As Introduced
135th General Assembly
Regular Session H. B. No. 616
2023-2024
Representative Claggett
A BILL
To enact sections 6120.01, 6120.02, 6120.03, 1
6120.031, 6120.032, 6120.04, 6120.05, 6120.06, 2
6120.07, 6120.08, 6120.09, 6120.10, 6120.11, 3
6120.12, 6120.13, 6120.14, 6120.15, 6120.16, 4
6120.17, 6120.18, and 6120.19 of the Revised 5
Code to allow for the creation of water 6
improvement districts and to declare an 7
emergency. 8
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That sections 6120.01, 6120.02, 6120.03, 9
6120.031, 6120.032, 6120.04, 6120.05, 6120.06, 6120.07, 6120.08, 10
6120.09, 6120.10, 6120.11, 6120.12, 6120.13, 6120.14, 6120.15, 11
6120.16, 6120.17, 6120.18, and 6120.19 of the Revised Code be 12
enacted to read as follows: 13
Sec. 6120.01. As used in this chapter: 14
(A) "Action" means any decision made or agreement entered 15
into regarding a waste water facility or water management 16
facility located in a county in which a water improvement 17
district appeals board has been created under section 6120.16 of 18
the Revised Code. 19
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(B) "Administrative agent," "agent," "commercial paper," 20
"floating rate interest structure," "indexing agent," "interest 21
rate hedge," "interest rate period," "put arrangement," and 22
"remarketing agent" have the same meanings as in section 9.98 of 23
the Revised Code. 24
(C) "Appellant" means a person or governmental agency who 25
opposes an action and files an appeal with the water district 26
improvement appeals board in accordance with this chapter. 27
(D) "Appellee" means the person or governmental agency 28
that took the action that is the subject of an appeal. 29
(E) "Bond proceedings" means the resolutions, trust 30
agreements, certifications, notices, sale proceedings, leases, 31
lease-purchase agreements, assignments, credit enhancement 32
facility agreements, and other agreements, instruments, and 33
documents, as amended and supplemented, or any one or more of 34
combination thereof, authorizing, or authorizing or providing 35
for the terms and conditions applicable to, or providing for the 36
security or sale or award or liquidity of, bonds, and includes 37
the provisions set forth or incorporated in those bonds and bond 38
proceedings. 39
(F) "Bond service charges" means principal, including any 40
mandatory sinking fund or mandatory redemption requirements for 41
retirement of bonds, and interest and any redemption premium 42
payable on bonds, as those payments come due and are payable to 43
the bondholder or to a person making payment under a credit 44
enhancement facility of those bond service charges to a 45
bondholder. 46
(G) "Bond service fund" means the applicable fund created 47
by the bond proceedings for and pledged to the payment of bond 48
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As Introduced
service charges on bonds provided for by those proceedings, 49
including all money and investments, and earnings from 50
investments, credited and to be credited to that fund as 51
provided in the bond proceedings. 52
(H) "Bonds" means bonds, notes, including notes 53
anticipating bonds or other notes, commercial paper, 54
certificates of participation, or other evidences of obligation, 55
including any interest coupons pertaining thereto, issued 56
pursuant to this chapter. 57
(I) "Cost," as applied to a water project, means the cost 58
of acquisition and construction of a project, including all of 59
the following: 60
(1) The cost of the acquisition of all land, rights-of- 61
way, property rights, easements, franchise rights, and interests 62
required; 63
(2) The cost of demolishing or removing any buildings or 64
structures on land so acquired, including the cost of acquiring 65
any lands to which such buildings or structures may be moved; 66
(3) The cost of acquiring or constructing and equipping a 67
principal office and sub-offices of the district; 68
(4) The cost of diverting highways, interchange of 69
highways, and access roads to private property, including the 70
cost of land or easements therefor; 71
(5) The cost of all machinery, furnishings, and equipment, 72
including any financing charges or interest incurred prior to 73
and during construction and incurred not more than eighteen 74
months after completion of project acquisition or construction; 75
(6) Costs of engineering, expenses of research and 76
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development with respect to waste water or water management 77
facilities, legal expenses, plans, specifications, surveys, 78
estimates of cost and revenues, working capital, other expenses 79
necessary or incident to determining the feasibility or 80
practicability of acquiring or constructing a project, 81
administrative expense, and such other expenses as may be 82
necessary or incident to the acquisition or construction of a 83
project; 84
(7) The financing of the acquisition or construction of a 85
project, including the amount authorized in the resolution of 86
the board of trustees of the district providing for the issuance 87
of water resource revenue bonds to be paid into any special 88
funds from the proceeds of those bonds and the financing of the 89
placing of any such project in operation. 90
"Cost" includes any obligation or expense incurred by any 91
governmental agency or person for surveys, borings, preparation 92
of plans and specifications, and other engineering services, or 93
any other cost described above, in connection with the 94
construction or acquisition of a project. 95
(J) "Credit enhancement facilities" means letters of 96
credit, lines of credit, standby, contingent, or firm securities 97
purchase agreements, insurance, or surety arrangements, 98
guarantees, and other arrangements that provide for direct or 99
contingent payment of bond service charges, for security or 100
additional security in the event of nonpayment or default in 101
respect of bonds, or for making payment of bond service charges 102
and at the option and on demand of bondholders or at the option 103
of the district or upon certain conditions occurring under put 104
or similar arrangements, or for otherwise supporting the credit 105
or liquidity of the bonds, and includes credit, reimbursement, 106
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marketing, remarketing, indexing, carrying, interest rate hedge, 107
and subrogation agreements, and other agreements and 108
arrangements for payment and reimbursement of the person 109
providing the credit enhancement facility and the security for 110
that payment and reimbursement. 111
(K) "Financing expenses" means all costs and expenses 112
