DEXTER – The Board of Education of Dexter Community Schools is proud to announce the successful sale of its 2021 Refunding Bonds (Taxable) in the amount of $15,440,000. The 2021 Refunding Bonds are being issued for the purpose of refunding certain outstanding indebtedness of the School District to the State of Michigan under the State of Michigan School Bond Qualification and Loan Program and to pay the costs of issuing the Bonds. The Bonds reduce the repayments to the State of Michigan by a total estimated amount of $1,581,000.
The estimated reduction in repayments is based upon assumptions regarding the District’s taxable value growth rate and the interest rate charged by the Program.
In preparing to sell the 2021 Refunding Bonds the District, working with Baker Tilly Municipal Advisors, LLC, requested that S&P Global Ratings, acting through Standard and Poor’s Financial Services LLC (“S&P”) evaluate the School District’s credit quality. S&P assigned the School District the underlying rating of “AA-” with a stable outlook. The rating agency cited the School District’s extremely strong market value per capita and very strong income levels, good management under the Financial Management Assessment framework, and very strong general fund reserves in their rationale for rating of the School District at this level.
Board of Education Treasurer Dick Lundy had this to say: “Our years of strong financial management, long term planning, and support from the community keep our bond ratings high which results in significant savings for our taxpayers. Kudos and thanks to our CFO, Sharon Raschke, for her great work on this and on our 2017 Bond issue, which has saved our taxpayers more than $56.5 million over the life of the bond financing.”
The School District’s financing was conducted by the Michigan investment banking office of the brokerage firm, Stifel, the financial advising firm, Baker Tilly Municipal Advisors, LLC, and the law firm serving as bond counsel, Miller, Canfield, Paddock and Stone, P.L.C. The School District’s 2021 Refunding Bonds were sold at a true interest cost of 0.64% with a final maturity of 2026 (a repayment term of approximately 5 years).
Brodie Killian, Managing Director with Stifel stated, “Dexter Community Schools’ Bonds were well received by the bond market. We were able to take advantage of current low fixed interest rates that met the goals of the District and resulted in a nice savings that will be passed on to the District Taxpayers.”
