§ 115C-513. Special tax for certain merged school administrative units. - North Carolina Statutes

§ 115C‑513. Special tax for certain merged school administrative units.

(a)        Scope. – This section applies to a merged schooladministrative unit that consists of one entire county and part of a secondcounty and is composed of two merging units, one of which is located within onecounty and one of which is located partly in the same county as the first unitand partly in a second county. A merged school administrative unit to whichthis section applies may levy taxes as provided in this section to be appliedto the payment of notes, bonds, or refunding bonds issued to finance capitalcosts of school facilities as described in G.S. 159‑48.

(b)        Issuance of Bonds. – The board of education of a mergedschool administrative unit may issue notes, bonds, or refunding bonds at onetime or from time to time to pay the capital costs of school facilities asdescribed in G.S. 159‑48. The bonds shall be issued and maintained inaccordance with the provisions of Articles 1, 4, 5A, 7, 9, 10, and 11 ofChapter 159 of the General Statutes, except as modified by this section.

The board of education of a merged school administrative unit shallcall for a referendum authorizing the issuance of notes, bonds, and refundingbonds and the levy of a tax to pay amounts relating to these notes, bonds, orrefunding bonds. The referendum may be called only with the consent of theboards of commissioners of both counties in which the merged schooladministrative unit is located. The referendum shall be held in the mergedschool administrative unit and only those qualified voters who reside in theunit may vote. The board of commissioners of each county shall have thereferendum conducted by the board of elections of its county.

After issuance of the approved bonds, the merged school administrativeunit shall make timely payments of principal and interest on the bonds afterreceipt of notification of its debt service obligation pursuant to G.S. 159‑35.The provisions of G.S. 159‑36 govern a failure by the merged schooladministrative unit to levy taxes or otherwise provide for payment of the debt.

Bonds, notes, and refunding bonds issued under this section shall beexempt from all State, county, and municipal taxation and assessment, direct orindirect, general or special, whether imposed for the purpose of generalrevenue or otherwise, excluding inheritance and gift taxes, income taxes on thegain from the transfer of bonds, notes, and refunding bonds, and franchisetaxes. The interest on bonds, notes, and refunding bonds is not subject to taxationas income.

Article 9 of the North Carolina Uniform Commercial Code, Chapter 25 ofthe General Statutes, does not apply to any security interest created inconnection with the issuance of bonds under this section.

(c)        Tax. – If a majority of the qualified voters of a mergedschool administrative unit voting on the question approve the issuance of bondsand levy of a tax as provided in this section, the board of education of themerged school administrative unit may levy a tax on all property having a situsin the merged school administrative unit for the purpose of retiring bondsissued by the unit under this section. Taxes levied pursuant to this sectionmay be levied prior to the issuance of notes or bonds. The authority of amerged school administrative unit to levy a tax pursuant to this sectionterminates after all of the related notes, bonds, and refunding bonds aredischarged or paid.

Before April 15 of each year, the tax assessor of each county in whichthe merged school administrative unit is located shall certify to thesuperintendent of schools an estimate of the total assessed value of propertyin the county subject to taxation on behalf of the merged school administrativeunit pursuant to this Article. The board of education of the merged schooladministrative unit, in the budget it submits to each board of countycommissioners, shall set the rate of ad valorem tax it levies as a tax underthis section. The levy under this section shall be at the rate necessary toprovide for payment of interest on and principal of outstanding notes, bonds,and refunding bonds issued by the merged school administrative unit.

Each county in which the merged school administrative unit is locatedshall compute and collect this tax in the same manner that county taxes arecollected. The tax shall be shown separately on the tax receipts for the fiscalyear. Collections shall be remitted to the merged school administrative unitwithin 10 days after the close of each calendar month. Partial payments shallbe proportionally divided between the county collecting the tax and the mergedschool administrative unit. The board of commissioners of each countycollecting the tax levied under this section may, in its discretion, deductfrom the proceeds of the tax the actual additional cost to the county ofcomputing, billing, and collecting the tax. (1991, c. 325, s. 3; 1995, c. 46, s. 4.)