West Virginia Legislature
2016 Regular Session
Introduced
House Bill 2193
2015 Carryover
(By Delegates Gearheart, Householder, R. Smith and Faircloth)
[Introduced January 13, 2016; referred to the
Committee on Roads and Transportation then Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §17‑16A‑11 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to providing the Parkways Authority with the power to issue $500 million worth of bonds to finance the construction of the King Coal Highway once West Virginia Turnpike tolls are removed.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §17‑16A‑11 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 16A. WEST VIRGINIA PARKWAYS, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND TOURISM AUTHORITY.
§17‑16A‑11. Parkway revenue bonds B‑ West Virginia Turnpike; related projects.
(a) The Parkways Authority is authorized to provide by
resolution, at one time or from time to time, for the issuance of parkway
revenue bonds of the state in an aggregate outstanding principal amount not to
exceed, from time to time, $200 $500 million for the purpose of
paying:
(1) All or any part of the cost of the West Virginia Turnpike, which may include, but not be limited to, an amount equal to the state funds used to upgrade the West Virginia Turnpike to federal interstate standards;
(2) All or any part of the cost of any one or more parkway
projects that involve improvements to or enhancements of the West Virginia
Turnpike, including, without limitation, lane‑widening on the West
Virginia Turnpike, and that are or have been recommended by the Parkways
Authority's traffic engineers or consulting engineers or by both of them prior
to the issuance of parkway revenue bonds for the project or projects; and
(3) To the extent permitted by federal law, all or any part of the cost of construction of the King Coal Highway, at any portion of its length from United States Route 460 near Bluefield to its juncture with Interstate 64 in Wayne County. This subsection does not take effect until all toll collection on the West Virginia Turnpike has ceased; and
(3) (4) To the extent permitted by federal
law, all or any part of the cost of any related parkway project.
(b) For purposes of this section only, a Arelated parkway project@ means any information
center, visitors' center or rest stop, or any combination thereof, and any
expressway, turnpike, trunkline, feeder road, state local service road or park
and forest road which connects to or intersects with the West Virginia Turnpike
and is located within seventy‑five miles of the turnpike as it existed on
June 1, 1989, or any subsequent expressway, trunkline, feeder road, state local
service road or park and forest road constructed pursuant to this article:
Provided, That nothing in this section shall be construed as
prohibiti prohibits the Parkways Authority from issuing parkway
revenue bonds pursuant to section ten of this article for the purpose of paying
all or any part of the cost of any related parkway project: Provided, however,
That none of the proceeds of the issuance of parkway revenue bonds under this
section shall be used to pay all or any part of the cost of any economic
development project, except as provided in section twenty‑three of this
article: Provided further, That nothing in this section shall may
be construed as prohibiting the Parkways Authority from issuing additional
parkway revenue bonds to the extent permitted by applicable federal law for the
purpose of constructing, maintaining and operating any highway constructed, in
whole or in part, with money obtained from the Appalachian Regional Commission
as long as the highway connects to the West Virginia Turnpike as it existed on
June 1, 1989 : And provided further, That, for purposes of this section,
in determining the amount of bonds outstanding, from time to time, within the
meaning of this section: original par amount or original stated principal
amount at the time of issuance of bonds shall be used to determine the
principal amount of bonds outstanding, except that the amount of parkway
revenue bonds outstanding under this section may not include any bonds that
have been retired through payment, defeased through the deposit of funds
irrevocably set aside for payment or otherwise refunded so that they are no longer
secured by toll revenues of the West Virginia Turnpike: And provided
further, That the authorization to issue bonds under this section is in
addition to the authorization and power to issue bonds under any other section
of this code: And provided further, That, without limitation of the
authorized purposes for which parkway revenue bonds are otherwise permitted to
be issued under this section, and without increasing the maximum principal par
amount of parkway revenue bonds permitted to be outstanding, from time to time,
under this section, the authority is specifically authorized by this section to
issue, at one time or from time to time, by resolution or resolutions under
this section, parkway revenue bonds under this section for the purpose of paying
all or any part of the cost of one or more parkway projects that:
(1) Consist of enhancements or improvements to the West
Virginia Turnpike, including, without limitation, but not limited to,
projects involving lane widening, resurfacing, surface replacement, bridge
replacement, bridge improvements and enhancements, other bridge work, drainage
system improvements and enhancements, drainage system replacements, safety
improvements and enhancements, and traffic flow improvements and enhancements;
and
(2) Have been recommended by the authority's consulting engineers or traffic engineers, or both, prior to the issuance of the bonds.
(c) Except as otherwise specifically provided in this
section, the issuance of parkway revenue bonds pursuant to this section, the maturities
and other details of the bonds, the rights of the holders of the bonds, and the
rights, duties and obligations of the Parkways Authority in respect of the
bonds shall be are governed by the provisions of this article
insofar as the provisions are applicable.
(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this code to the contrary, the authority may not issue parkway revenue bonds under this section for projects on the West Virginia Turnpike after June 30, 2010: Provided, That the authority may issue revenue refunding bonds pursuant to sections twenty‑one and twenty‑two of this article.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide the Parkways Authority with the power to issue $500 million worth of bonds to finance the construction of the King Coal Highway after tolls have been removed from the West Virginia Turnpike.
Strike‑throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.