Section 43 - Powers and duties1. Except as otherwise limited by this article and by article five-I of the general municipal law, the Utica transit authority shall have the following powers and duties, in addition to the other powers granted in article five-I of the general municipal law: (a) To investigate transportation services in the municipality or municipalities within its territorial jurisdiction and the means of improving such services;(b) To investigate to determine if there are inadequate and/or substandard transportation services;(c) To publish and disseminate information;(d) To prepare or arrange for preparation of plans for carrying out and operating municipal projects;(e) To construct, reconstruct, improve, maintain or operate, or provide for the construction, reconstruction, improvement, maintenance or operation of any municipal project;(f) To make and execute a contract or contracts for the acquisition by purchase of all or any part of the property, plant and equipment of an existing omnibus facility actually used and useful for the convenience of the public within the Utica transit authority's jurisdiction;(g) To request the municipality or municipalities within the Utica transit authority's jurisdiction for such municipality or municipalities to adopt appropriate local laws to authorize such municipality or municipalities to acquire through eminent domain proceedings all property which the Utica transit authority deems necessary for its purposes which the Utica transit authority is unable to acquire without the use of eminent domain proceedings and to reimburse such municipality or municipalities for all costs and expenses incident to such acquisition;(h) To acquire, hold, clear and improve real property or any interest therein for its corporate purposes;(i) To acquire and hold personal property for its corporate purposes;(j) To enter upon such real property as in the judgment of the Utica transit authority may be necessary for the purpose of making surveys, soundings, borings and examinations of whatever character to accomplish any purpose authorized by this article, the Utica transit authority being liable for actual damage done;(k) To contract for expert technical and professional services;(l) To have jurisdiction and control of each of its projects, with the right and duty to establish and charge fares, fees, rentals, rates and other charges, and to collect revenues therefrom;(m) To sell, exchange, transfer, assign or mortgage any property or an interest therein;(n) In connection with any municipal project to lease or rent any of the Utica transit authority's property or facilities which the Utica transit authority deems advisable;(o) To agree upon and contract with the municipality or municipalities within the Utica transit authority's jurisdiction for the terms and conditions of occupancy or use of any of the streets, roads, highways, avenues, parks or public places of such municipality or municipalities;(p) To petition and appear before local legislative bodies and governmental regulatory agencies to seek authorization to provide new or additional services or facilities, or to modify or terminate existing services or facilities; including permission to provide charter service;(q) To acquire or contract to acquire from any person, firm, corporation or government by subsidy, contribution, gift, grant, grant-in-aid, loan, bequest, devise or purchase any property or any interest therein or financial assistance to be utilized in carrying out any municipal project of the Utica transit authority;(r) To borrow money and to issue bonds and to provide for the rights of the holders thereof;(s) To enter into collective bargaining agreements with labor representatives duly elected or recognized by the employees of the Utica transit authority;(t) To insure or provide for the insurance of the Utica transit authority's property or operations as required by law and also against such other risks as the Utica transit authority may deem advisable;(u) To limit by contract the exercise of any of the Utica transit authority's powers;(v) To invest any funds held in reserves or sinking funds, or any funds not required for immediate disbursement in property or securities in which savings banks may legally invest funds subject to their control;(w) To make and from time to time amend and repeal by-laws, rules and regulations not inconsistent with the provisions of this article for the management and regulation of its affairs and for the regulation of its municipal projects;(x) To conduct examinations and investigations, hear testimony and take proof under oath at public or private hearings on any material matter, require the attendance of witnesses and the production of books and papers and issue commissions for the examination of witnesses who are out of the state, unable to attend, or excused from attendance;(y) To authorize a committee designated by the Utica transit authority consisting of one or more members, or counsel, or any officer or employee to conduct any such investigation or examination, in which case such committee, counsel, officer or employee shall have power to administer oaths, take affidavits and issue subpoenas or commissions;(z) To enter into agreements of cooperation with or for the rendition of service to or from a federal, state or municipal governmental agency;(bb) To have a seal and alter the same at pleasure;(cc) To have perpetual succession;(dd) To make and execute contracts and other instruments necessary or convenient to the exercise of the Utica transit authority's powers;(ee) To conduct operations customarily considered ancillary to rendering transportation services;(ff) To do all things necessary or convenient to carry out the Utica transit authority's powers.