Colo. Rev. Stat. § 32-22-108, Bonds

(1) The district may issue bonds for any of its corporate purposes. The district shall issue bonds pursuant to a resolution of the board, and bonds shall be payable solely out of all or a specified portion of the revenue of the district as designated by the board.

(2) As provided in the resolution of the board under which bonds are authorized to be issued or as provided in a trust indenture between the district and any commercial bank or trust company having full trust powers, bonds may:

(a) Be executed and delivered by the district at such times;

(b) Be in such form and denominations and include such terms and maturities;

(d) Be in fully registered form or bearer form registrable as to principal or interest or both;

(e) Bear such conversion privileges;

(f) Be payable in such installments and at such times not exceeding forty years from the date thereof;

(g) Be payable at such place or places whether within or without the state;

(h) Bear interest at such rate or rates per annum, which may be fixed or vary according to index, procedure, or formula or as determined by the district or its agents, without regard to any interest rate limitation appearing in any other law of the state;

(i) Be subject to purchase at the option of the holder or the district and be evidenced in such manner;

(j) Be executed by the officers of the district, including the use of one or more facsimile signatures so long as at least one manual signature appears on the bonds, which signatures may be either of an officer of the district or of an agent authenticating the same;

(k) Be in the form of coupon bonds that have attached interest coupons bearing a manual or facsimile signature of an officer of the district; and

(l) Contain any other necessary provisions not inconsistent with this article 22.

(3) Bonds may be sold at public or private sale at any price or prices, in any manner, and at any times as the board may determine, and the board may pay all fees, expenses, and commissions that it deems necessary or advantageous in connection with the sale of bonds. The power to fix the date of sale of bonds, to receive bids or proposals, to award and sell bonds, to fix interest rates, and to take all other action necessary to sell and deliver bonds may be delegated to an officer or agent of the district. Any outstanding bonds may be refunded by the district pursuant to article 56 of title 11. All bonds and any interest coupons applicable to bonds are declared to be negotiable instruments.

(4) The resolution or trust indenture authorizing the issuance of the bonds may pledge all or a portion of the revenue of the district, may contain such provisions for protecting and enforcing the rights and remedies of holders of any of the bonds as the district deems appropriate, may set forth the rights and remedies of the holders of any of the bonds, and may contain provisions that the district deems appropriate for the security of the holders of the bonds, including, but not limited to, provisions for letters of credit, insurance, standby credit agreements, or other forms of credit ensuring timely payment of the bonds, including the redemption price or the purchase price.

(5) Any pledge of revenue or property made by the district or by any person or governmental unit with which the district contracts is valid and binding from the time the pledge is made. The revenue or property so pledged is immediately subject to the lien of the pledge without any physical delivery or further act, and the lien of the pledge is valid and binding against all parties having claims of any kind in tort, contract, or otherwise against the pledging party, irrespective of whether such claiming party has notice of such lien. The instrument by which the pledge is created need not be recorded or filed.

(6) Neither the directors of the board, employees of the district, or any person executing the bonds is liable personally for bonds or subject to any personal liability or accountability by reason of the issuance of bonds.

(7) The district may purchase its bonds out of any available funds and may hold, pledge, cancel, or resell the bonds subject to and in accordance with agreements with the holders of the bonds.

Source: L. 2021: Entire article added, (SB 21-238), ch. 401, p. 2668, � 1, effective June 30.

32-22-109. Taxes, assessments, and multiple-fiscal year borrowing - voter approval required. (1) No action by the district to establish or increase any tax and no action of the governing body of any station area improvement district to establish or increase any tax or any special assessment on real property authorized by this article 22 shall take effect unless it is first submitted, as applicable, to a vote of the registered electors of the district or of the station area improvement district in which the assessment or tax is proposed to be collected. Before submitting a question to establish any district tax to the registered electors of the district, the district shall:

(a) Publish a proposed plan for developing the passenger rail service and a detailed financing plan. The plan for developing the passenger rail service must identify the route and phasing of the passenger rail system to be funded by the tax. The financing plan must identify committed and potential financial partners, including but not limited to the regional transportation district, the federal government, Amtrak, and private partners; and

(b) Adopt a resolution certifying that the district has made every reasonable effort to secure federal funding to support the development, financing, construction, operation, or maintenance of the passenger rail system; and

(2) No action by the district creating a multiple-fiscal year debt or other financial obligation that is subject to section 20 (4)(b) of article X of the state constitution shall take effect unless first submitted to a vote of the registered electors of the district.

(3) (a) Ballot issues proposed to the registered electors as required by subsections (1) and (2) of this section must be submitted in accordance with the requirements of section 20 of article X of the state constitution. The action shall not take effect unless a majority of the registered electors voting on the ballot issue vote to approve the ballot issue.

(b) No later than sixty days before a coordinated or general election, the district must certify to the secretary of state the ballot titles, content, and order of all ballot measures referred to the registered electors of the district by resolution of the board. The content must be certified in English and in any language for which any county within the district must provide a minority language sample ballot, as defined in section 1-5-903 (2). If the district timely certifies ballot content to the secretary of state, the secretary of state must certify the district's ballot content to the county clerk and recorders of all counties wholly or partially included in the district no later than the fifty-seventh day before the election, in accordance with section 1-5-203 (1)(a).

(c) Except for the certification of the ballot order and content by the secretary of state required by subsection (3)(b) of this section, the election must be conducted in substantially the same manner as county elections, and the county clerk and recorder of each county in which the election is conducted shall assist the district in conducting the election. The district shall pay the costs incurred by each county in conducting the election on behalf of the district as provided for in section 1-7-116 (2)(b). No public money of the district may be used to urge or oppose passage of a ballot issue submitted for voter approval as required under this section.

Source: L. 2021: Entire article added, (SB 21-238), ch. 401, p. 2670, � 1, effective June 30. L. 2024: (1)(a) and (3) amended, (HB 24-1012), ch. 126, p. 422, � 5, effective August 7.

32-22-110. District - successor to southwest chief and front range passenger rail commission - additional authority to succeed prior entity - assumption of rights, obligations, and liabilities. (1) The district is the successor to the contractual rights and obligations of the southwest chief and front range passenger rail commission as the commission existed before its authorizing statutes were repealed and the commission was terminated by Senate Bill 21-238, enacted in 2021, and, to the extent permitted by federal law, also is the successor to the commission for the purpose of pursuing pending commission applications for and receiving federal grants.

(2) The district may contract with any existing nonprofit corporation, agency, or other entity organized to evaluate the feasibility of, advocate for, promote, develop, finance, construct, operate, or maintain a passenger rail system to be the successor to the corporation, agency, or other entity. Upon execution of such a contract, the district shall assume all contractual rights, privileges, obligations, and liabilities of the corporation, agency, or other entity under its existing contracts; except that the district may not assume any multiple-fiscal year direct or indirect district debt or other financial obligation whatsoever for which voter approval in advance is required under section 20 (4)(b) of article X of the state constitution unless the corporation, agency, or other entity that originally incurred the debt or financial obligation obtained voter approval before doing so or the district obtains voter approval in advance to assume the debt or financial obligation. The assumption of obligations and liabilities by the district pursuant to this section does not create any new debt or obligation for purposes of the state constitution or the laws of the state.

Source: L. 2021: Entire article added, (SB 21-238), ch. 401, p. 2670, � 1, effective June 30.