SB 1139 — AN ACT CONCERNING THE METROPOLITAN DISTRICT OF HARTFORD COUNTY.

Bonds of the district issued under the provisions of sections 2 and 13 of number 511 of the special acts of 1929, as amended, and sections 2 and 4 of special act 90-27, as amended by public act 93-380 and this section, are declared to be issued for an essential public and governmental purpose.

In anticipation of the sale of such bonds the district may issue sSB1139 / File No.

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515 negotiable bond anticipation notes and may renew the same from time to time, but the maximum maturity of any such note including renewals thereof, shall not exceed five years from the date of issue of the original note.

Such notes shall be paid from any revenues of the district available therefor and not otherwise pledged, or from the proceeds of sale of the bonds of the district in anticipation of which they were issued.

Such notes and the resolution or resolutions authorizing the same may contain any provisions, conditions or limitations which a bond resolution of the district may contain.

Sec.

4.

Subsection (c) of section 2-90 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2023):

(c) Said auditors shall audit, on a biennial basis if deemed most economical and efficient, or as frequently as they deem necessary, the books and accounts, records of operations and activities, systems and data of each officer, department, commission, board and court of the state government, all institutions supported by the state and all public and quasi-public bodies, politic and corporate, created by public or special act of the General Assembly and not required to be audited or subject to reporting requirements, under the provisions of chapter 111, except that said auditors shall, on an annual basis, or as frequently as they deem necessary, audit the books and accounts of the Metropolitan District of Hartford County.

Each such audit may include an examination of any relevant information concerning the department, commission, board or court of state government being audited that is in the possession or control of a private entity that has a contract with such department, commission, board or court, and such information shall be provided upon demand in a format prescribed by the auditors at nocost to the auditors or the department, commission, board or court.

Each such audit may include an examination of performance in order to determine effectiveness in achieving expressed legislative purposes.

The auditors shall report their findings and recommendations to the Governor, the State Comptroller and the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to appropriations and the budgets of state agencies.

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515 Sec.

5.

Section 7-391 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2023):

When used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires, the following terms shall have the meanings herein specified:

"Secretary" means the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management;

"municipality" includes each town, consolidated town and city, consolidated town and borough, city and borough;

"audited agency" includes each district, as defined in section 7-324, or other municipal utility, [the Metropolitan District of Hartford County], each regional council of governments, any other political subdivision of similar character which is created and any other agency created or designated by a municipality to act for such municipality whose annual receipts from all sources exceed one million dollars, excluding the Metropolitan District of Hartford County;

"reporting agency" includes each district, as defined in section 7-324, or other municipal utility, each regional council of governments, any other political subdivision of similar character which is created and any other agency created or designated by a municipality to act for such municipality whose annual receipts from all sources do not exceed one million dollars;

"appointing authority" means the legislative body of a municipality or the board, committee or other governing body of such audited agency, except in any town where the authority to adopt a budget rests with a town meeting or a representative town meeting "appointing authority"means the board of finance or other board, committee or body charged with preparing the budget, or in a town that has no board of finance or other such board, committee or body, means the board of selectmen or the town council;

"audit report" means the report of the independent auditor and the annual financial statements of the municipality or audited agency;

"independent auditor" means a public accountant who is licensed to practice in the state of Connecticut and who meets the independence standards included in generally accepted government auditing standards;

"publicaccountant" meansanindividual who meets standards included in generally accepted government auditing standards for personnel performing government audits and the licensing requirements of the State Board of Accountancy;

"receipts" sSB1139 / File No.

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515 means amounts accrued or received by a municipality, audited agency or reporting agency and reportable as revenues in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;

"municipal utility" means every Connecticut municipality or department or agency thereof, or Connecticut district, manufacturing, selling or distributing gas or electricity to be used for light, heat or power or water.

Sec.

6.

(Effective July 1, 2023) (a) There is established a task force to examine the organization and operations of the Metropolitan District of Hartford County.

The task force's examination shall include, but not be limited to, a review of the (1) district's charter provisions and recommendations for revisions to such provisions, and (2) feasibility, advantages and disadvantages of permitting members of the district's board of commissioners appointed from nonmember municipalities to vote with regard to the approval of rates for the use of water established by the water bureau appointed by such board.

(b) The task force shall consist of the following members:

(1) One appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives, who is a member of the administrative staff of the Capitol Region Council of Governments;

(2) One appointed by the president pro tempore of the Senate, who is a representative of an organization that advocates for environmental protection and conservation;

(3) One appointed by the minority leader of the House of Representatives, who is an officer of an engineering or consulting firm involved in infrastructure improvements to the wastewater system of the Metropolitan District of Hartford County to achieve the goals of the federal Clean Water Act, 33 USC 1251 et seq.;

(4) One appointed by the minority leader of the Senate, who is an officer of an investor-owned public water supply company operating in the state;

(5) The Independent Consumer Advocate, selected pursuant to sSB1139 / File No.

