Session Laws

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

SECTION 1. There is hereby established the Eastern Hampshire Regional Refuse District, a body politic and corporate, hereinafter referred to as the district. Said district shall function as a regional solid waste management district in accordance with sections forty-four A to forty-four L, inclusive, of chapter forty of the General Laws, with the powers provided therein and in accordance with the provisions of the regional agreement adopted by member municipalities of said district. All provisions of said regional agreement are hereby ratified, validated and confirmed, notwithstanding any failure of said regional agreement or its manner of adoption to comply with said chapter forty.

The district is created for the purpose of providing solid waste disposal services for its member municipalities and the residents thereof and for others whom the district may want to contract in accordance with any agreements reached by member municipalities. The district shall be composed of and shall include all of the lands and residents within the towns of Amherst, Belchertown, and Hadley, which, by vote at an annual town meeting, accept the provisions of this act and thereby agree to participate in its creation, and such other municipalities as are subsequently admitted to the district. The municipalities composing the district shall constitute its membership and are herein designated as member municipalities.

SECTION 2. In addition to the powers conferred by statute and the regional agreement, the following provisions shall hereby govern the operation of the district:

(a) the allocated share of district debt of each member municipality shall not be included as "total taxes assessed" for the purposes of the limitation provided by section twenty-one C of chapter fifty-nine of the General Laws;

(b) the allocation of costs under the regional agreement pursuant to the budget provisions thereof shall not be limited by the provisions of section twenty-one C of chapter fifty-nine of the General Laws, but shall be as stated in said regional agreement;

(c) the limitation on the amount of apportionments and the mechanism for increasing said limitation shall be as set out in section 9.3 and section 9.4 of said regional agreement; and,

(d) the maturities of the bonds or notes authorized as provided in the regional agreement may be arranged so that for each issue the annual combined payments of principal and interest payable in each year shall be as nearly equal as practicable in the opinion of the board of supervisors of the district, or arranged to provide for a more rapid amortization of principal, and may be arranged so that the initial annual payment of principal commences not later than one year after regular use of the facilities being financed commences, as projected or determined by said board and project costs to be financed by the issuance of bonds or notes may include interest on such borrowing, including interest on notes issued in anticipation of federal or state aid, for a period of up to six months after the date so projected or determined for commencement of regular use of facilities financed by bonds or notes.

SECTION 3. The regional agreement may be amended in accordance with its terms in any respect permitted by law, notwithstanding any general or specific ratification, validation or confirmation contained in this act.

SECTION 4. This act shall take effect upon its passage.