(A) For the purpose of this article, the authority may:
(1) deposit monies derived from the sale of bonds authorized to be issued under the provisions of this article or from revenue-producing facilities in any bank or trust company having an office within the district and to withdraw them for the purpose of operating, maintaining, constructing, improving, and extending any facility in its charge;
(2) apply for, accept, receive, receipt for, disburse, and expend federal, state, county, or municipal monies and other monies, public or private, made available by grant or loan, or both, to accomplish, in whole or in part, any of the purposes of this article, and, to this end, to continue to prosecute any application previously filed with the Federal Aviation Agency, or any other federal agency, by the Florence City-County Airport Commission, and to pay from the funds of the district any costs incurred for any services rendered since the date the application was filed in connection with the procuring or processing of the application which is found by the authority to legitimately inure to the benefit of the district. All federal monies accepted under this section must be accepted and expended by the authority upon those terms and conditions prescribed by the United States and consistent with state law. All other monies accepted under this section must be accepted and expended by the authority upon the terms and conditions prescribed by the State or other sources;
(3) accept donations of all sorts, including a deed of conveyance by any landowners of the landowner's right, title, and interest in and to lands within the district, and to accept relinquishments of any leasehold interest or estate now possessed by the City or County of Florence on or in lands or property on airport property.
(B) The district may issue negotiable bonds, notes, and other evidences of indebtedness payable solely from the gross revenues or net revenues derived from the operation of any revenue-producing facility, or facilities, in its charge. The sums borrowed may be those needed to pay the costs of any extension, addition, or improvement to its airport facility. The proceeds of the bonds may, in addition, be used to refund any bonds issued under the provisions of this article, to pay interest during the estimated construction period of the project being financed, to fund any necessary reserves for the bonds, to purchase any necessary credit enhancement for the bonds, and to pay costs of issuance of the bonds. If the method of financing authorized by this subsection is used, neither the faith and credit of the State of South Carolina, nor of any county lying within the district, nor of the district itself, may be pledged to the payment of the principal and interest of the obligations, and there must be on the face of the obligation a statement, plainly worded, to that effect. Neither the members of the authority nor any person signing the obligations are personally liable on them. In order that a convenient procedure for borrowing money pursuant to this subsection may be prescribed, the authority may use the provisions of Chapter 21, Title 6 and Chapter 17, Title 6. In exercising the powers conferred upon the district by those code provisions, the authority may make all pledges and covenants authorized by the provisions of them and may confer upon the holders of its securities all rights and liens authorized by these code provisions. Specifically, and notwithstanding contrary provisions in those code provisions, the district may:
(1) provide that the bonds, notes, or other evidences of indebtedness are payable, both as to principal and interest, from the gross revenues or net revenues derived from the operation of any revenue-producing facility or facilities, as the gross revenues or net revenues may be defined by the authority, and to impose a lien upon the facilities, the revenues of which are pledged to the payment of the bonds enforceable to the same extent and in the same manner as the statutory lien described in Sections 6-21-330 through 6-21-360;
(2) provide that the bonds must be issued as serial or term bonds, maturing in equal or unequal amounts, at such times and on occasions as the authority determines. They must bear such rates of interest, payable on such occasion, as the authority prescribes, and the bonds are in such denominations, are payable in such medium of payment, and at such place as the authority prescribes. All bonds may be issued with a provision permitting their redemption prior to their respective maturities. Bonds made subject to redemption before their stated maturities may contain a provision requiring the payment of a premium for the privilege of exercising the right of redemption, in such amount or amounts as the authority prescribes. All bonds that are subject to redemption must contain a statement to that effect on the face of each bond. The resolution authorizing their issuance must contain provisions specifying the manner of call and the notice of call that must be given. Notwithstanding anything in this chapter to the contrary, the authority may issue bonds which, in lieu of paying current interest periodically, pay an accreted value at maturity;
(3) authorize the officer or officers of the authority to execute the bonds, by manual or facsimile signature, as the authority considers necessary; bonds may be in the form of registered bonds or may be issued in coupon form, payable to bearer, or, in the discretion of the authority, may be issued as fully registered uncertificated book-entry securities;
