Bill Text: CA AB798 | 2009-2010 | Regular Session | Chaptered
Bill Title: California Transportation Financing Authority: toll
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2009-10-11 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 474, Statutes of 2009. [AB798 Detail]
Download: California-2009-AB798-Chaptered.html
BILL NUMBER: AB 798 CHAPTERED
BILL TEXT
CHAPTER 474
FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE OCTOBER 11, 2009
APPROVED BY GOVERNOR OCTOBER 11, 2009
PASSED THE SENATE SEPTEMBER 3, 2009
PASSED THE ASSEMBLY SEPTEMBER 9, 2009
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 24, 2009
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Nava
FEBRUARY 26, 2009
An act to add Division 3 (commencing with Section 64100) to Title
6.7 of the Government Code, and to amend Section 149.7 of the Streets
and Highways Code, relating to transportation, and making an
appropriation therefor.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 798, Nava. California Transportation Financing Authority: toll
facilities.
(1) Existing law generally provides for programming and allocation
of transportation capital improvement funds pursuant to the state
transportation improvement program process administered by the
California Transportation Commission. Existing law authorizes the
development of toll road projects under certain conditions. Existing
law authorizes the commission and the Department of Transportation to
operate and manage the Transportation Finance Bank to make loans for
transportation projects. Existing law creates the California
Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank to assist in the
financing of various public infrastructure projects. Existing law
authorizes the state to issue tax-exempt revenue anticipation notes
backed by federal transportation appropriations.
This bill would create the California Transportation Financing
Authority with specified powers and duties relative to issuance of
bonds to fund transportation projects to be backed, in whole or in
part, by various revenue streams of transportation funds, and toll
revenues under certain conditions, in order to increase the
construction of new capacity or improvements for the state
transportation system consistent with specified goals. The bill would
set forth the requirements for a project sponsor to obtain bond
funding from the authority, would allow the authority to approve the
imposition and collection of tolls on a proposed project under
certain conditions, and would require the authority to report to the
California Transportation Commission annually beginning June 30,
2011. The bill would create the California Transportation Financing
Authority Fund, which would be continuously appropriated for these
purposes. The bill would enact other related provisions.
(2) Existing law, until January 1, 2012, authorizes a regional
transportation agency, in cooperation with the department, to apply
to the commission to develop and operate high-occupancy toll lanes,
with not more than 4 facilities to be approved under these
provisions. Following public hearings by the commission, the
commission is required to forward an eligible application and public
comments to the Legislature for approval or rejection of the project,
with approval to be achieved by the enactment of a statute.
This bill, with respect to these 4 projects, would delete the
requirement for the commission to forward the applications to the
Legislature for approval or rejection.
Appropriation: yes.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Division 3 (commencing with Section 64100) is added to
Title 6.7 of the Government Code, to read:
DIVISION 3. CALIFORNIA TRANSPORTATION FINANCING AUTHORITY
64100. This division shall be known and may be cited as the
California Transportation Financing Authority Act.
64101. The California Transportation Financing Authority is
hereby created in state government. The authority constitutes a
public instrumentality, and the exercise by the authority of the
powers conferred by this division shall be deemed and held to be the
performance of an essential public function.
64102. As used in this division, the following terms shall have
the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates or
requires another or different meaning or intent:
(a) "Authority" shall mean the California Transportation Financing
Authority.
(b) "Bonds" shall mean bonds, notes, debentures, commercial paper,
or any other evidence of indebtedness, lease, installment, sale, or
certificate of participation thereon, issued by the authority or a
project sponsor pursuant to this division.
(c) "Commission" shall mean the California Transportation
Commission.
(d) "Cost," as applied to a project or portion of a project
financed under this division, shall mean and include all or any part
of the cost of construction and acquisition of all lands, structures,
real or personal property rights, rights-of-way, franchises,
easements, and interests acquired or used for a project, the cost of
demolishing or removing any buildings or structures on land so
acquired, including the cost of acquiring any lands to which those
buildings or structures may be moved, the cost of all machinery and
equipment, financing charges, interest prior to, during, and for a
period not to exceed the later of one year or one year following
completion of construction, as determined by the authority, the cost
of insurance during construction, the cost of funding or financing
noncapital expenses, reserves for principal and interest and for
extensions, enlargements, additions, replacements, renovations, and
improvements, the cost of engineering, architectural, financial,
legal, and other necessary services, plans, specifications, studies,
surveys, estimates, administrative expenses, and other expenses of
funding or financing, that are necessary or incident to determining
the feasibility of any project, or that are incident to the
construction, rehabilitation, acquisition, or financing of any
project.
(e) "Department" shall mean the Department of Transportation.
