Tennessee authorizes bonds for state buildings, roads, and bridges

Tennessee may issue up to $438 million in bonds for listed projects, plus bonds for issuance costs. The $311 million for the Department of Finance and Administration may pay for buildings, equipment, and approved grants to local governments or their agencies. The $127 million for the Department of Transportation may pay for highways, buildings, and bridge repair or replacement. The General Assembly must first appropriate enough money to cover the first year's principal and interest, and the State Funding Board must confirm that the money is available. The board may issue additional bonds for discount and issuance costs, up to 2.5% of the authorized project amounts. The law took effect upon becoming law. Bonds may be issued only after the first-year payment funds are appropriated and confirmed available.

The State Funding Board may issue bond anticipation notes while waiting to issue the authorized bonds. The notes must be issued in anticipation of the bonds authorized by this law. The board must authorize the notes by resolution, which must pledge the state's full faith and credit and tax power to repay them. For a note lasting more than five years, the project must have a principal repayment schedule. The note or related refinancing must be retired by the earlier of 25 years after the original note or 20 years after the project is completed and fully in service. The repayment schedule and final payoff deadline apply when a note or renewal lasts more than five years from the original note's issue date.