Fitch Ratings assigned an AA+ rating to Washington County’s 2023 series of public improvement bonds. The AA+ rating keeps borrowing costs low for capital projects and reflects the County’s sound fiscal policies, prudent long-range planning, and robust economy.

In addition, Fitch has affirmed the County’s AA+ Issuer Default Rating (IDR) and the AA+ rating on approximately $152.1 million of outstanding GO bonds. The Rating Outlook is Stable.

On May 23, the County will sell $15.1 million in bonds via a competitive offering. Proceeds from the bonds will be used to pay for various capital projects.

According to the Fitch Ratings analysis:

The ‘AA+’ rating reflects Fitch’s expectation that the county will maintain a high level of financial flexibility through economic cycles supported by its superior level of gap-closing capacity, including a solid level of expenditure control and high independent legal ability to raise revenues. The county’s long-term liability burden, including debt and retiree benefits, is low as a percentage of personal income and is expected to remain low based on manageable debt issuance plans and a practice of fully funding the required pension contributions.

Visit the Fitch Ratings website to read the complete analysis.