(f) "Project" shall mean and include all or a portion of the
planning, design, development, finance, construction, reconstruction,
rehabilitation, improvement, acquisition, lease, operation, or
maintenance of highway, public street, rail, bus, or related
facilities supplemental to or improvements upon existing facilities
currently owned and operated by the department or other project
sponsor.
(g) "Project sponsor" shall mean either the department, a regional
transportation planning agency designated pursuant to Section 29532
or 29532.1, a county transportation commission as defined in Section
130050, 130050.1, or 130050.2 of the Public Utilities Code, any other
local or regional transportation entity that is designated by
statute as a regional transportation agency, or a joint exercise of
powers authority as defined in Chapter 5 (commencing with Section
6500) of Division 7 of Title 1 or an agency designated pursuant to
Section 66531 to submit the county transportation plan, with the
consent of a transportation planning agency or a county
transportation commission for the jurisdiction in which the
transportation project will be developed.
(h) "Working capital" means moneys to be used by, or on behalf of,
a project sponsor to pay or prepay maintenance or operation expenses
or any other costs that would be treated as an expense item, under
generally accepted accounting principles, in connection with the
ownership or operation of a project, including, but not limited to,
reserves for maintenance or operation expenses, interest for not to
exceed one year on any loan for working capital made pursuant to this
division, and reserves for debt service with respect to, and any
costs necessary or incidental to, that financing.
64103. (a) The authority shall consist of seven members, as
follows:
(1) The Treasurer, who shall serve as the chair of the authority.
(2) The Director of Finance.
(3) The Controller.
(4) The Director of Transportation.
(5) The executive director of the commission.
(6) A local agency representative appointed by the Senate
Committee on Rules.
(7) A local agency representative appointed by the Speaker of the
Assembly.
(b) Members of the authority shall serve without compensation, but
the authority may reimburse its members for necessary expenses
incurred in the discharge of their duties.
(c) The Director of Finance may designate an employee of the
Department of Finance to act for him or her at all meetings of the
authority.
(d) The director of the department may designate an employee of
the department to act for him or her at all meetings of the
authority.
(e) The executive director of the commission may designate an
employee of the commission to act for him or her at all meetings of
the authority.
(f) The chair of the authority shall appoint an executive
director. The offices of the authority shall be located in the office
of the Treasurer. The authority may, by resolution, delegate to one
or more of its members or its executive director or any employee of
the authority such powers and duties that it may deem proper,
including, but not limited to, the power to enter into contracts on
behalf of the authority.
(g) Four members of the authority shall constitute a quorum. The
affirmative vote of a quorum of the members present at a duly
constituted meeting of the authority shall be necessary for any
action taken by the authority.
64104. The provisions of this division shall be administered by
the authority, which shall have and is hereby vested with all powers
reasonably necessary to carry out the powers and responsibilities
expressly granted or imposed under this division.
64105. The objective of the authority shall be to increase the
construction of new capacity or improvements for the state
transportation system in a manner that is consistent with and will
help meet the state's greenhouse gas reduction goals, air quality
improvement goals, and natural resource conservation goals, through
the issuance of, or the approval of the issuance of, bonds backed, in
whole or in part, by the revenue streams specified in Section 64109.
64106. (a) The Attorney General shall be the legal counsel for
the authority, however, with the approval of the Attorney General,
the authority may employ legal counsel as in its judgment is
necessary or advisable to carry out the duties and functions imposed
upon it by this division, including the employment of bond counsel as
may be deemed advisable in connection with the issuance and sale of
bonds.
(b) The Treasurer shall be the treasurer for the authority.
64107. The authority may do any of the following:
(a) Adopt bylaws for the regulation of its affairs and the conduct
of its business.
(b) Adopt an official seal.
(c) Sue and be sued in its own name.
(d) Receive and accept from any agency of the United States, any
agency of the state, or any municipality, county, or other political
subdivision thereof, or from any individual, association, or
corporation gifts, grants, or donations of moneys for achieving any
of the purposes of this division.
(e) Engage the services of private consultants to render
professional and technical assistance and advice in carrying out the
purposes of this division.
(f) Receive and accept from any source loans, contributions, or
grants for, or in aid of, the construction, financing, or refinancing
of a project or any portion of a project in money, property, labor,
or other things of value.
(g) Make secured or unsecured loans to, or purchase secured or
unsecured loans of, any project sponsor in connection with the
financing of a project or working capital in accordance with an
agreement between the authority and the project sponsor. However, no
loan to finance a project shall exceed the total cost of the project,
as determined by the project sponsor and approved by the authority.
(h) Make secured or unsecured loans to, or purchase secured or
unsecured loans of, any project sponsor in accordance with an
agreement between the authority and the project sponsor to refinance
indebtedness incurred by that project sponsor for the costs of
projects undertaken or for projects acquired or for working capital.
