2006 Credit Rating for Essex County

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County of Essex Office of the Director of Corporate Services I Treasurer Administrative Report To: Warden Santos and Members of County Council From: Robert J. Maisonville Director of Corporate Services I Treasurer Subject: County of Essex - Credit Rating Date: January 17, 2007 Report: 2007 -R02-FIN-0117 -RM Purpose To report the results of the County of Essex credit rating review conducted by Standard & Poor's (S&P) dated January 8, 2007. Background To independently verify the Corporation's financial health and stability and to facilitate the successful and cost effective marketing of County of Essex debentures (including lower tier), Standard & Poor's (S&P) was engaged to conduct an evaluation of the credit quality of County of Essex debt. Recently, representatives of S&P visited Essex County. The purpose of the visit was to obtain first-hand information regarding the political, administrative and financial stewardship of the County, to review the Corporation's physical asset management practices, reserve strategy, budget performance, to observe residential, commercial and industrial development activity, to conduct informal discussions regarding the strengths, weaknesses and diversity of the local economy, to examine the relative strength of local municipalities, and to solicit administrative opinions regarding future challenges and opportunities, particularly regarding the management of municipal infrastructure. Following the visit, a number of teleconferences were conducted between S&P representatives and the Director of Corporate Services, in an effort to provide additional information and insight regarding financial stewardship issues, regional growth and service delivery statistics. Ratina Opinion As a result of their review, Standard and Poor's has reaffirmed the County's credit rating at AA- with a Stable outlook.