53 Pa.C.S. § 5607 Purposes and Powers

• Library: Pennsylvania Statutes
• Edition: 2023
• Currency: Current through P.A. Acts 2023-66
• Year: 2023
• Citation: 53 Pa.C.S. § 5607

(a) Scope of projects permitted.--Every authority incorporated under this chapter shall be a body corporate and politic and shall be for the purposes of financing working capital; acquiring, holding, constructing, financing, improving, maintaining and operating, owning or leasing, either in the capacity of lessor or lessee, projects of the following kind and character and providing financing for insurance reserves:

(1) Equipment to be leased by an authority to the municipality or municipalities that organized it or to any municipality or school district located wholly or partially within the boundaries of the municipality or municipalities that organized it.

(2) Buildings to be devoted wholly or partially for public uses, including public school buildings, and facilities for the conduct of judicial proceedings and for revenue-producing purposes.

(3) Transportation, marketing, shopping, terminals, bridges, tunnels, flood control projects, highways, parkways, traffic distribution centers, parking spaces, airports and all facilities necessary or incident thereto.

(4) Parks, recreation grounds and facilities.

(5) Sewers, sewer systems or parts thereof.

(6) Sewage treatment works, including works for treating and disposing of industrial waste.

(7) Facilities and equipment for the collection, removal or disposal of ashes, garbage, rubbish and other refuse materials by incineration, landfill or other methods.

(8) Steam heating plants and distribution systems.

(9) Incinerator plants.

(10) Waterworks, water supply works, water distribution systems.

(11) Facilities to produce steam which is used by the authority or is sold on a contract basis for industrial or similar use or on a sale-for-resale basis to one or more entities authorized to sell steam to the public, provided that such facilities have been approved by resolution or ordinance adopted by the governing body of the municipality or municipalities organizing such authority and that the approval does not obligate the taxing power of the municipality in any way.

(12) Facilities for generating surplus electric power which are related to incinerator plants, dams, water supply works, water distribution systems or sewage treatment plants pursuant, where applicable, to section 3 of the Federal Power Act (41 Stat. 1063, 16 U.S.C. § 796 ) and section 210 of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 ( Public Law 95-617, 16 U.S.C. § 824a-3 ) or Title IV of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 ( Public Law 95-617, 16 U.S.C. §§ 2701 to 2708 ) if:

(i) electric power generated from the facilities is sold or distributed only on a sale-for-resale basis to one or more entities authorized to sell electric power to the public;

(ii) the facilities have been approved by resolution or ordinance adopted by the governing body of the municipality or municipalities organizing the authority and the approval does not obligate the taxing power of the municipality in any way; and

(iii) the incinerator plants, dams, water supply works, water distribution systems or sewage treatment plants are or will be located within or contiguous with a county in which at least one of the municipalities organizing the authority is located, except that this subparagraph shall not apply to incinerator plants, dams, water supply works, water distribution systems or sewage treatment plants located in any county which have been or will be constructed by or acquired by the authority to perform functions the primary purposes of which are other than that of generation of electric power for which the authority has been organized.

(13) Swimming pools, playgrounds, lakes and low-head dams.

(14) Hospitals and health centers.

(15) Buildings and facilities for private, nonprofit, nonsectarian secondary schools, colleges and universities, State-related universities and community colleges, which are determined by the authority to be eligible educational institutions, provided that such buildings and facilities shall have been approved by resolution or ordinance adopted by the governing body of the municipality or municipalities organizing the authority and that the approval does not obligate the taxing power of the governing body in any way.

(16) Motor buses for public use, when such motor buses are to be used within any municipality, and subways.

(17) Industrial development projects, including, but not limited to, projects to retain or develop existing industries and the development of new industries, the development and administration of business improvements and administrative services related thereto.

(18) Storm water [management planning and projects.] planning, management and implementation as defined in the articles of incorporation by the governing body. Authorities, existing as of the effective date of this paragraph, already operating storm water controls as part of a combined sewer system, sanitary sewer system or flood control project may continue to operate those projects.

(b) Limitations.--This section is subject to the following limitations:

(1) An authority created by a school district or school districts shall have the power only to acquire, hold, construct, improve, maintain, operate and lease public school buildings and other school projects acquired, constructed or improved for public school purposes.

(2) The purpose and intent of this chapter being to benefit the people of the Commonwealth by, among other things, increasing their commerce, health, safety and prosperity and not to unnecessarily burden or interfere with existing business by the establishment of competitive enterprises; none of the powers granted by this chapter shall be exercised in the construction, financing, improvement, maintenance, extension or operation of any project or projects or providing financing for insurance reserves which in whole or in part shall duplicate or compete with existing enterprises serving substantially the same purposes. This limitation shall not apply to the exercise of the powers granted under this section:

(i) for facilities and equipment for the collection, removal or disposal of ashes, garbage, rubbish and other refuse materials by incineration, landfill or other methods if each municipality organizing or intending to use the facilities of an authority having such powers shall declare by resolution or ordinance that it is desirable for the health and safety of the people of such municipality that it use the facilities of the authority and state if any contract between such municipality and any other person, firm or corporation for the collection, removal or disposal of ashes, garbage, rubbish and other refuse material has by its terms expired or is terminable at the option of the municipality or will expire within six months from the date such ordinance becomes effective;

(ii) for industrial development projects if the authority does not develop industrial projects which will compete with existing industries;

(iii) for authorities created for the purpose of providing business improvements and administrative services if each municipality organizing an authority for such a project shall declare by resolution or ordinance that it is desirable for the entire local government unit to improve the business district;

(iv) to hospital projects or health centers to be leased to or financed with loans to public hospitals, nonprofit corporation health centers or nonprofit hospital corporations serving the public or to school building projects and facilities to be leased to or financed with loans to private, nonprofit, nonsectarian secondary schools, colleges and universities, State-related universities and community colleges or to facilities, as limited under the provisions of this section, to produce steam or to generate electric power if each municipality organizing an authority for such a project shall declare by resolution or ordinance that it is desirable for the health, safety and welfare of the people in the area served by such facilities to have such facilities provided by or financed through an authority;

(v) to provide financing for insurance reserves if each municipality or authority intending to use any proceeds thereof shall declare by resolution or ordinance that it is desirable for the health, safety and welfare of the people in such local government unit or served by such authority; or

(vi) to projects for financing working capital.

(3) It is the intent of this chapter in specifying and defining the authorized purposes and projects of an authority to permit the authority to benefit the people of this Commonwealth by, among other things, increasing their commerce, health, safety and prosperity while not unnecessarily burdening or interfering with any municipality which has not incorporated or joined that authority. Therefore, notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, an authority shall not have as its purpose and shall not undertake as a project solely for revenue-producing purposes the acquiring of buildings, facilities or tracts of land which in the case of an authority incorporated or joined by a county or counties are located either within or outside the boundaries of the county or counties and in the case of all other authorities are located outside the boundaries of the municipality or municipalities that incorporated or joined the authority unless either:

(i) the governing body of each municipality in which the project will be undertaken has by resolution evidenced its approval; or

(ii) in cases where the property acquired is not subject to tax abatement, the authority covenants and agrees with each municipality in which the authority will acquire real property as part of the project either to make annual payments in lieu of real estate taxes and special assessments for amounts and time periods specified in the agreement or to pay annually the amount of real estate taxes and special assessments which would be payable if the real property so acquired were fully taxable and subject to special assessments.