(i) Mortgage all or any portion of the interest of the authority
in a project and the property on which that project is located,
whether owned or thereafter acquired, including the granting of a
security interest in any property, tangible or intangible, and to
assign or pledge all or any portion of the interests of the authority
in mortgages, deeds of trust, indentures of mortgage or trust, or
similar instruments, notes, and security interests in property,
tangible or intangible, of projects for which the authority has made
loans, and the revenues therefrom, including payments or income from
any thereof owned or held by the authority, for the benefit of the
holders of bonds issued to finance or refinance a project or issued
to refund or refinance outstanding indebtedness of project sponsors
as permitted by this division.
(j) Charge and equitably apportion among project sponsors, the
administrative costs and expenses incurred by the authority in the
exercise of its powers and duties conferred by this division.
(k) Obtain, or aid in obtaining, from any department or agency of
the United States or of the state, any private company, any insurance
or guarantee as to, of, or for the payment or repayment of, interest
or principal, or both, or any part thereof, on any bond, loan,
lease, or obligation, or any instrument evidencing or securing the
loan, lease, or obligation, made or entered into pursuant to this
division; and notwithstanding any other provisions of this division,
to enter into any agreement, contract, or any other instrument
whatsoever with respect to that insurance or guarantee, to accept
payment in the manner and form as provided therein in the event of
default by a project sponsor, and to assign that insurance or
guarantee as security for the authority's bonds.
(l) Enter into any and all agreements or contracts, including
agreements for liquidity and credit enhancement and interest rate
swaps or hedges, execute any and all instruments, and do and perform
any and all acts or things necessary, convenient, or desirable for
the purposes of the authority or to carry out any power expressly
granted by this division.
(m) Invest any moneys held in reserve or sinking funds or any
moneys not required for immediate use or disbursement, at the
discretion of the authority, in any obligations authorized by the
resolution authorizing the issuance of the bonds secured thereof or
authorized by law for the investment of trust funds in the custody of
the Treasurer.
(n) Employ and fix the compensation of bond counsel, financial
consultants, and advisers as may be necessary in its judgment in
connection with the issuance and administration of any bonds and
contract for engineering, architectural, accounting, or other
services as may be necessary in the judgment of the authority for the
successful development of any project.
(o) Participate in all things necessary and convenient to carry
out its purposes and exercise its powers.
64108. All expenses of the authority incurred in carrying out the
provisions of this division shall be payable solely from funds
provided pursuant to this division, and no liability shall be
incurred by the authority beyond the extent to which moneys shall
have been provided under this division, except that for the purposes
of meeting the necessary expenses of initial organization and
operation of the authority for the period commencing January 1, 2010,
and continuing until the date the authority derives money from funds
provided to it under the provisions of this division, the authority
may borrow moneys as the authority may require. Any moneys borrowed
by the authority shall subsequently be charged to and apportioned
among project sponsors in an equitable manner and the moneys repaid
with appropriate interest over a reasonable period of time. Under no
circumstances shall the authority create any debt, liability, or
obligation on the part of the State of California payable from any
source whatsoever other than the moneys provided under the provisions
of this division.
64109. (a) To the extent permitted by law, in connection with any
project financed or refinanced pursuant to this division, the
project sponsor may pledge the following revenue sources as security
for revenue bonds issued by the authority:
(1) Local transportation funds, including, but not limited to,
fuel taxes, Article XIX B fuel sales taxes, local transportation
sales taxes, other state revenues approved for this purpose by the
Legislature or by initiative, and developer fees. To the extent that
these revenue sources are within the control of a local agency, the
revenue sources may only be pledged with approval of the governing
board of the local agency. To the extent that these revenues are
within the control of a state agency, the revenue sources may only be
pledged with approval by the department and the commission.
(2) Tolls, on facilities where not otherwise prohibited by
statute, collected by a project sponsor with the approval of the
authority.
(b) Where the authority is issuing bonds to finance or refinance a
project, the authority shall accept a project sponsor's pledge made
pursuant to subdivision (a) and pledge those revenues to the
repayment of bonds issued to finance or refinance the applicable
project.
64110. (a) A project sponsor may apply to the authority for bond
financing or refinancing of a transportation project that has been
approved by the department and the commission for construction.
(b) The authority shall also ensure that the following
requirements are met for a project to be financed or refinanced by
the authority to the extent these criteria have not already been met
through approval of the project by the commission:
(1) The project complies with all relevant statutes applicable to
planning, programming, and construction of transportation improvement
projects, and is contained in the constrained portion of a
conforming regional transportation plan prepared pursuant to Section
65080 and identified as a project proposed to be funded under the
authority provided by this division. For purposes of this
subdivision, a regional transportation plan must be consistent with
greenhouse gas reduction targets assigned by the State Air Resources
Board, pursuant to Division 25.5 (commencing with Section 35800) of
the Health and Safety Code.
