Proposition 2: Exclude Indebtedness for Sewage Facilities

BACKGROUND:

Voters statewide will be asked to extend an existing provision in the New York Constitution, Article VIII, Section 5, Paragraph E, regarding municipal indebtedness resulting from the construction or maintenance of sewer facilities. The amendment was first authorized in 1963 and has been approved a total of six times every 10 years.

Under the state constitution, municipalities have a limit of how much debt can be incurred. Article VIII, Section 4 of the constitution sets the debt limit as a percentage of the five-year average full valuation of taxable property within a municipality. The percentage varies by municipality. With the approval of Amendment 5 in 1963, debt incurred from the construction or improvement of sewage facilities was exempt from this constitutional debt limit.

The new measure was approved by the State Legislature in two consecutive sessions, which is required for a constitutional amendment to be put to voters.

ISSUES:

The New York Constitution limits the debt counties, cities, towns and villages can incur. This debt limit does not include debt for sewage treatment and disposal construction projects. The sewer debt exception expires on Jan. 1, 2024. This amendment extends the sewer debt exception for 10 more years, until Jan. 1, 2034.

The measure asks voters whether municipalities should continue to be allowed to exclude debt incurred from construction or maintenance of sewer facilities. This allows municipalities to borrow more funds than if the sewer costs had to be included in debt subject to the constitutional debt limit.

A “yes” vote supports allowing municipalities to exclude from their constitutional debt limits indebtedness for the construction or reconstruction of sewage facilities for an additional 10 years, up until 2034.

A “no” vote opposes allowing municipalities to exclude from their constitutional debt limits indebtedness for the construction or reconstruction of sewage facilities for an additional 10 years, up until 2034.