance, detailing the distribution of state sales tax revenue collected from eligible sports arena facilities. It stipulates that for facilities not classified as sports complexes in smaller municipalities, the state can provide up to seventy percent of the collected sales tax revenue, while sports complexes in such areas are limited to twenty-five percent. The bill also includes provisions to ensure that state assistance is not used for operating subsidies and outlines the conditions under which state assistance will cease, including the retirement of bonds or after a specified funding period. The original sections of the law being amended are repealed, and the bill is declared to take effect immediately due to the existence of an emergency.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 13-3103, 13-3108