159-148. Contracts subject to Article; exceptions.

(a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, this Article applies to any contract, agreement, memorandum of understanding, and any other transaction having the force and effect of a contract (other than agreements made in connection with the issuance of revenue bonds, special obligation bonds issued pursuant to Chapter 159I of the General Statutes, or of general obligation bonds additionally secured by a pledge of revenues) made or entered into by a unit of local government (as defined by G.S. 159-7(b) or, in the case of a special obligation bond, as defined in Chapter 159I of the General Statutes), relating to the lease, acquisition, or construction of capital assets, which contract does all of the following:

(1) Extends for five or more years from the date of the contract, including periods that may be added to the original term through the exercise of options to renew or extend.

(2) Obligates the unit to pay sums of money to another, without regard to whether the payee is a party to the contract.

(3) Obligates the unit over the full term of the contract, including periods that may be added to the original term through the exercise of options to renew or extend:

a. For baseball park districts, to at least five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000).

b. For housing authorities, to at least five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) or a sum equal to two thousand dollars ($2,000) per housing unit owned and under active management by the housing authority, whichever is less.

c. For other units, to at least five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) or a sum equal to one-tenth of one percent (1/10 of 1%) of the assessed value of property subject to taxation by the contracting unit, whichever is less.

(4) Obligates the unit, expressly or by implication, to exercise its power to levy taxes either to make payments falling due under the contract, or to pay any judgment entered against the unit as a result of the unit's breach of the contract.

Contingent obligation shall be included in calculating the value of the contract. Several contracts that are all related to the same undertaking shall be deemed a single contract for the purposes of this Article. When several contracts are considered as a single contract, the term shall be that of the contract having the longest term, and the sums to fall due shall be the total of all sums to fall due under all single contracts in the group.

(b) This Article shall not apply to:

(1) Contracts between a unit of local government and the State of North Carolina or the United States of America (or any agency of either) entered into as a condition to the making of grants or loans to the unit of local government.

(2) Contracts for the purchase, lease, or lease with option to purchase of motor vehicles or voting machines.

(3) Loan agreements entered into by a unit of local government pursuant to the North Carolina Solid Waste Management Loan Program, Chapter 159I of the General Statutes.