Va. Code Ann. tit. 3.2, ch. 31.1

in effect

Va. Code Ann. § 3.2-3112 Definitions

As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Authority" means the Virginia Resources Authority created in Chapter 21 (§ 62.1-197 et seq.) of Title 62.1. "Commission" means the Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission created pursuant to § 3.2-3101 . "Cost," as applied to any project financed under the provisions of this chapter, means the total of all costs incurred by the local government as reasonable and necessary for carrying out all works and undertakings necessary or incident to the accomplishment of any project. It includes, without limitation, all necessary developmental, planning, and feasibility studies, surveys, plans, and specifications; architectural, engineering, financial, legal, or other special services; the cost of acquisition of land and any buildings and improvements thereon, including the discharge of any obligations of the sellers of such land, buildings, or improvements; site preparation and development, including demolition or removal of existing structures; construction and reconstruction; labor; materials, machinery, and equipment; the reasonable costs of financing incurred by the local government in the course of the development of the project; carrying charges incurred before the project is placed in service; interest on funds borrowed to finance the project to a date subsequent to the estimated date the project is to be placed in service; necessary expenses incurred in connection with placing the project in service; the funding of accounts and reserves that the Authority may require; and the cost of other items that the Authority determines to be reasonable and necessary. "Endowment" means the Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Endowment as established in § 3.2-3104 . "Equity" means any contribution to a project other than debt financing, including a federal, state, or local grant, except that the grant shall not be a Commission grant. "Fund" means the Virginia Tobacco Region Revolving Fund created by this chapter. "Local government" means any county, city, town, municipal corporation, authority, district, commission, or political subdivision created by the General Assembly or pursuant to the Constitution of Virginia or laws of the Commonwealth, or any combination of any two or more of the foregoing, located in any of the tobacco-dependent communities in the Southside and Southwest regions of Virginia. "Project" means the same as that term is defined in § 62.1-199 and any other proposal recommended for evaluation and disbursement by the Commission and credit approved by the Authority, subject to such conditions and policies as agreed to by the Commission and the Authority. Projects other than those defined in § 62.1-199 shall be eligible to borrow from the Fund only in the event that other funding for the project equal to 25 percent of the total cost of the project is available through equity. 2015, cc. 399 , 433 ; 2017, c. 254 .

Va. Code Ann. § 3.2-3113 Creation and management of Virginia Tobacco Region Revolving Fund

A. There shall be set apart as a permanent and perpetual fund, to be known as the Virginia Tobacco Region Revolving Fund, with a sum of up to $50 million made available from (i) the corpus of the taxable portion of the Endowment paid to the Fund per request from the Commission within the limits imposed pursuant to § 3.2-3104 , (ii) sums, if any, appropriated to the Fund by the General Assembly, (iii) all receipts by the Fund from loans made by it to local governments, (iv) all income from the investment of moneys held in the Fund, and (v) any other sums designated for deposit to the Fund from any source public or private, including, without limitation, any federal grants, awards, or other forms of assistance received by the Commonwealth that are eligible for deposit therein under federal law. Transfers from the Endowment to the Fund shall occur as required for loan disbursements. B. The Authority shall administer and manage the Fund and establish the interest rates and repayment terms of such loans as are provided for by this chapter in accordance with a memorandum of agreement with the Commission. In order to carry out the administration and management of the Fund, the Authority, in consultation with the Commission, is granted the power to employ officers, employees, agents, advisers, and consultants, including, without limitation, attorneys, financial advisers, engineers and other technical advisers, and public accountants, and, the provisions of any other law to the contrary notwithstanding, to determine their duties and compensation without the approval of any other agency or instrumentality. The Authority may disburse from the Fund the reasonable costs and expenses it incurs in the administration and management of the Fund and a reasonable fee to be approved by the Commission for its management services, but the Authority shall not charge its ordinary expenses to the Fund or the Commission. The Department of the Treasury, as the party holding the Endowment, shall be a party to the memorandum of agreement. Under all circumstances, the Commission shall select the projects eligible for the loans. C. The Commission shall direct the distribution of loans from the Fund to particular local governments. Consistent with this chapter, the Commission shall, after consultation with all interested parties, develop a guidance document governing project eligibility and project priority criteria. 2015, cc. 399 , 433 .

