TEXT-Fitch affirms DuPage County, Ill. 'AAA' GOs

Wood Guy On a small scale it's like DuPage County Government deciding to re-configure '5-corners', for the convenience of all the new assholes who've bought new homes 35 miles west of where they work, and in the process have utterly fu**ed up my small residential street with traffic from 6:00 am to 9:00 am and again from 3:00 pm to 6:00 pm with unwanted vehicles which belong on Bloomingdale Rd instead, and are endangering the lives of all the residents on my little street, especially children and pets.

I guess I am a FU**ing unreasonable man to those cock-suc**rs. Top News TEXT-Fitch affirms DuPage County, Ill. 'AAA' GOs Fri, Sep 28 13:18 PM EDT Sept 28 - Fitch Ratings has taken the following rating action on DuPage County, Illinois' (the county) bonds: --$161.8 million unlimited tax general obligation (ULTGO) bonds affirmed at 'AAA'; --$47.9 million limited tax general obligation (LTGO) bonds affirmed at 'AAA'. The Rating Outlook is Stable. SECURITY ULTGO bonds are secured by the county's full faith and credit and its ad valorem taxing power, without limitation as to rate or amount. LTGO bonds are secured by an ad valorem tax, subject to limitation as to amount. Pursuant to the counties code, the tax levied to pay bonds issued pursuant to the Courthouse Statute may not exceed 0.05% of the value of all taxable value in the county. Furthermore, pursuant to the Debt Reform Act, the bonds are payable solely from the debt service extension base (the base), which is the amount equal to that portion of the extension for the 1994 levy year that was levied for non-referendum debt service. The county may issue additional bonds payable from the base so long as the total debt service on all debt subject to the limitation does not exceed the base. KEY RATING DRIVERS SUPERIOR SOCIOECONOMIC PROFILE: The county maintains high wealth levels and a low unemployment rate. PROXIMITY TO CHICAGO: Nearby Chicago provides abundant employment opportunities to supplement those offered within the county's deep and diverse local economy. SOUND FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE: The county has consistently generated surpluses, increasing already high fund balance levels. MINIMAL DIRECT DEBT: Direct debt levels are very low, with rapid amortization. Overall debt is also moderate. WEAK PENSION FUNDING: The employee pension plan is notably underfunded, though the overall unfunded liability is manageable. NO RATING DISTINCTION: Fitch makes no rating distinction between the ULTGO and LTGO ratings due to the financial flexibility offered by the county's high reserve levels. CREDIT PROFILE SUBURBAN CHICAGO COUNTY WITH STRONG SOCIOECONOMIC PROFILE DuPage County's central location in the Chicago metropolitan area, superior school districts, and excellent transportation network continue to attract both a highly skilled workforce and vibrant businesses. The county's stable employment base consists of a diverse mix of health care, schools, government research facilities, and corporate headquarters. The county unemployment rate stood at 7.6% as of July 2012, which was well below both the state (9.3%) and national (8.6%) averages. Wealth levels are greatly above state and national averages. County residents are well-educated with 45% achieving higher education versus 29% for the national average. After years of robust growth, the county's assessed value has declined since 2010, and declines are expected to continue for the next few years. Full market value is still noteworthy at $113,154 per capita. The tax base is diverse with the top 10 property taxpayers accounting for less than 2% of total assessed valuation. The county's abundant transportation assets and employment opportunities coupled with its location proximate to Chicago help position the county as a desirable place to live and work. The county is projecting future growth from the 2013 commencement of construction on Western Access, a multi-billion dollar project to make O'Hare Airport more accessible from DuPage County, which makes up the western border of the airport, and other areas west of the airport. The project is expected to last until 2025 and is projected to create 13,000 construction jobs and 65,000 permanent jobs. CONSISTENTLY HEALTHY FINANCIAL FUNDAMENTALS The county has exhibited strong financial margins with consistently elevated general fund balances. High fund balance levels offset potential concerns regarding the county's dependence on an economically sensitive sales tax, which comprises approximately 50% of general fund revenues. The county ended fiscal year 2011 with a $1.7 million general fund operating surplus (1.1% of spending), increasing its unrestricted fund balance (the sum of committed, assigned and unassigned as per GASB 54) to $61.8 million or a high 38.5% of spending. The surplus was driven by a $4.4 million (5.8%) increase in sales tax revenues and active management of expenditures. Income tax revenue also increased $1.4 million as the state partially caught up on delayed remittances of income tax payments. These increases offset a $6 million decline in court fees, fines and forfeitures, largely from a sharp decline in traffic violations. For fiscal year 2012, the county is currently performing slightly better than budget, which was balanced. Sales tax revenue is up 3.6% versus a budgeted 3.5% increase. Expenses have been actively managed through shared services and by shifting health insurance costs to employees. The recently released fiscal year 2013 general fund budget is balanced, assuming a 3% increase in sales tax revenues and a small reduction in headcount. MANAGEABLE DEBT BURDEN The direct debt burden is extremely low at $339 per capita and 0.3% of market value, as the county historically has had few capital improvement needs. Overall debt totals a moderate $3,929 per capita or 3.5% of full market value, primarily consisting of debt for local schools. Principal amortization is rapid with 67% repaid in 10 years. Maximum annual debt service is average at 11% as a percentage of general fund spending. SUBPAR PENSION FUNDING Pensions are provided through a state plan, and the county pays the amount required by the state. Funding is somewhat weak at 57% using a 7% rate of return assumption. After paying slightly below the annual required contribution (ARC) in fiscal years 2010 and 2011 due to a state-authorized pension holiday, the county has returned to paying its full ARC, which is 14% of total expenses. As of December 2011, the county had a $197 million unfunded actuarial accrued pension liability. If the liability were bonded out, the county's direct debt burden would inch up to $547 per capita or 0.4% of market value. The county provides an implicit subsidy for other post-employment benefits that generate a minimal obligation.