Bangkok--3 May--Standard & Poor's
Standard & Poor's Ratings Services lowered its underlying rating (SPUR) to 'BBB+' from 'A-' on San Bernardino, Calif.'s series 1997A lease revenue refunding bonds, issued by the San Bernardino Joint Powers Financing Authority. The outlook is stable.
"The lowered rating reflects our view of the substantial drop in the city's reserve levels that are a result of declines in both sales and use taxes and property taxes during the past two fiscal years," said Standard & Poor's credit analyst Li Yang. "Should the city's reserve levels rise to good levels, we would consider raising the rating. However, should revenue declines continue during the next two fiscal years, resulting in further reductions to the city's financial reserves, the rating could be lowered further."
We understand the city has no plans for new debt in the intermediate future.
San Bernardino (population 200,000) is approximately 60 miles east of Los Angeles and 55 miles west of Palm Springs. The city is the county seat of San Bernardino County and serves as the location of a California State University campus, with more than 17,000 students and about 3,000 faculty and staff. The county, along with adjacent Riverside County, was one of the fastest-growing in the nation due to relatively affordable single-family housing compared with the City of Los Angeles and Orange County.
RELATED CRITERIA AND RESEARCH
USPF Criteria: Appropriation-Backed Obligations, June 13, 2007
Complete ratings information is available to subscribers of RatingsDirect on the Global Credit Portal at www.globalcreditportal.com. All ratings affected by this rating action can be found on Standard & Poor's public Web site at www.standardandpoors.com. Use the Ratings search box located in the left column.
Media Contact:
Edward Sweeney, New York (1) 212-438-6634,
[email protected]
Analyst Contacts:
Li Yang, San Francisco 1-415-371-5024
Chris Morgan, San Francisco (1) 415-371-5032