Va. Code Ann. § 3.2-3114 Deposit of money; expenditures; investments

A. All money belonging to the Fund shall be deposited in an account or accounts in banks or trust companies organized under the laws of the Commonwealth, national banking associations located in the Commonwealth, or savings institutions located in the Commonwealth and organized under the laws of the Commonwealth or the United States. The money in these accounts shall be paid by check signed by the Executive Director of the Authority or another officer or employee designated by the Board of Directors of the Authority. All deposits of money shall, if required by the Authority, be secured in a manner determined by the Authority to be prudent, and all banks, trust companies, and savings institutions are authorized to give security for the deposits. B. Money in the Fund shall not be commingled with other money of the Authority. Money in the Fund not needed for immediate use or disbursement may be invested or reinvested by the Authority in obligations or securities that are considered lawful investments for public funds under the laws of the Commonwealth, including the Local Government Investment Pool Act (§ 2.2-4600 et seq.). 2015, cc. 399 , 433 .

Va. Code Ann. § 3.2-3115 Collection of money due the Fund

The Authority is empowered to collect, or to authorize others to collect on its behalf, amounts due to the Fund under any loan to a local government, including, if appropriate, by taking the action required by § 15.2-2659 or 62.1-216.1 to obtain payment of any amounts in default. Proceedings to recover amounts due to the Fund may be instituted by the Authority in the name of the Fund in the appropriate circuit court. 2015, cc. 399 , 433 .

Va. Code Ann. § 3.2-3116 Loans to local governments

A. Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, money in the Fund shall be used solely to make loans to local governments to finance or refinance the cost of any project that has an identifiable revenue stream from which the loan proceeds may be repaid. The local government to which a loan is to be made, the purpose of the loan, the amount of the loan, and the associated identifiable revenue stream shall be designated in writing by the Commission to the Authority following consultation with the Authority. No loan from the Fund shall exceed the total cost of the project to be financed or the outstanding principal amount of the indebtedness to be refinanced plus reasonable financing expenses. B. Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, the Authority shall determine the interest rate and terms and conditions of any loan from the Fund, which may vary between local governments. Each loan shall be evidenced by appropriate bonds or notes of the local government payable to the Fund. The bonds or notes shall have been duly authorized by the local government and executed by its authorized legal representatives. The Authority is authorized to require in connection with any loan from the Fund such documents, instruments, certificates, legal opinions, and other information as it may deem necessary or convenient. C. In addition to any other terms or conditions that the Authority may establish, the Authority may require, as a condition to making any loan from the Fund, that the local government receiving the loan covenant to perform any of the following: 1. Establish and collect rents, rates, fees, and charges to produce revenue sufficient to pay all or a specified portion of (i) the costs of operation, maintenance, replacement, renewal, and repairs of the project; (ii) any outstanding indebtedness incurred for the purposes of the project, including the principal of, premium, if any, and interest on the loan from the Fund to the local government; and (iii) any amounts necessary to create and maintain any required reserve, including any rate stabilization fund deemed necessary or appropriate by the Authority to offset the need, in whole or in part, for future increases in rents, rates, fees, or charges. 2. Create and maintain a special fund or funds for the payment of the principal of, premium, if any, and interest on the loan from the Fund to the local government and any other amounts becoming due under any agreement entered into in connection with the loan, or for the operation, maintenance, repair, or replacement of the project or any portions thereof or other property of the local government, and deposit into any fund or funds amounts sufficient to make any payments on the loan as they become due and payable. 3. Create and maintain other special funds as required by the Authority. 4. Perform other acts otherwise permitted by applicable law to secure payment of the principal of, premium, if any, and interest on the loan from the Fund to the local government and to provide for the remedies of the Fund in the event of any default by the local government in the payment of the loan, including, without limitation, any of the following: a. The procurement of insurance, guarantees, letters of credit and other forms of collateral, security, liquidity arrangements, or credit supports for the loan from any source, public or private, and the payment therefor of premiums, fees, or other charges; b. The combination of one or more projects, or the combination of one or more projects with one or more other undertakings, facilities, utilities, or systems, for the purpose of operations and financing, and the pledging of the revenues from such combined projects, undertakings, facilities, utilities, and systems to secure the loan from the Fund to the local government made in connection with such combination or any part or parts thereof; c. The maintenance, replacement, renewal, and repair of the project; and d. The procurement of casualty and liability insurance. 5. Obtain a review of the accounting and the internal controls from the Auditor of Public Accounts or his legally authorized representative. The Authority may request additional reviews at any time during the term of the loan. In addition, anyone receiving a report in accordance with § 3.2-3109 may request an additional review as set forth in this section. D. Any local government borrowing money from the Fund is authorized to perform any acts, take any actions, adopt any proceedings, and make and carry out any contracts that are contemplated by this chapter. Such contracts need not be identical among all local governments but may be structured as determined by the Authority according to the needs of the contracting local government and the Fund. E. Subject to the rights, if any, of the registered owners of any of the bonds of the Authority, the Authority may consent to and approve any modification in the terms of any loan to any local government. 2015, cc. 399 , 433 .

