Section 21-03-07 - Election required - ExceptionsNo municipality, and no governing board thereof, may issue bonds without being first authorized to do so by a vote equal to sixty percent of all the qualified voters of such municipality voting upon the question of such issue except:
1. As otherwise provided in section 21-03-04.2. The governing body may issue bonds of the municipality for the purpose and within the limitations specified by subdivision e of subsection 1 of section 21-03-06, subdivision g of subsection 2 of section 21-03-06, and subsections 4.1 and 7 of section 21-03-06 without an election.3. The governing body of any municipality may issue bonds of the municipality for the purpose of providing funds to meet its share of the cost of any highway project undertaken under an agreement entered into by the governing body with the United States government, the director of the department of transportation, the board of county commissioners, or any of them, including the cost of any construction, improvement, financing, planning, and acquisition of right of way of a bridge eligible for matching funds, highway routed through the municipality and of any bridges and controlled access facilities thereon and any necessary additional width or capacity of the bridge or roadway thereof greater than that required for federal or state bridge or highway purposes, and of any necessary relaying of utility mains and conduits, curbs and gutters, and the installation of utility service connections and streetlights. The portion of the total cost of the project to be paid by the municipality under the agreement, including all items of cost incurred directly by the municipality and all amounts to be paid by it for work done or contracted for by other parties to the agreement, may not exceed a sum equal to thirty percent of the total cost, including engineering and other incidental costs, of all construction and reconstruction work to be done plus fifty percent of the total cost of all right of way to be acquired in connection therewith. The initial resolution authorizing issuance of bonds under this subsection must be published in the official newspaper of the municipality. Within sixty days after publication, an owner of taxable property within the municipality may file with the auditor or chief fiscal officer of the municipality a written protest against adoption of the resolution. A protest must describe the property that is the subject of the protest. If the governing body finds protests have been signed by the owners of taxable property having an assessed valuation equal to five percent or more of the assessed valuation of all taxable property in the municipality, as most recently finally equalized, all further proceedings under the initial resolution are barred. Nothing herein may be deemed to prevent any municipality from appropriating funds for or financing out of taxes, special assessments, or utility revenues any work incidental to any such project, in the manner and to the extent otherwise permitted by law, and the cost of any work so financed may not be included in computing the portion of the project cost payable by the municipality, within the meaning of this subsection, unless the work is actually called for by the agreement between the municipality and the other governmental agencies involved.4. The governing body of any city may also by resolution adopted by a two-thirds vote authorize and issue general obligation bonds of the city for the purpose of providing funds to pay the cost of any improvement of the types stated below, to the extent that the governing body determines that such cost should be paid by the city and should not be assessed upon property specially benefited thereby; provided that the initial resolution authorizing such bonds must be published in the official newspaper, and any owner of taxable property within the city may, within sixty days after such publication, file with the city auditor a protest against the adoption of the resolution. If the governing body finds such protests to have been signed by the owners of taxable property having an assessed valuation equal to five percent or more of the assessed valuation of all taxable property within the city, as theretofore last finally equalized, all further proceedings under such initial resolution are barred. This procedure is authorized for the financing of the following types of improvements:a. Any street improvement, as defined in subsection 2 of section 40-22-01, to be made in or upon any federal or state highway or any other street designated by ordinance as an arterial street.b. The construction of a bridge, culvert, overpass, or underpass at the intersection of any street with a stream, watercourse, drain, or railway, and the acquisition of any land or easement required for that purpose.c. Any improvement incidental to the carrying out of an urban renewal project, the issuance of bonds for which is authorized by subsection 4 of section 40-58-13. Nothing herein may be deemed to prevent any municipality from appropriating funds for or financing out of taxes, special assessments, or utility revenues any work incidental to any such improvement, in the manner and to the extent otherwise permitted by law.