(2) For projects on the state highway system, the project sponsor
has cooperated with the department to secure its support for the
project and to ensure that the project is consistent with the needs
and requirements of the state highway system.
(3) The project is technically feasible in that it conforms to
federal standards and meets or exceeds environmental requirements.
(4) The project is financially feasible, as determined pursuant to
Section 64111.
(5) Performance measures have been developed for the project to
enable the commission to track and report on the project's
performance to the Legislature in the commission's annual report
prepared pursuant to Section 14535.
(6) The project has support in the communities adjacent to or
affected by the project. To ensure that such support can be
demonstrated, the project sponsor shall, at a minimum, make available
for public review and comment the proposed project, including any
proposed toll schedule, no less than 30 days prior to approval by the
governing body with jurisdiction over the project.
(7) In the case of highway projects, the project sponsor submits
to the commission and to the authority a plan that demonstrates how
transit service or alternative modes of transportation will be
enhanced in the corridor concurrent with the operation of a toll
facility for the purpose of ensuring that the corridor provides for
multiple modes of transport that accommodate all users. Nothing in
this section may be construed to require that toll revenues be used
to finance the enhancement of transit or alternative means of
transportation in the project corridor.
(c) The authority shall have no power to plan projects, or to
approve projects other than provided in this division. The authority
shall have no power to assume any of the planning, programming, or
allocation authority of the department or the commission.
(d) Beginning June 30, 2011, and annually thereafter, the
authority shall provide to the commission a summary of actions taken
in the previous calendar year, including the number of project
sponsors who sought financing through the authority, a description of
each project, a summary of the sources of funding used to finance or
refinance the project, and any recommendations the authority may
have to improve the financing of transportation infrastructure, to be
included in the commission's annual report to the Legislature as
required by Section 14535.
64111. (a) Prior to issuing or approving the issuance of bonds
for a project, the authority shall determine that the revenues and
other moneys available for a project will be sufficient to pay debt
service on the bonds and to operate and maintain the project over the
life of the bonds consistent with the objective set forth in Section
64105. The authority may hire outside consultants to assist in
making these determinations.
(b) The authority may issue or approve the issuance of bonds to
achieve any of its purposes under this division and bonds may be
issued without investment grade ratings, as long as the bonds are
sold only to qualified institutional buyers or accredited investors
who attest upon purchase that they understand the nature of the risks
of their investment. The bonds may be taxable or tax exempt and may
be sold at public or private negotiated sale. The Treasurer shall
serve as the agent for sale for all authority bond issues, and shall
be reimbursed from bond proceeds to cover the Treasurer's costs
related to the issuance of these bonds. As used in this subdivision,
"accredited investor" shall have the meaning as defined in
subdivision (a) of Section 5950, and "qualified institutional buyer"
shall have the meaning as defined in subdivision (h) of Section 5950.
(c) The project sponsor may request that it be the issuer of the
bonds. The authority may grant the request if it determines that the
revenues and other moneys available for the project will be
sufficient to pay debt service on the bonds and to operate and
maintain the project over the life of the bonds. A project sponsor
for which the authority has granted a request that the project
sponsor issue the bonds, in addition to any other powers it may have
under any other law, shall have all of the powers of the authority
under this division necessary or convenient for the purpose of
issuing, securing, and repaying the bonds and financing or
refinancing the project. This provision is a complete, additional,
and alternative method of accomplishing the matters authorized, and
the project sponsor need not comply with any other law relating to
the issuance of bonds, financing of projects and, if applicable, the
imposition and collection of tolls.
(d) The authority may arrange additional credit support for the
bond issues. However, the authority may not compel project sponsors
to make use of that credit enhancement, nor compel them to contribute
to it by becoming part of a common credit or by providing funding
for a common reserve or other enhancement mechanism.
64112. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the authority
may authorize a project sponsor, or the department, to impose and
collect tolls as one source of financing to pay debt service and to
operate and maintain a project under the following conditions:
(a) The governing body of the project sponsor, by a majority vote
of the body, or, for projects sponsored by the department, the
commission, has approved the imposition of tolls on users of the
project, or a majority of the voters within the jurisdiction of the
project sponsor has approved a ballot measure imposing the tolls.
(b) Each highway project for which tolls are imposed shall have
nontolled alternative lanes available for public use in the same
corridor as the proposed toll project. Nothing in this division shall
allow the conversion of any existing nontolled or non-user-fee lanes
into tolled or user-fee lanes, except for the conversion of
high-occupancy vehicle lanes into high-occupancy toll lanes,
consistent with the authorizations in Sections 149.1, 149.4, 149.5,
149.6, and 149.7 of the Streets and Highways Code.
(c) For highway projects, the road segment is on the state highway
system. Nothing in this division shall allow the imposition of a
toll on any local street or road.
