S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
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                                   7028
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              March 28, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. WALCZYK -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Local Government
 
 AN ACT in relation to authorizing the city of Little Falls, in the coun-
   ty of Herkimer, to finance certain deficits by the issuance of bonds
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Short  title. This act shall be known and may be cited as
 the "city of Little Falls fiscal recovery act".
   § 2. The city of Little Falls, county of Herkimer, is  hereby  author-
 ized  to  issue serial bonds, subject to the provisions of section 10.10
 of the local finance law, on or before October 1, 2026, in an  aggregate
 principal  amount  not  to  exceed  three  million four hundred thousand
 dollars ($3,400,000) for the specific object or purpose  of  liquidating
 deficits  in its general, golf, and water funds expected at the close of
 its fiscal year ending December 31, 2025, including any remaining  prin-
 cipal  amount  of  any  budget,  deficiency, and/or revenue anticipation
 notes outstanding at the time of such issuance of such serial  bonds  or
 notes  authorized  pursuant to this act. In anticipation of the issuance
 and sale of such  serial  bonds,  bond  anticipation  notes  are  hereby
 authorized to be issued.
   §  3.  Notwithstanding  any provision of this act to the contrary, the
 city of Little Falls shall not issue any bonds for the purpose of liqui-
 dating the deficits described in section two  of  this  act  unless  and
 until the state comptroller shall first review and confirm the existence
 of  such  deficits, as well as certify the amounts of such deficits. The
 city of Little Falls shall prepare a report  detailing  the  amount  and
 cause  of such deficits and submit such report together with such city's
 independent audit report for its last completed fiscal year, if any such
 audit report has been or is to be prepared, and such  other  information
 as  the  state comptroller may deem necessary, to the state comptroller,
 as well as the chairs of the senate finance committee and  the  assembly
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD11156-02-5
              

 S. 7028                             2
 
 ways  and means committee, at least thirty days prior to the issuance of
 any bonds pursuant to this act. Within thirty days after receiving  such
 report,  the  state  comptroller  shall  perform  such reviews as may be
 necessary  to  determine the amount of such deficits and report the same
 to the chairs of the senate finance committee and the assembly ways  and
 means  committee, the mayor and the common council of the city of Little
 Falls. Bonds to liquidate each such deficit shall not be  issued  in  an
 amount  exceeding  such  deficit as determined by the state comptroller.
 Nothing provided in this act shall prevent the city of Little Falls from
 authorizing the issuance of bonds or bond anticipation notes, and  issu-
 ing  bond  anticipation  notes,  prior to the determination of the state
 comptroller of the amount of such deficits. If bond  anticipation  notes
 are issued in an amount in excess of the amounts determined by the state
 comptroller, the city of Little Falls shall redeem from funds other than
 the  proceeds  of the bonds or bond anticipation notes, such bond antic-
 ipation notes in the amount by which the  amount  of  bond  anticipation
 notes  exceeds  the  amount  of such deficits as determined by the state
 comptroller.
   § 4. It is hereby  determined  that  the  financing  of  the  deficits
 hereinbefore  described  is  a  purpose  of the city of Little Falls for
 which indebtedness may be incurred, the period of probable usefulness of
 which is hereby determined to be ten years, computed from  the  date  of
 such  bonds  or from the date of the first bond anticipation note issued
 in anticipation of the sale of such bonds, whichever  date  is  earlier.
 Such  bonds  and/or bond anticipation notes shall be general obligations
 of the city of Little Falls to which the faith and credit of the city is
 pledged, and the city shall make an annual appropriation  sufficient  to
 pay  the principal of and interest on such obligations as the same shall
 become due.
   § 5. (a) For each fiscal year occurring during the time  bonds  and/or
 bond anticipation notes issued pursuant to this act are outstanding, the
 mayor  of  the  city of Little Falls shall prepare a quarterly report of
 summarized budget data depicting overall trends of actual  revenues  and
 budget  expenditures  for  the entire budget rather than individual line
 items. Such budgetary reports shall compare revenue estimates and appro-
 priations as set forth in such  budget  with  the  actual  revenues  and
 expenditures made to date. All such quarterly budgetary reports shall be
 accompanied  by  recommendations of the mayor setting forth any remedial
 action necessary or desirable to resolve any unfavorable budget variance
 including the over-estimation of revenues and  the  under-estimation  of
 expenditures.  Each  such  quarterly budgetary report shall be completed
 within thirty days after the end of each quarter and shall be  submitted
 to  each  member  of the common council of the city of Little Falls, the
 director of the division of the budget, the state comptroller,  and  the
 chairs  of  the senate finance committee and the assembly ways and means
 committee.
   (b) For each fiscal year occurring during the time bonds  and/or  bond
 anticipation  notes  issued  pursuant  to  this act are outstanding, the
 mayor of the city of Little Falls shall also prepare a  quarterly  trial
 balance of general and special fund ledger accounts. Each such quarterly
 trial  balance  shall  be prepared in accordance with generally accepted
 accounting principles.  Each  such  quarterly  trial  balance  shall  be
 completed  within thirty days after the end of each quarterly period and
 shall be submitted to each member of the common council of the  city  of
 Little  Falls,  the  director  of  the division of the budget, the state
 S. 7028                             3
 
