Rankin Schools Eye $170M

The Rankin County School Board is planning to ask voters to authorize the issuance of $169.5 million of general obligation bonds.

The board approved holding the referendum last week but a date was not set.

If voters pass the referendum, bond proceeds would be used to make improvements in eight school zones, including the construction of three new schools.

Details about how much of a tax increase would be required to support the bonds were not immediately available, though superintendent Lynn Weathersby told the board last week that the bonds could be sold “without raising the millage rate too much,” according to the Clarion Ledger newspaper.

The school district had $100.4 million of outstanding general obligation bonds and notes as of June 30, 2010, according to the fiscal 2010 financial statement. The GO bonds and notes are rated AA-minus by Standard & Poor’s.

The Rankin County School District is the third-largest in Mississippi. It is located in the central part of the state and serves 19,000 K-12 students in the state capital of Jackson and the surrounding area. Over the last five years, the district’s enrollment has increased by around 2,200 students.

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Mississippi
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