(d) The approval of the tolls pursuant to subdivision (a) shall
require that the tolls be set and maintained at a level expected to
be sufficient to pay debt service, operations, and maintenance of the
project over the life of the bonds consistent with the objective set
forth in Section 64105.
(e) The project's financial pro forma shall incorporate life-cycle
costs for the project, including revenues to pay for maintenance,
operation, and rehabilitation.
(f) Subject to any constraints in the bond documents necessary to
make the bonds marketable, excess revenues from operation of the
project, including toll revenues, shall be used exclusively in the
corridor from which the revenue was generated to fund acquisition,
construction, improvement, maintenance, or operation of
high-occupancy vehicle facilities, other transportation purposes, or
transit service, including, but not limited to, support for transit
operations pursuant to an expenditure plan. The project sponsor, in
consultation with the department, shall issue an expenditure plan
that describes transportation improvements for the corridor, which
shall include projected costs, the use of toll revenues, and a
proposed completion schedule. The expenditure plan shall be updated
annually. The plan and each annual update shall be made available for
public review and comment for no less than 30 days prior to adoption
by the governing board of the project sponsor.
(g) Except for purposes of implementing congestion management
mechanisms pursuant to Section 64113, tolls may not be set to
generate more revenue than the expected cost of paying debt service
on the bonds, contracts entered into by the authority or the project
sponsor in connection with the bonds, funding reserves, operating and
maintaining the project, repair and rehabilitation of the project,
and providing transportation improvements to the corridor pursuant to
subdivision (f).
64113. A project sponsor of a project imposing tolls may
incorporate congestion management mechanisms to regulate usage and
increase mobility, accessibility, and environmental benefits.
64114. The authority and the commission shall develop an approval
process that results in project approval by the commission and
financing approval by the authority in a cooperative manner that is
not sequential, in order that both approvals may be delivered to a
project at approximately the same time. Both agencies shall work with
potential project sponsors to ensure that projects are developed and
brought forward for approval in a manner consistent with the
commission's project requirements and the authority's financing
requirements. No less than 30 days prior to approving the project and
its financing plan, the commission and the authority shall make
available for public review and comment a description of the project
and its financing.
64115. (a) The authority is authorized, from time to time, to
issue its negotiable bonds in order to provide funds for achieving
any of its purposes under this division.
(b) Except as may otherwise be expressly provided by the
authority, each of its bonds shall be payable from any revenues or
moneys of the authority available therefor and not otherwise pledged,
subject only to any agreements with the holders of particular bonds
or notes pledging any particular revenues or moneys. Notwithstanding
that those bonds may be payable from a special fund, they shall be
and be deemed to be for all purposes negotiable instruments, subject
only to the provisions of those bonds for registration.
(c) The authority's bonds may be issued as serial bonds or as term
bonds, or the authority, in its discretion, may issue bonds of both
types. The issuance of all bonds shall be authorized by resolution of
the authority and shall bear the date or dates, mature at the time
or times not exceeding 40 years from their respective dates, bear
interest at the rate or rates, fixed or variable, be payable at the
time or times, be in the denominations, be in the form, either coupon
or registered, carry the registration privileges, be executed in the
manner, be payable in lawful money of the United States of America
at the place or places, and be subject to the terms of redemption, as
the indenture, trust agreement, or other document authorized by the
resolution, or resolution itself may provide. The authority's bonds
or notes may be sold by the Treasurer at public or private negotiated
sale, after giving due consideration to the recommendation of the
project sponsor, for such price or prices and upon such terms and
conditions as the authority shall determine. The Treasurer may sell
those bonds at a price below the par value thereof. However, the
discount on any bonds so sold shall not exceed 6 percent of the par
value thereof, except in the case of any bonds payable in whole or in
part from moneys held under one or more outstanding resolutions or
indentures. Pending preparation of the definitive bonds, the
authority may issue interim receipts or certificates or temporary
bonds that shall be exchanged for those definitive bonds.
(d) Any resolution or resolutions authorizing the issuance of any
bonds or any issue of bonds may contain provisions, which shall be a
part of the contract with the holders of the bonds to be authorized,
as to pledging all or
any part of the revenues of a project or any revenue-producing
contract or contracts made by the authority with any individual,
partnership, corporation, or association or other body, public or
private, to secure the payment of the bonds or of any particular
issue of bonds.
(e) Neither the members of the authority nor any person executing
the bonds shall be liable personally on the bonds or be subject to
any personal liability or accountability by reason of the issuance
thereof.
(f) The authority shall have power out of any funds available
therefor to purchase its bonds or bonds issued by a project sponsor
under this division. The authority may hold, pledge, cancel, or
resell the bonds, subject to and in accordance with agreements with
bondholders.
