[Adopted by the Legislative Council 7-23-1986 (Ord. No. 63); amended 6-21-1989 ]
A.
The prevailing solid waste disposal practices in the
Town of Newtown and in certain nearby communities could potentially
result in unnecessary environmental damage, waste valuable land and
other resources, and constitute a continuing hazard to the health
and welfare of the citizens thereof, and present technology permits
the conversion of residential and commercial solid waste into commercially
valuable resources, including steam and electricity, in an environmentally
sound manner.
B.
The Town of Newtown has entered into discussions with
the City of Danbury and with the Towns of Bethel, Bridgewater, Brookfield,
New Fairfield, New Milford, Redding and Ridgefield regarding a regional
solution to residential and commercial solid waste management and
disposal, and will pursue such discussions with other cities and towns
as may seek to cooperate for such purposes with the aforementioned
city and towns.
C.
Chapter 103B, §§ 7-273aa to 7-273oo,
of the Connecticut General Statutes, as amended by the provisions
of Public Act No. 85-478, provides for the creation and authorization
of regional resources recovery authorities by the enactment by municipalities
of concurrent ordinances.
D.
It is in the best interest of the Town of Newtown
to cooperate with one or more of the City of Danbury and the Towns
of Bethel, Bridgewater, Brookfield, New Fairfield, New Milford, Redding
and Ridgefield to create a Regional Resources Recovery Authority to
provide a regional solution to the problems of residential and commercial
solid waste management and disposal.
E.
It is in the best interest of the Town of Newtown
that said Regional Resources Recovery Authority have the powers contained
in § 7-273bb of the Connecticut General Statutes, as amended
by Public Act 85-478.
The provisions of Chapter 103B, §§ 7-273aa
to 7-273oo, of the Connecticut General Statutes, as amended by the
provisions of Public Act 85-478, are hereby adopted.
A public body politic and corporate of the state,
to be known as the "Housatonic Resources Recovery Authority" (hereinafter
referred to as the "Authority"), constituting a political subdivision
of the State of Connecticut established and created for the performance
of an essential public and governmental function, is hereby created
for the purposes, charged with the duties and granted the powers provided
in Chapter 103B, §§ 7-273aa to 7-273oo, of the Connecticut
General Statutes, as amended by Public Act 85-478, and Chapters 446d
and 446e of the Connecticut General Statutes, as amended, which Authority
is hereby designated as the Regional Resources Recovery Authority
for the Town of Newtown. The Authority shall be the Regional Resources
Recovery Authority for the Town of Newtown and for such other member
municipalities as shall, by ordinance concurrent herewith, adopt the
provisions of Chapter 103B of the Connecticut General Statutes, as
amended, create the Authority and designate the Authority as the Regional
Resources Recovery Authority, and such other municipalities as shall,
by ordinance and upon such terms and conditions as the Authority may
determine, hereafter become member municipalities of the Authority.
The Authority is established and created for
the purpose of providing solid waste management and disposal services
within the region of the Authority, which shall be the region within
the jurisdiction of all of the member municipalities of the Authority
and which purpose includes providing for the disposal of residential
and commercial solid waste, and the financing, construction and operation
of one or more solid waste disposal facilities for such purpose, and
the delivery of solid waste thereto, including facilities for incineration
of solid waste and production of steam, electricity and other by-products
for sale to public utilities and others.
A.
The membership of the Authority shall consist of one
member from each member municipality of the Authority. Each such member,
including each of the first members of the Authority, shall be appointed
in the manner set forth in the concurrent ordinance adopted by each
member municipality. Members shall serve for terms of three years,
except that the first members of the Authority shall serve terms commencing
July 1, 1986, and terminating as follows: Bethel, June 30, 1987; Bridgewater,
June 30, 1988; Brookfield, June 30, 1989; Danbury, June 30, 1987;
New Fairfield, June 30, 1988; New Milford, June 30, 1989; Newtown,
June 30, 1987; Redding, June 30, 1988, and Ridgefield, June 30, 1989;
provided, however, that members shall continue serve until their successors
are appointed and have qualified. In no event shall the terms of more
than 1/2 of the members expire simultaneously. If, because of the
addition or reduction of the number of member municipalities, the
terms of more than 1/2 of the members would expire simultaneously,
then the terms of a sufficient number of members shall be automatically
extended for a period of one year. Said extensions shall be based
upon the alphabetical order of the member municipalities.
B.
Each member municipality may appoint one alternate
member of the Authority, who shall act in the event of the disability
or absence for any other reason of the member of the municipality.
Said alternate representative shall have a voice at Authority meetings
and vote at Authority meetings if the regular representative from
said municipality is absent from the meeting.
A.
Except in the case of membership termination, the
Authority shall operate with 100 voting units, which shall be assigned
to member municipalities in proportion to each municipality's share
of the total population of all members of the Authority as determined
by the latest decennial federal census of population. There shall
be no fractional votes, and each municipality shall have a minimum
of one vote. The distribution of voting units among members shall
be recomputed upon termination of any member municipality or the admission
of a new member municipality. All actions by the Authority shall require
the affirmative vote of at least 51% of the total voting units present
and voting at a duly called meeting of the Authority at which a quorum
is present.
B.
Members of the Authority holding a majority of the
voting units shall constitute a quorum, provided that no quorum shall
be deemed to exist unless at least 51% of the members of the Authority
shall be present and voting.
C.
In case of membership termination, each member municipality
shall have one vote, and there shall be no vote by voting units.
Members of the Authority shall serve without
compensation but may be reimbursed by the Authority for their necessary
expenses.
Member municipalities may withdraw from the
Authority only after agreeing, in writing, to comply with the terms
and conditions contained in any contracts between such municipality
and the Authority, or the holders of any bonds of the Authority. No
such withdrawal shall relieve such municipality of any liability,
responsibility or obligation incurred by it as a member of the Authority
or as a user of any of the Authority's projects.
This chapter shall be deemed to be concurrent
with such ordinance as shall be enacted by the City of Danbury and
the Towns of Bethel, Bridgewater, Brookfield, New Fairfield, New Milford,
Redding and Ridgefield, which ordinances are not inconsistent in any
material respect with the provisions of this chapter. Said ordinance
shall be deemed concurrent even though said ordinances are not adopted
simultaneously by said municipalities and even though one or more
of said municipalities shall fail to adopt said ordinance.