NEW YORK - Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said it has raised its underlying rating on Poway Unified School District Facilities Improvement District No. 2002-1 (SFID), Calif.'s general obligation (GO) bonds outstanding to AA-minus from A-plus.
At the same time, Standard & Poor's assigned its AA-minus rating to the SFID's 2002 Election, Series C GO bonds. The outlook is stable.
"The rating reflects, in our view, significant financial flexibility when factoring in all available reserves," said Standard & Poor's credit analyst Hilary Sutton.
The rating reflects our assessment of the SFID's proximity to the diverse and broad San Diego area economy, with very strong income and extremely strong, in our opinion, wealth levels; moderate average daily attendance (ADA) increases in the past two years, the main driver of the state funding formula; and moderate overall debt burden as a percentage of market value.
The bonds are secured by an unlimited ad valorem tax pledge that is levied within the improvement district. The SFID was created to improve and expand certain of Poway Unified School District's (the district) school facilities and encompasses a total of 65 square miles. Its population is estimated at 89,158.
The district provides kindergarten-grade 12 educational services to a population of about 175,242 in central San Diego County and its 100 square-mile service area includes the City of Poway, sections of the City of San Diego, and unincorporated areas of the county. Year-over-year increases in fiscals 2007 and 2008, of 0.7% and 0.8% respectively, boosted the district's ADA to 32,075. Management projects a continuation of slow growth in the next three years.
The stable outlook reflects the rating agency’s expectation that the district will maintain in its opinion good financial performance and maintenance of healthy reserve levels, despite possible upcoming state budget pressures.
