Fitch Corrects Bond Description on Bloomington, Minnesota's $7.835MM ULTGOs

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Fitch Ratings corrects the bond description on the recently rated Bloomington, Minnesota's unlimited tax bonds. The bonds originally named general obligation (GO) permanent improvement revolving fund bonds of 2009, series 43 are now named taxable GO permanent improvement revolving fund bonds of 2009, series 43 (Build America Bonds- Direct Pay). The city chose to issue taxable Build America Bonds because of market conditions. The par amount of about $7.835 million and the rating of 'AAA' with a Stable Outlook remain the same.

The unlimited taxing power of most local government general obligation pledges is the broadest security a U.S. local government can provide to the repayment of its long-term borrowing, and therefore is the best indicator of its overall credit quality. The average local government GO rating is 'AA-' with approximately 56% rated at or above 'AA-' and 7% rated 'BBB+' or below. The relatively high ratings reflect local governments' inherent strengths: the authority to levy property taxes, nonpayment of which can result in property foreclosures; additional taxing power that can include sales, utility, and income taxes; and essentiality of and lack of competition for services provided by local governments. Those with low investment-grade or below-investment-grade ratings generally have a combination of a limited or highly volatile economic base, high levels of long-term liabilities including debt and post-employment benefits, and/or unusually limited financial flexibility. For additional information on these ratings, see U.S. Local Government General Obligation Rating Guidelines dated March 22, 2007.

For further information, see the press release dated Nov. 12, 2009.

Additional information is available at www.fitchratings.com.

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