5. The governing body of any city may also by resolution adopted by a two-thirds vote dedicate the mill levy authorized by section 57-15-42 and may authorize and issue general obligation bonds to be paid by the dedicated levy for the purpose of providing funds for the purchase, construction, reconstruction, or repair of public buildings or fire stations; provided, that the initial resolution authorizing the mill levy dedication and general obligation bonds must be published in the official newspaper, and any owner of taxable property within the city may, within sixty days after publication, file with the city auditor a protest against the adoption of the resolution. Protests must be in writing and must describe the property which is the subject of the protest. If the governing body finds such protests to have been signed by the owners of taxable property having an assessed valuation equal to five percent or more of the assessed valuation of all taxable property within the city, as theretofore last finally equalized, all further proceedings under the initial resolution are barred.6. The governing body of any county may also by resolution adopted by a two-thirds vote dedicate the tax levies authorized by section 57-15-06.6 and subsection 5 of section 57-15-06.7 and may authorize and issue general obligation bonds to be paid by the dedicated levy for the purposes identified under section 57-15-06.6 and subsection 5 of section 57-15-06.7; provided, that the initial resolution authorizing the tax levy dedication and general obligation bonds must be published in the official newspaper, and any owner of taxable property within the county may, within sixty days after publication, file with the county auditor a protest against the adoption of the resolution. Protests must be in writing and must describe the property which is the subject of the protest. If the governing body finds such protests to have been signed by the owners of taxable property having an assessed valuation equal to five percent or more of the assessed valuation of all taxable property within the county, as last finally equalized, all further proceedings under the initial resolution are barred.7. The governing body of any public school district may also by resolution adopted by a two-thirds vote dedicate the tax levies as authorized by section 15.1-09-47, 15.1-09-49, or 57-15-16 and may authorize and issue general obligation bonds to be paid by these dedicated levies for the purpose of providing funds for the purchase, construction, reconstruction, or repair of public school buildings or for the construction or improvement of a project under section 15.1-36-02 or 15.1-36-08. The initial resolution authorizing the tax levy dedication and general obligation bonds must be published in the official newspaper of the school district, and any owner of taxable property within the school district may, within sixty days after publication, file with the business manager of the school district a protest against the adoption of the resolution. Protests must be in writing and must describe the property that is the subject of the protest. If the governing body finds the protests have been signed by the owners of taxable property having an assessed valuation equal to five percent or more of the assessed valuation of all taxable property within the school district, as theretofore last finally equalized, all further proceedings under the initial resolution are barred.8. The governing body of any city having a population of twenty-five thousand persons or more may use the provisions of subsection 3 to provide funds to participate in the cost of any construction, improvement, financing, and planning of any bypass routes, interchanges, or other intersection improvements on a federal or state highway system which is situated in whole or in part outside of the corporate limits of the city; provided, that the governing body thereof shall determine by resolution that the undertaking of such work is in the best interest of the city for the purpose of providing access and relieving congestion or improving traffic flow on municipal streets.9. The governing body of a municipality or other political subdivision, located at least in part within a county that is included within a disaster or emergency executive order or proclamation of the governor under chapter 37-17.1, may by resolution adopted by a two-thirds vote authorize and issue general obligation bonds of the political subdivision without an election for the purpose of providing funds to pay costs associated with the emergency condition. The political subdivision may dedicate and levy taxes for retirement of bonds under this subsection and such levies are not subject to limitations as otherwise provided by law.10. The governing board of any county, city, public school district, park district, or township may by resolution adopted by a two-thirds vote dedicate the tax levy authorized by section 57-15-41 and authorize and issue general obligation bonds to be paid by the dedicated levy for the purpose of providing funds to prepay outstanding special assessments made in accordance with the provisions of title 40 against property owned by the county, city, public school district, park district, or township.11. The governing body of any park district that constitutes a distinct municipality may issue general obligation bonds of the park district for the purpose of providing funds to acquire, lay out, and improve parks, parkways, boulevards, and pleasure drives, and to acquire land for these purposes, but the indebtedness may not at any time exceed one percent of the assessed valuation of the taxable property in the park district. The initial resolution authorizing the issuance of general obligation bonds under this subsection must be published in the official newspaper of the park district, and any owner of taxable property within the park district may, within sixty days after publication, file with the clerk of the park district a protest against the adoption of the resolution. Protests must be in writing and must describe the property that is the subject of the protest. If the governing body finds the protests have been signed by the owners of taxable property having an assessed valuation equal to five percent or more of the assessed valuation of all taxable property within the park district, as last finally equalized, all further proceedings under the initial resolution are barred.Amended by S.L. 2021 , ch. 187( HB 1116 ), § 1, eff. 1/1/2021.Amended by S.L. 2019 , ch. 204( SB 2041 ), § 1, eff. 8/1/2019.Amended by S.L. 2017 , ch. 368( SB 2272 ), § 5, eff. 4/10/2017.Amended by S.L. 2015 , ch. 439( SB 2144 ), § 24, eff. 1/1/2015.