Bob Kurtter, who arrived at Moody's Investors Service in 1991 with a background in government and came to be regarded as "an icon" in public finance, is retiring at the end of the day Wednesday.
Prior to joining Moody's Kurtter spent 18 years working for state and local governments. Among his jobs were stints at the New York State Assembly Ways and Means Committee and at the financial branch of Suffolk County, N.Y., when it was undergoing financial stress. In his earlier roles Kurtter had to balance budgets and answer to voters, giving him a different perspective.
This government background, "to a certain extent, makes me unique at Moody's," Kurtter said in an interview last week.
Over the years at Moody's Kurtter has been the lead analyst for states including New York, California, Illinois, and Michigan. Most recently, he's been a managing director and co-leader of the states group with managing director Tim Blake, who will become the sole leader when Kurtter leaves.
Kurtter's expertise has helped Moody's strengthen its understanding of government credit, said Gail Sussman, Moody's managing director for public finance.
Kurtter always tried to understand states, even when he was not rating them, said John Nixon, former state budget director for Utah and Michigan. Kurtter was one of the few ratings agency people who came to National Association of State Budget Officers conferences, Nixon said.
"From the state side he was not just interested in rating the state but in helping the state get better," Nixon said.
Kurtter is an "outstanding public speaker [who] thinks quickly on his feet," Sussman said. This has made him a valuable asset to reach out to print and other media outlets. Moody's estimates Kurtter's name has appeared about 500 times in The Bond Buyer alone.
"We're going to miss his deep understanding, long tenure and experience in the muni market, and his good judgment," said Ben Watkins, director of Florida's division of bond finance. "The market misses having icons like Bob Kurtter involved in the industry."
For his part, Kurtter said the thing he most enjoyed in his job was working with issuers. He particularly liked working on groundbreaking deals. Among those he mentioned were: New York City's creation of a Transition Finance Authority, the real estate tax increment financing with a New York City general fund backup for the Hudson Yards Development, Florida's Hurricane Catastrophe Fund, and economic recovery bonds in California.
Since he started at Moody's in 1991, Kurtter said he's witnessed a number of changes, even as the fundamental safety of municipal bonds and notes survived.
Since the early 1990s regulations have been enacted affecting issuers, investors and ratings agencies. More complicated municipal credits like swaps and variable rate structures were introduced.
Today's defaults and bankruptcies are events that were largely unheard of in 1991, he said.
At the same time, ratings agency methodologies have become more systematic and thorough, he said.
Yet, the industry's people remain highly professional. And investors still turn to the agencies' ratings and opinions for an informed understanding of risk, he said.
Wednesday is Kurtter's last day at Moody's office. He will officially retire on April 10.
After Moody's, Kurtter plans to spend more time with his friends and family.