64116. In the discretion of the authority, any bonds issued under
this division may be secured by a trust agreement or indenture by
and between the authority and a corporate trustee or trustees, which
may be the Treasurer or any trust company or bank having the powers
of a trust company within or without the state. The trust agreement,
indenture, or the resolution providing for the issuance of those
bonds may pledge or assign the revenues to be received from a project
sponsor or pursuant to any revenue-producing contract or as pledged
by the authority pursuant to Section 64109. The indenture, trust
agreement, or resolution providing for the issuance of those bonds
may contain provisions for protecting and enforcing the rights and
remedies of the bondholders as may be reasonable and proper and not
in violation of law, including, particularly, provisions as have been
specifically authorized to be included in any resolution or
resolutions of the authority authorizing bonds thereof. The trust
agreement or indenture may set forth the rights and remedies of the
bondholders and of the trustee or trustees, and may restrict the
individual right of action of bondholders. In addition to the
foregoing, the indenture, trust agreement, or resolution may contain
other provisions as the authority may deem reasonable and proper for
the security of the bondholders.
64117. Bonds issued under this division shall not be deemed to
constitute a debt or liability of the state or of any political
subdivision thereof or a pledge of the faith and credit of the state
or of the political subdivision, other than the authority, but shall
be payable solely from the funds herein provided. The bonds shall
contain on the face thereof a statement to the effect that neither
the State of California nor the authority shall be obligated to pay
the principal of, or the interest thereon, except from revenues
pledged therefor by the authority, and that neither the faith and
credit nor the taxing power of the State of California or of any
political subdivision thereof is pledged to the payment of the
principal of or the interest on those bonds. The issuance of bonds
under the provisions of this division shall not directly or
indirectly or contingently obligate the state or any political
subdivision thereof to levy or to pledge any form of taxation
therefor or to make any appropriation for their payment.
64118. Any holder of bonds issued under this division or any of
the coupons appertaining thereto, and the trustee or trustees under
any indenture or trust agreement, except to the extent the rights
herein given may be restricted by any resolution authorizing the
issuance of, or any indenture or trust agreement securing, the bonds,
may, either at law or in equity, by suit, action, mandamus, or other
proceedings, protect and enforce any and all rights under the laws
of the state or granted hereunder or under the resolution or
indenture or trust agreement, and may enforce and compel the
performance of all duties required by this division or by the
resolution, indenture, or trust agreement to be performed by the
authority or by any officer, employee, or agent thereof.
64119. All moneys received pursuant to this division, whether as
proceeds from the sale of bonds or as revenues, shall be deemed to be
trust funds to be held and applied solely as provided in this
division. Until the funds are applied as provided in this division,
and notwithstanding any other provision of law, the moneys may be
invested in any obligations or securities authorized by resolution of
the authority authorizing the issuance of the bonds or indenture or
trust agreement securing the bonds. Any officer with whom, or any
bank or trust company with which, the moneys are deposited shall act
as trustee of the moneys and shall hold and apply the moneys for the
purposes hereof, subject to any regulations adopted pursuant to this
division, and the resolution authorizing the issuance of the bonds or
the indenture or trust agreement securing the bonds.
64120. (a) The authority may provide for the issuance of bonds of
the authority for the purpose of refunding any bonds or any series
or issue of bonds of the authority then outstanding, including the
payment of any redemption premium thereon and any interest accrued or
to accrue to the date of redemption, purchase, or maturity of the
bonds.
(b) The proceeds of any bonds issued for the purpose of refunding
of outstanding bonds may, in the discretion of the authority, be
applied to the purchase, redemption prior to maturity, or retirement
at maturity of any outstanding bonds on their earliest redemption
date or dates, upon their purchase or maturity, or paid to a third
person to assume the authority's obligation to make the payments, and
may, pending that application, be placed in escrow to be applied to
the purchase, retirement at maturity, or redemption on the date or
dates determined by the authority.
(c) Any proceeds placed in escrow may, pending their use, be
invested and reinvested in obligations or securities authorized by
resolutions of the authority, payable or maturing at the time or
times as are appropriate to ensure the prompt payment of the
principal, interest, and redemption premium, if any, of the
outstanding bonds to be refunded at maturity or redemption of the
bonds to be refunded either at their earliest redemption date or
dates or any subsequent redemption date or dates or for payment of
interest on the refunding bonds on or prior to the final date of
redemption or payment of the bonds to be refunded. After the terms of
the escrow have been fully satisfied and carried out, any balance of
the proceeds and interest, income, and profits, if any, earned or
realized on the investments thereof may be returned to the authority
for use by the authority.
(d) All of the refunding bonds are subject to this division in the
same manner and to the same extent as other bonds issued pursuant to
this division.
