ACC’s bond rating improves to AA-

ACC’s bond rating improves to AA-

By Community Impact Newspaper Staff Tuesday, 27 October 2009

AUSTIN — Austin Community College District’s bond rating level improved two levels from A to AA- in the latest ratings by Standard & Poor’s, according to an ACC news release. The AA- rating makes ACC eligible for lower interest rates on the college’s bond issues. “This is a testament to the college’s financial strength, at a time when much of the nation’s economy is in a recession,” said Stephen B. Kinslow, ACC president/CEO. “We are responsibly managing the funds entrusted to us by district taxpayers and students.”

Standard & Poor’s said the upgrade reflects ACC’s consistently strong financial operations, increasing enrollment and a tax base that has grown due to the college’s recent annexation of Round Rock into the district, according to the release.

Standard & Poor’s also gave the AA- rating and stable outlook to the college’s 2009 revenue and refunding bonds, worth nearly $40 million. Upon approval by ACC Board of Trustees, those bonds will be used to help the college “land bank”—the process of seeking land purchase opportunities in areas where the college may grow.