Chapter 45

AN ACT RELATIVE TO THE SPRINGFIELD CIVIC AND CONVENTION CENTER.

Whereas , The deferred operation of this act would tend to defeat its purpose, which is to construct forthwith the Springfield civic and convention center, therefore it is hereby declared to be an emergency law, necessary for the immediate preservation of the public convenience.

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. Item 1100-7982 of section 1A of chapter 152 of the acts of 1997 is hereby amended by striking out the figure "$48,500,000" and inserting in place thereof the following figure:- $66,000,000.

SECTION 2. Subsection (a) of section 9 of said chapter 152 is hereby amended by striking out, in line 7, the words "and Worcester" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- , Worcester, West Springfield and Chicopee.

SECTION 3. Said subsection (a) of said section 9 of said chapter 152 is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "act", in line 10, the following words:- ; provided, however, that, with respect to the convention center financing fee in the cities of Chicopee and West Springfield, such fee shall take effect on July 1, 2001.

SECTION 4. Subsection (b) of said section 9 of said chapter 152 is hereby amended by striking out, in line 8, the words "and Cambridge" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- , Cambridge, Springfield, Worcester, West Springfield and Chicopee.

SECTION 5. Section 10 of said chapter 152 is hereby further amended by striking out subsection (b), as most recently amended by section 19 of chapter 68 of the acts of 1999, and inserting in place thereof the following 2 subsections:-

(b) Subject to section 13, commencing on the first day of the first full calendar month following 30 days after the effective date of this act, the following receipts, hereinafter referred to, together with investment earnings thereon, as "special receipts", shall be credited to and deposited by the state treasurer in the Convention Center Fund and used in accordance with this section: (i) all receipts from the convention center financing fee imposed by section 9 in the cities of Boston, Cambridge, Springfield, Worcester, West Springfield and Chicopee; (ii) all receipts from the excise imposed by section 3 of chapter 64G of the General Laws and section 22 of chapter 546 of the acts of 1969 upon the transfer of any room in a hotel, motel or other lodging establishment subject to such excise which is located in the Convention Center Finance District; (iii) all receipts from the excise imposed by chapter 64H of the General Laws upon sales at retail by a vendor of meals, beverages and other tangible personal property or services within said Convention Center Finance District at establishments which were first opened for patronage on or after July 1, 1997; (iv) all receipts from the excise imposed by section 3 of said chapter 64G and section 22 of said chapter 546 upon the transfer of any room in a hotel, motel or other lodging establishment subject to such excise which is located in the city of Boston, but outside of said Convention Center Finance District, or in the city of Cambridge, and was first opened for patronage on or after July 1, 1997; (v) all receipts from the excise imposed by said chapter 64H upon sales at retail by a vendor of meals, beverages and other tangible personal property or services within a hotel, motel or other lodging establishment described in clause (iv) of this subsection; (vi) all receipts from the surcharges imposed under subsections (d), (e) and (f) of section 9; (vii), subject to the approval of the collector-treasurer of the city, all amounts recovered by the redevelopment authority and, except as otherwise approved by the secretary of administration and finance, all amounts recovered by the authority and the commonwealth, other than amounts recovered on behalf of the department of environmental protection, on account of claims or the settlement thereof pertaining to the convention center development area or the project, including without limitation for costs of response actions taken or to be taken under chapter 21E of the General Laws; and (viii) earnings on investments of proceeds of bonds and notes issued under authority of sections 11 and 12; provided, however, that with respect to the convention center financing fee imposed in the cities of Chicopee and West Springfield, such fee shall not be effective nor deposited to the Convention Center Fund until July 1, 2001. Notwithstanding section 35J of chapter 10 of the General Laws, amounts described in clauses (i), (ii) and (iv) shall not be included in the computation of the amount to be deposited in the Massachusetts Tourism Fund pursuant to said section 35J.

(b>) Subject to section 13, commencing on July 1, 2001, the following receipts, hereinafter referred to, together with investment earnings thereon, as "special receipts", shall be credited to, and deposited by the state treasurer in the Convention Center Fund and used in accordance with this section: (i) all receipts from the excises imposed by section 3 of chapter 64G of the General Laws and section 22 of chapter 546 of the act 1969 upon the transfer of a room in a hotel, motel or other lodging establishment subject to such excise which is located in the Springfield Civic and Convention Center Finance District and which was first opened for patronage or available for transfer on or after July 1, 2000; (ii) until all bonds and notes issued under section 11 or 12 to pay costs of the Springfield civic and convention center described in section 17 are paid or duly provided for, all receipts from the excise imposed by section 3A of said chapter 64G upon the transfer of a room in a hotel, motel or other lodging establishment subject to such excise which is located in the Springfield Civic and Convention Center Finance District and which was first opened for patronage or available for transfer on or after July 1, 2000; (iii) all receipts from the excise imposed by chapter 64H of the General Laws upon sales at retail by a vendor of meals, beverages and other tangible personal property or services within a hotel, motel or other lodging establishment subject to such excise which is located in said Springfield Civic and Convention Center Finance District and which was first opened for patronage on or after July 1, 2000; and (iv) all receipts from the excise imposed by said chapter 64H upon sales at retail by a vendor of meals, beverages and other tangible personal property or services within the Springfield civic and convention center described in section 17. Notwithstanding section 35J of chapter 10 of the General Laws, amounts described in clause (i) shall not be included in the computation of the amount to be deposited in the Massachusetts Tourism Fund pursuant to said section 35J. For the purposes of this subsection, the term "Springfield Civic and Convention Center Finance District" shall mean the area in the city of Springfield bounded and described as follows:

