Hays County’s Latest Bond Sale Receives AA Rating, Lower Interest Rate

Hays County Courthouse, San Marcos, TX (July 25, 2019) – The Hays County Commissioners Court heard good news Tuesday from its financial advisor, Dan Wegmiller, Managing Director of Specialized Public Finance, Inc., about the sale of its remaining voter-approved 2016 unlimited road tax bonds.

Wegmiller told the Court that the rating agencies of Standard & Poor and Fitch confirmed the County’s “outstanding” AA bond rating, with both agencies citing the County’s strong management, good financial policies and practices, and strong institutional framework, as well as a strong economy in the area, as some of the reasons for the confirmation.

A formal debt management policy, monthly budget reports, and long-term capital plan were also among the reasons for maintaining the high bond rating.

Wegmiller also noted that the County’s bond issue attracted “two to three times” more investors than it had bonds available.

The total $237.8 million of voter approved bonds sold in 2017 and 2019 at a much lower interest rate – average of 3.21 percent – than the 4-to-4.75-percent voters were told to expect in 2016, which resulted in some $55,241,809 in lower interest costs on the bonds than projected.