(gg)1. In order to effectuate the purposes of this article the authority may acquire, hold, own, lease, establish, construct, effectuate, operate, maintain, renovate, improve, extend or repair any of its facilities through, and cause any one or more of its powers, duties, functions or activities to be exercised or performed by, one or more wholly owned subsidiary corporations of the authority and may transfer to or from any such corporation, or between such corporations, any moneys, real property or other property or the services of any officers, employees or consultants for any of the purposes of this article. The directors or members of each such subsidiary corporation shall be the same persons holding the offices of members of the authority. Each such subsidiary corporation and any of its property, functions and activities shall have all of the privileges, immunities, tax exemptions and other exemptions of the authority and of the authority's property, functions and activities. Each such subsidiary corporation shall be subject to the restrictions and limitations to which the authority may be subject. Each such subsidiary corporation shall be subject to suit in accordance with section sixty-two of this chapter. The employees of any such subsidiary corporation, except those who are also employees of the authority, shall not be deemed employees of the authority.2. If the authority shall determine that one or more of its subsidiary corporations should be in the form of a public benefit corporation, it shall create each such public benefit corporation by executing and filing with the secretary of state a certificate of incorporation, which may be amended from time to time by filing, which shall set forth the name of such public benefit subsidiary corporation, its duration, the location of its principal office, and any or all of the purposes of acquiring, owning, leasing, establishing, constructing, effectuating, operating, maintaining, renovating, improving, extending or repairing one or more facilities of the authority. Each such public benefit subsidiary corporation shall be a body politic and corporate and shall have all those powers vested in the authority by the provisions of this article which the authority shall determine to include in its certificate of incorporation except the power to contract indebtedness.3. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the authority may elect to maintain consolidated records of account for itself and its subsidiary corporations and to report on a consolidated basis with regard to the moneys and activities of the authority and its subsidiary corporations, and the authority shall not be required to keep separate records of account for or to report separately with regard to moneys or activities of any of its subsidiary corporations or of the authority itself apart from its subsidiary corporations or with regard to transfers of property or services between the authority and its subsidiary corporations or between said subsidiary corporations.4. Notwithstanding section one hundred thirteen of the retirement and social security law or any other general, special or local law, the authority or its subsidiary created pursuant to the provisions of this subdivision, shall continue to provide to persons in its employ who were employed by public transportation facilities heretofore acquired by the authority or who have been employed by the authority, the city of Utica or the Utica transit commission prior to and after May twentieth, nineteen hundred seventy, any retirement, disability, death or other benefits provided or required pursuant to any agreement, including an agreement with a labor union of which its employees are members, and the authority or its subsidiary created pursuant to this section, is hereby authorized to retroactively or in the future to make such contributions as may be necessary to provide such benefits pursuant to the provisions of chapter one thousand thirty-eight of the laws of nineteen hundred seventy, and any and all payments heretofore made by the authority in compliance with the terms of any contract between the authority or its predecessors in title, and the Amalgamated Association of Street, Electric and Motor Coach Employees of America, Division 582 of Utica, New York, including the trust agreement between said Division 582 and the Oneida National Bank and Trust Company of Utica, New York, as trustee, originally dated December thirtieth, nineteen hundred fifty-seven, and subsequent amendatory agreements thereof, shall be and hereby are ratified and confirmed.5. Whenever any state, political subdivision, municipality, commission, agency, officer, department, board, division or person is authorized and empowered for any of the purposes of this article to cooperate and enter into agreements with the authority, such state, political subdivision, municipality, commission, agency, officer, department, board, division or person shall have the same authorization and power for any of such purposes to cooperate and enter into agreements with a subsidiary corporation of the authority.2. The Utica transit authority shall file in the office of the commissioner annual reports which shall be open to public inspection. Such reports shall include, in addition to any information which the commissioner may require, a statement with respect to each completed municipal project owned or operated by the Utica transit authority the following data:(a) Cost breakdown of real property acquired for the project;(b) Cost breakdown in appropriate units of facilities acquired for the project;(e) Number or estimated number of persons utilizing the project facility.