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515 section 7-334a of the general statutes;

(6) The Consumer Counsel, appointed pursuant to section 16-2a of the general statutes, or the counsel's designee;

(7) The chairperson of the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority, elected pursuant to section 16-2 of the general statutes, or the chairperson's designee;

(8) One from the city of Hartford, appointed by the mayor thereof;

(9) One from the city of East Hartford, appointed by the mayor thereof;

(10) One from the town of Wethersfield, appointed by the town manager thereof;

(11) One from the town of Newington, appointed by the town manager thereof;

(12) One from the town of Windsor, appointed by the town manager thereof;

(13) One from the town of West Hartford, appointed by the mayor thereof;

(14) One from the town of Bloomfield, appointed by the town manager thereof;

(15) One from the town of Rocky Hill, appointed by the town manager thereof;

(16) One from the town of Glastonbury, appointed by the town manager thereof;

(17) One from the town of East Granby, appointed by the first selectman thereof;

(18) One from the town of South Windsor, appointed by the town manager thereof;

and sSB1139 / File No.

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515 (19) One from the town of Farmington, appointed by the town manager thereof.

(c) All initial appointments to the task force shall be made not later thanthirty daysafter theeffective date ofthis section.Any vacancy shall be filled by the appointing authority.

(d) The Independent Consumer Advocate shall serve as chairperson of the task force and shall schedule the first meeting of the task force, which shall be held not later than sixty days after the effective date of this section.

(e) The administrative staff of the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to planning and development shall serve as administrative staff of the task force.

(f) Not later than January 1, 2025, the task force shall submit a report on its examination to the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to planning and development, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a of the general statutes.

The task force shall terminate on the date that it submits such report or January 1, 2025, whichever is later.

Sec.

7.

(Effective July 1, 2023) Not later than January 1, 2025, the board of commissioners of the Metropolitan District of Hartford County shall adopt, administer and enforce the model code of ethics for municipalities and special districts developed by the State Ethics Commission, pursuant to public act 94-172, and as revised from time to time by the Office of State Ethics.

Section 1 OctoberJuly 1, 2023 8-28Number Statement511 of Purpose:the special acts of 1929, Sec.

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515 Sec.

4 July 1, 2023 2-90(c) Sec.

5 July 1, 2023 7-391 Sec.

6 July 1, 2023 New section Sec.

7 July 1, 2023 New section PD Joint Favorable Subst.

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515 The following Fiscal Impact Statement and Bill Analysis are prepared for the benefit of the members of the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and explanation and do not represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose.

In general, fiscal impacts are based upon a variety of informational sources, including the analyst’s professional knowledge.

Whenever applicable, agency data is consulted as part of the analysis, however final products do not necessarily reflect an assessment from any specific department.

OFA Fiscal Note State Impact:

Agency Affected Fund-Effect FY 24 $ FY 25 $ Auditors GF - Cost 76,505 to 78,336 to 306,020 313,346 State Comptroller - Fringe GF - Cost 31,368 to 32,152 to Benefits1 125,471 128,608 Note:

GF=General Fund Municipal Impact:

None Explanation The bill requires the Metropolitan District of Hartford (MDC) to be annually audited by the Auditors of Public Accounts (APA) resulting in a cost of $76,505 to $306,020 in FY 24 and $78,336 to $313,346 in FY 25, with associated fringe benefit costs of $31,368 to $125,471 in FY 24 and $32,152 to $128,608 in FY 25.

To meet the requirements of the bill the APA will have to hire between one to four new auditors depending on the types of audits required.

2 If only state compliance audits are required then the APA will need one new auditor, but if compliance and additional audits (e.g.

financial and federal compliance audits) are required then up to four new auditors are needed.

The bill also establishes a task force to examine the organization and 1The fringe benefit costs for most state employees are budgeted centrally in accounts administered by the Comptroller.

The estimated active employee fringe benefit cost associated with most personnel changes is 42.82% of payroll in FY 24.

2The bill doesn't specify what types of audits will be required.

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515 operations of MDC resulting in no fiscal impact to the state because the task force has the expertise to meet the requirements of the bill.

The Out Years The annualized ongoing fiscal impact identified above would continue into the future subject to the types of audits required.

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515 OLR Bill Analysis sSB 1139 AN ACT CONCERNING THE METROPOLITAN DISTRICT OF HARTFORD COUNTY.

