West Liberty A+ Bond Rated

Rating Helps WE LEAD Market Area to Potential Employers

Standard and Poor's (S&P) has awarded the bond credit rating of A+ for West Liberty, Iowa.

The 'A+' long-term rating on the city of West Liberty, Iowa's series 2009A general obligation (GO) refunding capital loan notes reflects, in Standard & Poor's Rating Services' opinion, the city's:

• Access to larger employment bases, such as Iowa City and Muscatine;
• Adequate income and wealth levels;
• Very strong reserve levels; and
• Low to moderate overall debt burden.

“The A+ rating from Standard & Poor’s confirmed that our City’s accounting policies and management are fiscally sound.  West Liberty has a low debt threshold and when they have incurred debt, they have done so in a responsible manner, said Karen Lathrop, Executive Director of West Liberty Economic Area Development (We Lead).  “This makes West Liberty very attractive to potential employers.”

Standard & Poor's credit ratings are designed primarily to provide relative rankings among issuers and obligations of overall creditworthiness; the ratings are not measures of absolute default probability. Creditworthiness encompasses likelihood of default, and also includes payment priority, recovery, and credit stability.