relating to the authorization, issuance, sale, delivery, 113
authentication, deposit, custody, clearing, registration, 114
transfer, exchange, fractionalization, replacement, payment, and 115
servicing of bonds, including costs and expenses for or relating 116
to publication and printing, postage, delivery, preliminary and 117
final official statements, offering circulars, and informational 118
statements, travel and transportation, underwriters, placement 119
agents, investment bankers, paying agents, registrars, 120
authenticating agents, remarketing agents, custodians, clearing 121
agencies or corporations, securities depositories, financial 122
advisory services, certifications, audits, federal or state 123
regulatory agencies, accounting and computation services, legal 124
services and obtaining approving legal opinions and other legal 125
opinions, credit ratings, redemption premiums, and credit 126
enhancement facilities. 127
(L) "Governmental agency" means a department, division, or 128
other unit of state government; a county, township, or municipal 129
corporation; a watershed district, soil and water conservation 130
district, park district, special water district, including a 131
county and regional water and sewer district, conservancy 132
district, sanitary district, sewer district or any other public 133
corporation or agency having the authority to acquire, 134
construct, or operate waste water or water management 135
facilities, or other political subdivision; a port authority 136
created pursuant to Chapter 4582. of the Revised Code; and the 137
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United States or any agency thereof. 138
(M) "Net revenues" means revenues lawfully available to 139
pay both current operating expenses of a district and bond 140
service charges in any fiscal year or other specified period, 141
less current operating expenses of the district and any amount 142
necessary to maintain a working capital reserve for that period. 143
(N) "Outstanding" as applied to bonds means outstanding in 144
accordance with the terms of the bonds and the applicable bond 145
proceedings. 146
(O) "Owner" includes any person having any title or 147
interest in any property authorized to be acquired by a district 148
under this chapter. 149
(P) "Pledged revenues" means net revenues, money and 150
investments, and earnings on those investments, in the 151
applicable bond service fund and any other special funds, and 152
the proceeds of any bonds issued for the purpose of refunding 153
prior bonds, all as lawfully available and by resolution of the 154
board of trustees of the district committed for application as 155
pledged revenues to the payment of bond service charges on 156
particular issues of bonds. 157
(Q) "Project" or "water project" means any waste water 158
facility or water management facility constructed, 159
reconstructed, or repaired under this chapter, including all 160
buildings and facilities that the board of trustees of the 161
district considers necessary for the operation of the project, 162
together with all property and rights that must be acquired by 163
the board to construct, reconstruct, or repair the project. 164
(R) "Property" includes interests in property. 165
(S) "Refund" means to fund and retire outstanding bonds, 166
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including advance refunding with or without payment or 167
redemption prior to stated maturity. 168
(T) "Revenues" means all money received by a district for 169
the use or services of any project, all special assessments 170
levied by the board of trustees of the district pursuant to this 171
chapter, any gift or grant received with respect to a project, 172
proceeds of bonds to the extent the use thereof for payment of 173
principal or of premium, if any, or interest on the bonds is 174
authorized by the board of trustees of the district, proceeds 175
from any insurance, condemnation, or guaranty pertaining to a 176
project or property mortgaged to secure bonds or pertaining to 177
the financing of a project, and income and profit from the 178
investment of the proceeds of bonds or of any revenues. 179
(U) "Special funds" means the applicable bond service fund 180
and any accounts and subaccounts in that fund, any other funds 181
or accounts permitted by and established under, and identified 182
as a special fund or special account in, the bond proceedings, 183
including any special fund or account established for purposes 184
of rebate or other requirements under federal income tax laws. 185
(V) "Waste water facilities," "water management 186
facilities," "waters of the state," "sewage," "waste water," and 187
"construction" have the same meanings as in section 6119.011 of 188
the Revised Code. 189
(W) "Water improvement district" or "district" means a 190
water improvement district designated pursuant to section 191
6120.02 of the Revised Code. 192
Sec. 6120.02. (A) A water improvement district may be 193
created by the board of county commissioners of a county by 194
resolution for the purpose of facilitating, coordinating, 195
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funding, financing, constructing, reconstructing, or repairing 196
water projects or engaging in any combination of those 197
activities. In furtherance of such purposes, the board of 198
trustees of the district shall enter into an intergovernmental 199
agreement with one or more governmental agencies that specifies 200
that such governmental agency or agencies shall operate and 201
maintain the project under such terms as specified in the 202
agreement. All parties shall agree to such terms before the 203
water improvement district's board of trustees approve a 204
project. 205
(B) A water improvement district is a body both corporate 206
and politic, and the exercise by it of the powers conferred by 207
this chapter in facilitating, coordinating, funding, financing, 208
constructing, reconstructing, or repairing a water project are 209
essential governmental functions. 210
(C)(1) Subject to division (C)(2) of this section, a water 211
improvement district shall be governed by a board of trustees 212
consisting of five voting members and one nonvoting member as 213
follows: 214
(a) The county sanitary engineer or the county sanitary 215
engineer's designee if a county sanitary engineer has been 216
appointed for the county or, if a county sanitary engineer has 217
not been appointed for the county, the county engineer or the 218
county engineer's designee; 219
(b) Four members, appointed by the board of county 220
commissioners, who have experience in waste w