64121. Bonds issued by the authority under this division are
hereby made securities in which all banks, bankers, savings banks,
trust companies and other persons carrying on a banking business, all
insurance companies, insurance associations and other persons
carrying on an insurance business, and all administrators, executors,
guardians, trustees and other fiduciaries, and all other persons
whatsoever who now are or may hereafter be authorized to invest in
bonds or other obligations of the state, may properly and legally
invest any funds, including capital belonging to them or within their
control; and the bonds, notes, or other securities or obligations
are hereby made securities that may properly and legally be deposited
with and received by any state or municipal officers or agency of
the state for any purpose for which the deposit of bonds or other
obligations of the state is now or may hereafter be authorized by
law.
64122. Any bonds issued under this division, their transfer, and
the income therefrom shall at all times be free from taxation of
every kind by the state and by all political subdivisions in the
state.
64123. The State of California does pledge to and agree with the
holders of the bonds issued pursuant to this division, and with those
parties who may enter into contracts with the authority or a project
sponsor pursuant to this division, that the state will not limit,
alter, or restrict the rights hereby vested in the authority or a
project sponsor to finance or refinance projects and to authorize the
imposition and collection of tolls and to fulfill the terms of any
agreements made with the holders of bonds authorized by this
division, and with the parties who may enter into contracts with the
authority or a project sponsor pursuant to this division, or in any
way impair the rights or remedies of the holders of those bonds or
those parties until the bonds, together with interest thereon, are
fully paid and discharged and the contracts are fully performed on
the part of the authority or a project sponsor. The authority, and
the project sponsor, as a public body, corporate and politic, shall
have the right to include the pledge herein made in its bonds and
contracts.
64124. A pledge by or to the authority of revenues, moneys,
accounts, accounts receivable, contract rights, and other rights to
payment of whatever kind made by or to the authority pursuant to the
authority granted in this division shall be valid and binding from
the time the pledge is made for the benefit of pledges and successors
thereto. The revenues, moneys, accounts, accounts receivable,
contract rights, and other rights to payment of whatever kind pledged
by or to the authority or its assignees shall immediately be subject
to the lien of the pledge without physical delivery or further act.
The lien of the pledge shall be valid and binding against all
parties, irrespective of whether the parties have notice of the
claim. The indenture, trust agreement, resolution, or another
instrument by which the pledge is created need not be recorded.
64125. Each lease entered into by the authority with a project
sponsor and each agreement, note, mortgage, or other instrument
evidencing the obligations of a project sponsor to the authority
shall provide that the rents or principal, interest, and other
charges payable by the project sponsor shall be sufficient at all
times, (a) to pay the principal of, sinking fund payments, if any,
the premium, if any, and the interest on outstanding bonds of the
authority issued in respect of such project as the same shall become
due and payable, (b) to create and maintain reserves which may, but
need not, be required or provided for in the resolution relating to
the bonds of the authority, and (c) to pay its share of the
administrative costs and expenses of the authority. The authority
shall pledge the revenues derived, and to be derived, from a project
or from a project sponsor for the purposes specified in (a), (b), and
(c) of the preceding sentence and additional bonds may be issued
which may rank on a parity with other bonds relating to the project
to the extent and on the terms and conditions provided in the bond
resolution.
64126. When the principal of and interest on bonds issued by the
authority to finance the cost of a project or working capital or to
refinance outstanding indebtedness of one or more project sponsors,
including any refunding bonds issued to refund and refinance those
bonds, have been fully paid and retired or when adequate provision
has been made to fully pay and retire those bonds, and all other
conditions of the resolution, the lease, the trust indenture and any
mortgage or deed of trust, security interest, or any other instrument
or instruments authorizing and securing the bonds have been
satisfied and the lien of the mortgage, deed of trust, or security
interest has been released in accordance with the provisions thereof,
the authority shall promptly do all things and execute those
releases, release deeds, reassignments, deeds, and conveyances
necessary and required to convey or release any rights, title, and
interest of the authority in the project so financed, or securities
or instruments pledged or transferred to secure the bonds, to the
project sponsor or sponsors.
64127. (a) This division shall be deemed to provide a complete,
additional, and alternative method for doing the things authorized by
this code, and shall be regarded as supplemental and additional to
powers conferred by other laws. The issuance of bonds and refunding
bonds and the financing or refinancing of projects or the imposition
and collection of tolls under this chapter need not comply with any
other law applicable to the issuance of bonds or the collection of
tolls, including, but not limited to, Division 13 (commencing with
Section 21000) of the Public Resources Code.
(b) Except as provided in subdivision (a), the financing of a
project pursuant to this division shall not exempt a project from any
requirement of law that is otherwise applicable to the project, and
the project sponsor shall provide documentation, before the authority
approves the issuance of bonds for the project, that the project has
complied with Division 13 (commencing with Section 21000) of the
Public Resources Code, or is not a project under that division.
