(a) The authority shall have power and is authorized to issue its bonds in accordance with this chapter and in accordance with the Local Government Public Obligations Act of 1986, compiled in title 9, chapter 21, and for such purposes the bonds shall be treated as revenue obligations of the authority under this chapter, in order to finance:
Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
Escrow: Money given to a third party to be held for payment until certain conditions are met.
Foreclosure: A legal process in which property that is collateral or security for a loan may be sold to help repay the loan when the loan is in default. Source: OCC
Interest rate: The amount paid by a borrower to a lender in exchange for the use of the lender's money for a certain period of time. Interest is paid on loans or on debt instruments, such as notes or bonds, either at regular intervals or as part of a lump sum payment when the issue matures. Source: OCC
Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
Municipality: means any municipality or county incorporated or existing under the laws of Tennessee, or any combination of any municipality or county incorporated or existing under the laws of Tennessee. See Tennessee Code 7-69-102
Project: means a facility or group of facilities to be owned or controlled (either through ownership, lease, or an easement) by the authority or other governmental entity and that is available for use by the public, including, without limitation, visitor centers, performing arts centers, museums, recreational facilities such as greenways and trails, and other government-owned tourist attractions. See Tennessee Code 7-69-102
Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
(1) The costs of any project;(2) The payment of the costs of issuance of such bonds, including underwriter’s discount, financial advisory fee, preparation of the definitive bonds, preparation of all public offering and marketing materials, advertising, credit enhancement, and legal, accounting, fiscal and other similar expenses;(3) Reimbursement of the authority for moneys previously spent by the authority for any of the foregoing purposes; and(4) The establishment of reasonable reserves for the payment of debt service on such bonds, for repair and replacement of any project, or for such other purposes as the board shall deem necessary and proper in connection with the issuance of any bonds and operation of any project for the benefit of which the financing is being undertaken.(b)(1) The authority shall have the power and is hereby authorized to issue its bonds to refund and refinance outstanding bonds of the authority heretofore or hereafter issued or lawfully assumed by the authority; provided, that in accordance with the Local Government Public Obligations Act of 1986, the authority shall request a report on any proposed refunding from the office of the comptroller. The proceeds of the sale of the bonds may be applied to:
(A) The payment of the principal amount of the bonds being refunded and refinanced;(B) The payment of the redemption or tender premium thereon, if any;(C) The payment of unpaid interest on the bonds being refunded, including interest in arrears, for the payment of which sufficient funds are not available, to the date of delivery or exchange of the refunding bonds;(D) The payment of fees or other charges incident to the termination of any interest rate hedging agreements, liquidity or credit facilities, or other agreements related to the bonds being refunded and refinanced;(E) The payment of interest on the bonds being refunded and refinanced from the date of delivery of the refunding bonds to maturity or to, and including, the first or any subsequent available redemption date or dates on which the bonds being refunded may be called for redemption;(F) The payment of the costs of issuance of the refunding bonds, including underwriter’s discount, financial advisory fee, preparation of the definitive bonds, preparation of all public offering and marketing materials, advertising, credit enhancement, and legal, accounting, fiscal and other similar expenses, and the costs of refunding the outstanding bonds, including the costs of establishing an escrow for the retirement of the outstanding bonds, trustee and escrow agent fees in connection with any escrow, and accounting, legal and other professional fees in connection therewith; and(G) The establishment of reserves for the purposes set forth in subdivision (a)(4).(2) Refunding bonds may be issued to refinance and refund more than one (1) issue of outstanding bonds, notwithstanding that such outstanding bonds may have been issued at different times. The principal proceeds from the sale of refunding bonds may be applied either to the immediate payment and retirement of the bonds being refunded or, to the extent not required for the immediate payment of the bonds being refunded, to the deposit in escrow with a bank or trust company to provide for the payment and retirement at a later date of the bonds being refunded.