Va. Code Ann. § 3.2-3117 Pledge of loans to secure bonds of the Authority

A. The Authority is empowered at any time and from time to time to pledge, assign, or transfer from the Fund to banks or trust companies designated by the Authority any or all of the assets of the Fund to be held in trust as security for the payment of the principal of, premium, if any, and interest on any or all of the bonds, as defined in § 62.1-199 , issued to finance any project located in the tobacco-dependent communities in the Southside and Southwest regions of Virginia. The interests of the Fund in any assets so transferred shall be subordinate to the rights of the trustee under the pledge, assignment, or transfer. B. To the extent funds are not available from other sources pledged for such purpose, any of the assets or payments of principal and interest received on the assets pledged, assigned, or transferred or held in trust may be applied by the trustee thereof to the payment of the principal of, premium, if any, and interest on such bonds of the Authority secured thereby, and, if such payments are insufficient for such purpose, the trustee is empowered to sell any or all of such assets and apply the net proceeds from the sale to the payment of the principal of, premium, if any, and interest on such bonds of the Authority. C. Any assets of the Fund pledged, assigned, or transferred in trust as set forth in this section and any payments of principal, interest, or earnings received thereon shall remain part of the Fund but shall be subject to the pledge, assignment, or transfer to secure the bonds of the Authority and shall be held by the trustee to which they are pledged, assigned, or transferred until no longer required for such purpose by the terms of the pledge, assignment, or transfer. 2015, cc. 399 , 433 .

Va. Code Ann. § 3.2-3118 Sale of loans

The Authority is empowered at any time and from time to time to sell, upon such terms and conditions as the Authority shall deem appropriate, any loan, or interest therein, made pursuant to this chapter. The net proceeds of sale remaining after the payment of the costs and expenses of the sale shall be designated for deposit to, and become part of, the Fund. 2015, cc. 399 , 433 .

Va. Code Ann. § 3.2-3119 Powers of the Authority

The Authority is authorized to do any act necessary or convenient to the exercise of the powers granted in this chapter or reasonably implied thereby. 2015, cc. 399 , 433 .

Va. Code Ann. § 3.2-3120 Report to the General Assembly and the Governor

The Commission, in conjunction with the Authority, shall report annually to the General Assembly and the Governor on all loans made from the Fund. 2015, cc. 399 , 433 .

Va. Code Ann. § 3.2-3121 Liberal construction of chapter

The provisions of this chapter shall be liberally construed to the end that its beneficial purposes may be effectuated. Insofar as the provisions of this chapter are inconsistent with the provisions of any other law, general, special, or local, the provisions of this chapter shall be controlling. 2015, cc. 399 , 433 .

Source: Open US Law by Vaquill AI (CC BY 4.0)URL: https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title3.2/chapter31.1/Fetched: 10/16/2026