64128. To the extent that the provisions of this division are
inconsistent with any other provisions of any general statute or
special act or parts thereof, the provisions of this division shall
be deemed controlling.
64129. Any net earnings of the authority beyond that necessary
for retirement of any obligations issued by the authority or to
implement the purposes of this division may inure to the benefit only
of the state or the authority.
64130. Upon dissolution of the authority, title to all property
owned by the authority shall vest in the successor authority created
by the Legislature, if any, if the successor authority qualifies
under Section 103 of the federal Internal Revenue Code of 1954, as
amended, and the regulations promulgated thereunder, as an authority
entitled to issue obligations on behalf of the State of California
the interest on which is exempt from federal income taxation. If no
successor authority is so created, title to the property shall vest
in the state.
64131. Nothing in this division is intended to limit the
authority to develop and finance high-occupancy toll lanes pursuant
to Section 149.4, 149.5, 149.6, or 149.7 of the Streets and Highways
Code, or to limit the ability of any agency that has existing
authority to issue bonds.
64132. (a) The California Transportation Financing Authority Fund
is hereby created and continued in existence in the State Treasury,
to be administered by the authority. Notwithstanding Section 13340 of
the Government Code, all moneys in the funds shall be continuously
appropriated without regard to fiscal year for the purposes of this
division. The authority may pledge any or all of the moneys in the
fund as security for payment of the principal of, and interest on,
any particular issuance by the authority of bonds issued pursuant to
this division, or any particular secured or unsecured loan made
pursuant to subdivision (g) or (h) of Section 64107, and, for that
purpose or as necessary or convenient to the accomplishment of any
other purpose of the authority, may divide the fund into separate
accounts. All moneys accruing to the authority pursuant to this part
from whatever source shall be deposited in the fund.
(b) Subject to the priorities that may be created by the pledge of
particular moneys in the fund to secure any issuance of bonds of the
authority, and subject further to the costs of loans provided by the
authority pursuant to subdivisions (g) and (h) of Section 64107, and
subject further to any reasonable costs that may be incurred by the
authority in administering the program authorized by this division,
all moneys in the fund derived from any source shall be held in trust
for the security and payment of bonds of the authority and shall not
be used or pledged for any other purpose so long as the bonds are
outstanding and unpaid. However, nothing in this section shall limit
the power of the authority to make loans with the proceeds of bonds
in accordance with the terms of the resolution authorizing the same.
(c) Pursuant to any agreements with the holders of particular
bonds pledging any particular assets, revenues, or moneys, the
authority may create separate accounts in the fund to manage assets,
revenues, or moneys in the manner set forth in the agreements.
(d) The authority may, from time to time, direct the Treasurer to
invest moneys in the fund that are not required for its current
needs, including proceeds from the sale of any bonds, in the eligible
securities specified in Section 16430 as the agency shall designate.
The authority may direct the Treasurer to deposit moneys in
interest-bearing accounts in state or national banks or other
financial institutions having principal offices in this state. The
authority may alternatively require the transfer of moneys in the
fund to the Surplus Money Investment Fund for investment pursuant to
Article 4 (commencing with Section 16470) of Chapter 3 of Part 2 of
Division 4 of Title 2. All interest or other increment resulting from
an investment or deposit shall be deposited in the fund,
notwithstanding Section 16305.7. Moneys in the fund shall not be
subject to transfer to any other fund pursuant to any provision of
Part 2 (commencing with Section 16300) of Division 4 of Title 2,
excepting the Surplus Money Investment Fund.
SEC. 2. Section 149.7 of the Streets and Highways Code is amended
to read:
149.7. (a) A regional transportation agency, as defined in
Section 143, in cooperation with the department, may apply to the
commission to develop and operate high-occupancy toll lanes,
including the administration and operation of a value pricing program
and exclusive or preferential lane facilities for public transit,
consistent with the established standards, requirements, and
limitations that apply to those facilities in Sections 149, 149.1,
149.3, 149.4, 149.5, and 149.6.
(b) The commission shall review each application for the
development and operation of the facilities described in subdivision
(a) according to eligibility criteria established by the commission.
For each eligible application, the commission shall conduct at least
one public hearing in northern California and one in southern
California.
(c) The number of facilities approved under this section shall not
exceed four, two in northern California and two in southern
California.
(d) A regional transportation agency that develops or operates a
facility, or facilities, described in subdivision (a) shall provide
any information or data requested by the commission or the
Legislative Analyst. The commission, in cooperation with the
Legislative Analyst, shall annually prepare a report on the progress
of the development and operation of a facility authorized under this
section. The commission may submit this report as a section in its
annual report to the Legislature required pursuant to Section 14535
of the Government Code.
(e) No applications may be approved under this section on or after
January 1, 2012.