(4) covenant and agree that upon its being adjudged in default as to the payment of any installment of principal and interest upon any obligation issued by it or in default as to the performance of any covenant or undertaking made by it, that in that event the principal of all obligations of the issue may be declared immediately due and payable, notwithstanding that any of them may not have then matured, and that any court having jurisdiction in any proper action may appoint a receiver to administer and operate the facilities whose revenues must be pledged for the payment of the bonds, with power to fix rates and charges for the facilities, sufficient to provide for the payment of the expense of operating and maintaining such facilities, and to apply the income and revenues of the facilities to the payment of the bonds, and the interest on them;
(5) confer upon a corporate trustee the power to make disposition of the proceeds from all borrowings and also all revenue-producing facilities whose revenues are pledged for the payment of the obligations, in accordance with and in the order of priority prescribed by resolutions adopted by the authority as an incident to the issuance of any notes, bonds, or other evidences of indebtedness;
(6) dispose of its obligations at public or private sale and upon such terms and conditions as it approves;
(7) covenant and agree that a reserve fund must be established to further secure the payment of principal and interest of any obligation;
(8) covenant and agree that it will not enter into any agreements with any person, firm, corporation, or with the government of this State, the United States, or any of the political subdivisions of the same, for the furnishing of free services where the services are ordinarily charged for;
(9) prescribe the procedure, if any, by which the terms of the contract with the holders of its obligations may be amended, the number of obligations whose holders must consent to it, and the manner in which the consent must be given;
(10) prescribe the evidence of default and conditions upon which all or any obligation becomes or may be declared due before maturity and the terms and conditions upon which the declaration and its consequences may be waived;
(11) covenant to establish and maintain such system of rules as will ensure the continuous use and occupancy of the facilities whose revenues are pledged to secure any bonds;
(12) covenant that an adequate schedule of charges will be established and maintained for the facilities designated by the authority, whose revenues must be pledged to secure any bonds, to the extent necessary to produce sufficient revenues to:
(a) pay the cost of operating and maintaining the facilities, whose revenues or net revenues must be pledged for the payment of the bonds, including the cost of fire, extended coverage, and use and occupancy insurance;
(b) pay the principal and interest of the bonds as they respectively become due;
(c) create and at all times maintain an adequate debt service reserve fund to meet the payment of the principal and interest; and
(d) create and at all times maintain an adequate reserve for contingencies and for major repairs and replacements.
(C) The authority, on behalf of the district, may issue general obligation bonds of the district, whose proceeds must be used to defray the cost of constructing and establishing an airport facility within the district. In order that a convenient procedure for borrowing money pursuant to this subsection may be prescribed, the authority may use the provisions of Article 5, Chapter 11, Title 6. For the purpose of this section, the term "construct and establish" means the cost of direct construction, the cost of all land, property, rights, easements, and franchises acquired (in addition to property conveyed to the district by the City or County of Florence) which are considered necessary for the construction and use of runways, terminal buildings, maintenance shops, freight depots, service establishments, and any and all facilities incident, or in any way appurtenant, to an airport facility, and all machinery and equipment needed for it, payments to contractors, laborers, or others for work done or material furnished, financing charged, interest incurred in connection with it, interest on the bonds authorized by this article, cost of engineering services, architectural services, legal services, legal and engineering expenses, plans, specifications, surveys, projections, drawings, brochures, administrative expenses, and such other expenses as may be necessary or incident to the construction of any airport facility within the district incurred for the purposes for which the district is created.
(D) The district shall do all other acts and things necessary or convenient to carry out any function or power committed or granted to the district.
(E) All bonds issued pursuant to this article and all interest to become due on them have the tax-exempt status prescribed by Section 12-2-50.
(F) It is lawful for all executors, administrators, guardians, and fiduciaries, all sinking fund commissions, the State Public Employee Benefit Authority and the State Fiscal Accountability Authority as cotrustees, as trustee of the South Carolina Retirement System, and all other governmental entities within the State to invest any monies in their hands in the bonds issued pursuant to this chapter.
HISTORY: 1999 Act No. 6, Section 1, eff upon approval (became law without the Governor's signature on March 24, 1999); 2012 Act No. 270, Section 5, eff June 18, 2012.
Code Commissioner's Note
At the direction of the Code Commissioner, references in this section to the offices of the former State Budget and Control Board, Office of the Governor, or other agencies, were changed to reflect the transfer of them to the Department of Administration or other entities, pursuant to the directive of the South Carolina Restructuring Act, 2014 Act No. 121, Section 5(D)(1), effective July 1, 2015.
Editor's Note
Former Section 55-11-650, enacted by 1990 Act No. 545, Section 3 and entitled Revenue; bonds, was repealed by 1998 Act No. 365, Section 1, eff June 10, 1998.
Effect of Amendment
The 2012 amendment made nonsubstantive changes.