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County asked to provide TEFRA host approval for nonprofit bonds to keep local cancer center operating
Summary
A project representative asked the Covington County Commission to authorize a TEFRA host approval and public hearing so a public finance authority can issue tax-exempt bonds to preserve services at a cancer treatment center at 104 Medical Drive; staff said the county would not be the issuer nor assume financial exposure.
Daniel Moore, a project representative, asked the Covington County Commission to consider a resolution authorizing a TEFRA host approval and a public hearing so a public finance authority can issue tax-exempt bonds to support a cancer treatment center at 104 Medical Drive. "The cancer center located on 104 Medical Drive down here treats about 2,700 treatments a year," Moore said, and he warned that rural cancer care is under pressure: "27 percent of cancer centers have closed in the last 7 years." Moore said the nonprofit bond model would preserve local access to multi-week cancer treatments and "there's no exposure for the county" because the bonds would be publicly issued by the authority.
County staff and commissioners asked clarifying legal and procedural questions about the Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act (TEFRA) process. A presenter explained the 1982 TEFRA requirement that when tax-exempt bonds are issued for a 501(c)(3) project, the local host must receive a record of a public hearing before giving approval. The presenter said the Treasury regulations do not specify which government body must hold the hearing and described two nearby counties (Coffee and Houston) that used telephonic hearings and designated an attorney as the hearing officer.
Commissioners also asked why the county was asked to provide approval rather than the City of Andalusia, since the center sits inside city limits. The presenter replied that the tax code permits either the city or the county to act as host and that the project team contacted counties as part of its transaction process. The presenter named the operator as Mission Oncology and identified Dr. Hajil Patel as currently owning/serving the facility.
No formal action on the request was taken at the meeting. Commissioners asked the presenters to remain after the session so staff could confirm statutory and Treasury-regulation details and provide specific direction before the next meeting. The commission agreed to schedule or accept a record of a public hearing (in person or telephonic) and consider a resolution at a subsequent meeting to provide the required TEFRA host approval.