SUMMARY This bill requires the Metropolitan District of Hartford County (MDC) to be annually audited by the state auditors, rather than independent auditors, and to adopt the State Ethics Commission’s model ethics codes.

The bill also creates a task force to study the MDC charter and whether nonmember municipalities should be allowed to vote in MDC board meetings to approve proposed water-use rates (see BACKGROUND).

It requires the task force to report its findings to the Planning and Development Committee by January 1, 2025.

The bill also makes conforming changes to the MDC’s charter and state law.

EFFECTIVE DATE:

July 1, 2023 AUDIT OF ACCOUNTS In Municipal Charter and Auditing Requirements (§§ 1-3 & 5) The bill amends MDC’s charter to require that the state auditors annually audit the district’s accounts.

The current charter requires the MDC board to have the district’s accounts audited.

The bill correspondingly amends the charter to make the state auditors, rather than MDC, responsible for submitting a copy of the audit to the Office of Fiscal Analysis.

Current law also requires MDC to annually hire an independent auditor and comply with the law’s auditing requirements for sSB1139 / File No.

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515 municipalities and other audited agencies (CGS § 7-392).

The bill specifically excludes MDC from the entities that are subject to the municipal auditing law’s requirements.

State Auditor Requirements (§ 4) The bill adds auditing the MDC’s books and accounts to the state auditors’ responsibilities and requires it do so annually, or as frequently as they deem necessary.

As under existing law for their audits of other entities, the audit may include an examination of (1) any relevant information in an MDC contractor’s possession or control and (2) performance in order to determine effectiveness in achieving expressed legislative purposes.

And, as under existing law, the state auditors must report their findings and recommendations to the governor, state comptroller, and Appropriations Committee.

ETHICS CODE The bill requires the MDC board, by January 1, 2025, to adopt, administer, and enforce the State Ethic Commission’s model code of ethics for municipalities and special districts.

Under current law, MDC directors and employees are not subject to the State Code of Ethics for Public Officials (CGS § 1-79) but are subject to the code of ethics in MDC’s bylaws.

TASK FORCE The bill establishes a task force to examine MDC’s organization and operation.

The task force must at least (1) review MDC’s charter and recommend revisions and (2) evaluate the feasibility, advantages, and disadvantages of allowing the MDC’s nonmember municipalities’ appointees (see BACKGROUND) to vote in board meetings to approve water use rates proposed by the MDC water bureau.

The task force must consist of the MDC independent consumer advocate, the Office of Consumer Counsel consumer counsel or her designee, the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority chairperson or her designee, and the 16 appointed members shown in the table below.

All sSB1139 / File No.

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515 initial task force appointments must be made by July 31, 2023, and any vacancy must be filled by the appointing authority.

Table:

Task Force Appointed Members Appointing Authority Number of Qualifications (if any) Appointments Capitol Region Council of Governments House speaker One administrative staff member Environmental protection and Senate president pro tempore One conservation advocacy organization representative Officer of an engineering or consulting firm involved in MDC wastewater House minority leader One system infrastructure improvements to meet the federal Clean Water Act’s goals Officer of an investor-owned public Senate minority leader One water supply company operating in the state Hartford mayor One None specified East Hartford mayor One None specified Wethersfield town manager One None specified Newington town manager One None specified Windsor town manager One None specified West Hartford mayor One None specified Bloomfield town manager One None specified Rocky Hill town manager One None specified Glastonbury town manager One None specified East Granby first selectman One None specified South Windsor town manager One None specified Farmington town manager One None specified The MDC independent consumer advocate must serve as the task force’s chairperson and schedule and hold its first meeting by August 30, 2023.

The Planning and Development Committee’s administrative staff must serve as the task force’s administrative staff.

The task force terminates when it submits its report or January 1, 2025, whichever is later.

BACKGROUND sSB1139 / File No.

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515 Member and Nonmember Municipality Board Membership MDC member municipalities (Bloomfield, East Hartford, Hartford, Newington, Rocky Hill, West Hartford, Wethersfield, and Windsor) appoint a total of 15 members to the MDC board.

The four MDC nonmember municipalities (Farmington, Glastonbury, East Granby, and South Windsor), portions of which receive drinking water from MDC, appoint four members.

Nonmember appointees are non-voting, ex-officio members.

(The remaining 14 members of the 33-member board are appointed by the governor or General Assembly or are citizen members appointed by the MDC board.) COMMITTEE ACTION Planning and Development Committee Joint Favorable Substitute Yea 21 Nay 0 (03/24/2023) sSB1139 / File No.

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