School Agency Sells

The West Virginia School Building Authority Tuesday closed on the sale of $103.4 million of excess lottery revenue bonds, resulting in substantial funding to improve the state’s public school facilities, state officials said.

The sale represented the first bond issue for ongoing funding of West Virginia’s public school infrastructure, said a news release by Gov. Joe Manchin 3d’s office.

Manchin said he believed the bond ratings and efficient financing structure resulted in an additional $7 million in construction proceeds from the bond sale.

About $28.5 million was sold to retail investors, almost all of whom live in West Virginia, School Building Authority officials said.

The fixed-rate, uninsured debt, was priced Aug. 6 and 7. Maturities in 2009, 2018, and 2028 priced to yield 1.95%, 4.38%, and 5.13%, respectively, according to Thomson Municipal Market Monitor.

The bonds are rated A, A2, and AAA by Fitch Ratings, Moody’s Investors Service, and Standard & Poor’s, respectively.

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