Sec. 39.0. Background

General Municipal Law, section 109-b authorizes political subdivisions to enter into installment purchase contracts to finance capital improvements and to cause or permit certificates of participation to be issued in connection therewith. Subparagraph (d) of subdivision (3) of that statute requires the State Comptroller to adopt rules “governing the procedure which shall be adhered to when entering into installment purchase contracts or authorizing the execution and delivery of certificates of participation....” This provision further provides that a political subdivision shall not conduct the private sale of certificates of participation without prior approval of the State Comptroller “except as provided in such rules which shall set forth the circumstances under which such approval shall not be required.” This Part is being promulgated in accordance with the requirements of General Municipal Law, section 109-b(3)(d). The primary purposes of these rules are to:

(a) cause a political subdivision to critically evaluate the financing alternatives available to it under section 109-b of the General Municipal Law and the Local Finance Law;

(b) ensure that a political subdivision, when procuring the capital improvements to be financed, complies with the competitive bidding requirements of article 5-a of the General Municipal Law or any other general, special or local law or, if such competitive bidding requirements are not applicable, the policies required to be adopted pursuant to General Municipal Law, section 104-b; and

(c) require a political subdivision to seek competition for financing unless the political subdivision determines that it is in its best interests to conduct a private sale of certificates of participation.