beginning at the northeasterly intersection of State Street and Dwight Street; thence, westerly along the southerly street line of State Street past Main Street to the southwesterly intersection of State Street and East Columbus Avenue; thence, northerly along the easterly street line of East Columbus Avenue past Court Street and Pynchon Street to the northwesterly intersection of East Columbus Avenue and Boland Way; thence, easterly along the southerly street line of Boland Way past the intersection of Main Street along the southerly street line of Harrison Avenue to the southeasterly intersection of Harrison Avenue and Dwight Street; thence, southeasterly along the westerly street line of Dwight Street past Court Street to the point of beginning.

SECTION 6. Subsection (e) of said section 10 of said chapter 152 is hereby amended by adding the following sentence:- Notwithstanding the foregoing, the convention center financing fees imposed by section 10 in the cities of West Springfield and Chicopee shall terminate when all bonds and notes issued under sections 11 and 12 to pay costs of the Springfield civic and convention center described in section 17 are paid or duly provided for.

SECTION 7. Section 11 of said chapter 152 is hereby amended by striking out, in line 4, the figure "$676,900,000" and inserting in place thereof the following figure:- $694,400,000.

SECTION 8. If the total of the revenues received by the Convention Center Fund pursuant to subsection (b>) of section 10 of chapter 152 of the acts of 1997, and the revenues from the convention center financing fee in the cities of Chicopee and West Springfield, as provided in subsection (b) of said section 10 of said chapter 152, over any 3-year period is insufficient to pay in full the debt service attributable to the additional $17,500,000 in borrowing authorized by section 1 of this act, the amount of the shortfall shall be met by crediting thereto the total of the amounts deposited in the Convention Center Fund in prior fiscal years that are attributable to the convention center financing fee in the cities of West Springfield and Chicopee, as provided in said subsection (b) of said section 10 of said chapter 152, and to the additional special receipts as provided in subsection (b>) of said section 10 of said chapter 152, such as are in excess of the amount necessary to pay the annual debt service for any such prior fiscal year. For the purpose of making a determination as to whether such receipts are sufficient to cover additional debt service, the department of revenue shall separately account for all the receipts and shall annually file a detailed report thereof, together with a comparison of receipts against debt service paid, within 30 days of the end of each fiscal year, with the clerks of the senate and the house of representatives, the senate and house committees on ways and means and the house committee on long-term debt and capital expenditures. If the excess funds are insufficient to pay in full the debt service attributable to the additional $17,500,000 of borrowing authorized under section 1 of this act, the authority shall impose a facility betterment fee of not more than $3.00 on each ticket to each event held at the Springfield civic and convention center. If the facility betterment fee is insufficient to pay in full the debt service attributable to the additional $17,500,000 of borrowing authorized under section 1 of this act, the Springfield parking authority shall impose an administrative parking fee of not more than $3.00 on all parking spaces in commercial parking facilities within the Springfield Civic and Convention Center Finance District and on all parking spaces in parking facilities under the control of the Springfield parking authority, which fees shall be imposed during the 2-hour period before the starting time of an event at the Springfield civic and convention center and which shall be in addition to the fees imposed in subsection (f) of section 9 of said chapter 152. If the total of the excess funds, facility betterment fees and administrative parking fees are insufficient to repay the debt service attributable to the additional $17,500,000 of borrowing authorized by section 1 of this act in any fiscal year, the remaining deficiency shall be paid from the city of Springfield's operating budget for the fiscal year following any fiscal year in which a deficiency occurs. In the event that facility betterment fees or administrative parking fees are imposed pursuant to this section, the department shall file with the clerks of the senate and the house of representatives, the senate and house committees on ways and means and the house committee on long-term debt and capital expenditures a detailed report of all such amounts collected within 30 days of the end of the fiscal year in which the fees are collected. All amounts described in this section shall be paid to the state treasurer and credited to, and deposited by the state treasurer in, the Convention Center Fund.