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<br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br />Office of the Mayor <br /> <br />NEWS RELEASE <br />November 22, 2010 <br />11 a.m. <br /> <br />South Bend’s bond rating rises again <br />Fitch Ratings affirms AA+, changes outlook to stable <br /> <br />Contact: <br />Mikki Dobski, Director of Communications & Special Projects, 235-5855 or 876-1564 <br /> <br />or Gregg Zientara, City Controller, 235-9216 <br /> <br />For the second time in 2010, a national credit rating agency has affirmed an improved <br />bond rating for the City of South Bend. <br /> <br />Fitch Ratings recently affirmed an AA+ rating on four bonds issued by the City of South <br />Bend’s Redevelopment Authority and revised the City’s rating outlook from negative to <br />stable. (In February, the Standard & Poor’s bond rating service upgraded the City’s bond <br />rating to AA- from A+.) <br /> <br /> “The Outlook revision to Stable from Negative is based upon the City’s prudent response <br />to the challenges presented by the recently implemented, statewide ‘Circuit Breaker’ <br />legislation and its maintenance of sound financial operations despite the dramatic drop in <br />property tax revenues triggered by the law,” according to a statement released by Fitch <br />Ratings. “The City has relied upon a mix of expenditure cuts, along with an increase in <br />various income taxes, to compensate for the revenue shortfall.” <br /> <br />Fitch Ratings also noted that “maintenance of the City’s ample General Fund reserves, <br />despite the challenging revenue environment, is key to the City’s rating.” Other identified <br />factors included “tightened expenditure controls,” “well-maintained” financial <br />operations, diverse employment and tax bases, and projected tax revenue that is sufficient <br />to replace lost property taxes. <br /> <br />The improved bond rating, coupled with a more favorable debt financing market <br />compared with the original issue date, will result in a lower cost for the City to borrow, <br />according to City Controller Gregg Zientara. <br /> <br />