 comptroller, and the chairs of the  senate  finance  committee  and  the
 assembly ways and means committee.
   (c)  Within  ninety  days of the issuance of any debt pursuant to this
 act and for each fiscal year thereafter during which such  debt  or  any
 debt  incurred to refund such debt is outstanding, the mayor of the city
 of Little Falls or other officer or officers responsible for the  prepa-
 ration of the tentative budget of the city of Little Falls, within thir-
 ty  days  after the final adoption of the budget for the next succeeding
 fiscal year, shall prepare a three-year financial plan covering the next
 succeeding fiscal year and the two fiscal years thereafter. Such  finan-
 cial  plan  shall,  at a minimum, contain the information required to be
 provided in a three-year financial plan as prescribed by subdivision  10
 of  section  54  of the state finance law. Copies of such financial plan
 shall be provided to the mayor and chief fiscal officer of the  city  of
 Little  Falls,  the  director  of the budget, the state comptroller, the
 chair of the assembly ways and means committee  and  the  chair  of  the
 senate  finance  committee.  The  state  comptroller  shall examine such
 three-year financial plan and make such recommendations as deemed appro-
 priate thereon. The mayor of the city of Little Falls or  other  officer
 or officers who prepared such three-year financial plan shall review any
 such  recommendations  and make adjustments to such three-year financial
 plan consistent with such recommendations made by the state comptroller.
 This financial plan requirement shall not apply to the extent  the  city
 of  Little  Falls  is  subject  to a different multi-year financial plan
 requirement under state law.
   (d) For each fiscal year occurring during the time bonds  and/or  bond
 anticipation  notes  issued  pursuant  to  this act are outstanding, the
 mayor or chief fiscal officer of the city of Little Falls  shall  notify
 the state comptroller at least fifteen days prior to the issuance of any
 bonds  or  notes  or entering into any installment purchase contract and
 the state comptroller may review and make recommendations regarding  the
 affordability  to the city of Little Falls of any such proposed issuance
 or contract. The state comptroller may require  the  submission  by  the
 city  of Little Falls of such information as the state comptroller shall
 deem necessary to complete such state comptroller's review.
   § 6. Severability clause. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivi-
 sion, section or part of this act shall be  adjudged  by  any  court  of
 competent  jurisdiction  to  be invalid, such judgment shall not affect,
 impair, or invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall  be  confined  in
 its  operation  to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section
 or part thereof directly involved in the controversy in which such judg-
 ment shall have been rendered. It is hereby the intent of  the  legisla-
 ture  that  this  act  would  have  been  enacted  even  if such invalid
 provisions had not been included herein.
   § 7. This act shall take effect immediately.