(c) No bonds shall be issued hereunder unless authorized to be issued or assumed by resolution of the board of directors of the authority. Bonds authorized to be issued hereunder may be issued in one (1) or more series, may bear such date or dates, mature at such time or times, not exceeding forty (40) years from their respective dates, bear interest at such rate or rates, payable at such time or times, be in such denominations, be in such form, either coupon or registered, be executed in such manner, be payable in such medium of payment, at such place or places, and be subject to such terms of redemption, with or without premium, as such resolution or resolutions may provide. Bonds may be issued for money or property at competitive or negotiated sale for such price or prices as the board of directors, or its designee, shall determine. The authority may enter into such agreements in connection with the issuance of any bonds as its board of directors may approve, including without limitation, credit agreements and bond purchase agreements.(d) Bonds may be repurchased by the authority out of any available funds at such price as the board of directors shall determine, and all bonds so repurchased shall be cancelled or held as an investment of the authority as the board of directors may determine.(e)(1)(A) All bonds issued by the authority are payable solely out of the revenues of the authority, as may be designated by its board of directors, including tax revenues and revenues granted, contributed, or pledged by the municipality to or for the benefit of the authority derived from any source, except revenues derived from ad valorem property taxes.(B) Prior to any action authorizing a municipality to pledge its revenues to an authority for the issuance of bonds under this part, the creating municipality shall submit a request to the comptroller of the treasury or the comptroller’s designee for approval of the pledged security.(C) In order to obtain such approval, the local government shall submit to the comptroller of the treasury or the comptroller’s designee a copy of:
(i) The proposed resolution or resolution authorizing the bonds or notes;(ii) The proposed disclosure statement, if any;(iii) A statement showing the estimated annual principal and interest requirements for the bonds or notes;(iv) A detailed statement showing the estimated cost of issuance, which must include all amounts that the authority would be required to report under § 9-21-134;(v) A list of the projects to be financed; and(vi) Any other information deemed pertinent to the bond or note issued by the authority.(D) The comptroller of the treasury or the comptroller’s designee shall notify the authority of the comptroller of the treasury’s or the comptroller’s designee’s approval or disapproval within ten (10) days from the date that all required information is received by the comptroller of the treasury or the comptroller’s designee. If the comptroller of the treasury or the comptroller’s designee approves a sale for the bonds or notes, or if the comptroller of the treasury or the comptroller’s designee fails to act within such time, then the authority may proceed to sell the bonds or notes in that manner.(2) The principal of and interest on any bonds issued by the authority shall be secured, as may be designated by the board of directors of the authority, by a pledge of the tax revenues by general law or private act allocable to the authority, by a pledge of the authority’s rights under agreements, leases and other contracts, or by a mortgage or deed of trust covering all or any part of the projects from which the revenues so pledged may be derived. The proceedings under which the bonds are authorized to be issued and any such pledge agreement or mortgage or deed of trust may contain any agreements and provisions respecting the maintenance of the projects covered by the bonds, the fixing and collection of rents for any portions of projects leased by the authority to others, the creation and maintenance of special funds from such revenues and the rights and remedies available in the event of default, all as the board of directors shall deem advisable and not in conflict with this chapter. Each pledge, agreement, or mortgage or deed of trust made for the benefit or security of any of the bonds of the authority shall continue effective until the principal of and interest on the bonds for the benefit of which the pledge, agreement, or mortgage or deed of trust were made shall have been fully paid. In the event of default in such payment or in any agreement of the authority made as a part of the contract under which the bonds were issued, whether contained in the proceedings authorizing the bonds or in any mortgage or deed of trust executed as security for the bonds, such payment or agreement may be enforced by suit, mandamus, the appointment of a receiver in equity or by foreclosure of any such mortgage or deed of trust, or any one (1) or more of such remedies.(f) Bonds and notes of the authority shall be executed in the name of the authority by such officers of the authority and in such manner as the board of directors may direct. If so provided in the proceedings authorizing the bonds, the facsimile signature of any of the officers executing such bonds may appear on the bonds in lieu of the manual signature of such officer.(g) Any bonds and notes of the authority may be sold at public or private sale to the extent authorized for local governments, for such price and in such manner and from time to time as may be determined by the board of directors of the authority to be most advantageous, and the authority may pay all expenses, premiums and commissions that its board of directors may deem necessary or advantageous in connection with the issuance of the bonds.
