Section 11-32-9

Section 11-32-9Bonds - Form and execution; sale; obligations; notice.

(a) All bonds issued by the authority shall be signed by the chair, vice chair, or executive director and attested by its secretary or assistant secretary, and the seal of the authority shall be affixed thereto except that a facsimile of the signature of the officers may be printed or otherwise reproduced on any of the bonds in lieu of being manually subscribed on the bonds, a facsimile of the seal of the authority may be printed or otherwise produced on the bonds in lieu of being manually affixed thereto, if the bonds have been manually authenticated by a transfer agent of the bond issue. Delivery of executed bonds shall be valid notwithstanding any changes in officers or in the seal of the authority after the signing and sealing of the bonds. The bonds may be executed and delivered by the authority at any time and from time to time, shall be in the form and denominations and of the tenor and maturities, shall contain the provisions not inconsistent with the provisions of this chapter, and shall bear the fixed or variable rate or rates of interest, payable and evidenced in the manner, as may be provided by resolution of its board. The bonds of the authority may be sold at either public or private sale in the manner and at the price or prices and at the time or times as may be determined by the board to be most advantageous. The principal of and interest on any bonds may thereafter at any time and from time to time be refunded by the issuance of refunding bonds of the authority, which may be sold by the authority at public or private sale at the price or prices as may be determined by its board to be most advantageous, or which may be exchanged for the bonds or other obligations to be refunded. The authority may pay all expenses, premiums, and commissions which its board may deem necessary and advantageous in connection with any financing done by it. All bonds issued by the authority shall be construed to be negotiable instruments although payable solely from a specified source. All obligations created or assumed and all bonds issued or assumed by the authority shall be solely and exclusively an obligation of the authority and shall not create an obligation or debt of any county or municipality except as provided in Section 11-32-13. Any bonds issued by the authority shall be limited or special obligations of the authority payable solely out of the revenues of the authority specified in the proceedings authorizing those bonds, except as provided under Section 11-32-13. The proceedings may provide that the bonds shall be payable solely from one or a combination of the following sources as set forth in a resolution of the board authorizing the issuance of the bonds which shall be subject to the following:



(1) Any tax proceeds appropriated, allocated, or made payable in whole or in part to the authority by or pursuant to any act of the Legislature or pursuant to an ordinance, resolution, or order of the county in which the authority is authorized to furnish public transportation service or any municipality located in the county.



(2) The revenues derived from the operation of all transit systems owned by the authority solely out of the revenues from the operation of any one or more of the systems or parts of the transit system, regardless of the fact that those bonds may have been issued with respect to or for the benefit of only certain particular systems of the authority.



(3) The authority may pledge for the payment of any of its bonds the revenues from which the bonds are payable, and may execute and deliver a trust indenture evidencing any pledge or a mortgage and deed of trust conveying as security for the bonds the transit systems, or any part of any thereof, the revenues or any part of the revenues from which are so pledged. A mortgage and deed of trust or trust indenture made by the authority may contain the agreements as the board may deem advisable respecting the operation and maintenance of the property, and the use of the revenues subject to the mortgage and deed of trust or affected by the trust indenture, and respecting the rights, duties, and remedies of the parties to any instrument and the parties for the benefit of whom the instrument is made; except, that the instrument shall not be subject to foreclosure.



(b)(1) Upon the adoption by the board of any resolution providing for the issuance of bonds, the authority may cause to be published once a week for two consecutive weeks, in a newspaper published or having general circulation in the principal municipality, a notice in substantially the following form, the blanks being properly filled in, at the end of which shall be printed the name and title of either the chair, vice chair, executive director, secretary, or assistant secretary of the authority: "The ______ County Transit Authority, a public corporation under the laws of the State of Alabama, on the _____ day of _____, _____ authorized the issuance of $_____ principal amount of bonds of the public corporation for purposes authorized in the act of the Legislature under which the public corporation was organized. Any action or proceeding questioning the validity of the bonds, or the pledge and the mortgage, deed of trust, trust indenture or resolution to secure the same, or the proceedings authorizing the same, shall be commenced within 30 days after the first publication of this notice."



(2) A newspaper shall be deemed to be published in the principal municipality, within the meaning of this section, if its principal editorial office is located in the principal municipality.



(3) Any action or proceeding in any court to set aside or question the proceedings for the issuance of the bonds referred to in the notice or to contest the validity of any of the bonds, or the validity of any pledge and mortgage, deed of trust, trust indenture, or resolution made for the bonds, shall be commenced within 30 days after the first publication of the notice. After the expiration of that period, no right of action or defense questioning or attacking the validity of the proceedings or of the bonds or the pledge or mortgage, deed of trust, trust indenture, or resolution shall be asserted, nor shall the validity of the proceedings, bonds, pledge, mortgage, deed of trust, trust indenture, or resolution be open to question in any court on any ground whatsoever except in an action commenced within the period.

(Act 2013-380, p. 1389, §9.)