California State Treasurer Fiona Ma announced the results of the competitively bid sale of $60.89 million of State Public Works Board lease revenue refunding bonds. The sale will result in a savings of $15.7 million to taxpayers.
“With this bond sale we are continuing to keep our focus on the financial well-being of California and on improving our position in the event of any future downturn,” Treasurer Ma said. “By taking advantage of historically low interest rates to refinance existing debts we are once again saving taxpayers money.”
The sale achieved significantly better interest rates than the bonds they refinanced, which were issued in 2006 – 2009. The seven facilities funded from the original bonds included:
- California Men’s Colony Wastewater Collection and Treatment Plant (CDCR)
- California State Prison-Sacramento Psychiatric Services Unit (CDCR)
- Ironwood State Prison Correctional Treatment Center (CDCR)
- Redding Replacement Laboratory (DOJ)
- Salinas Valley State Prison 64 Bed Mental Health Facility (CDCR)
- Santa Barbara Replacement Laboratory (DOJ)
- Santa Rosa Replacement Laboratory (DOJ)
The refunding is expected to save taxpayers $15.7 million over the next 14 years (or $14.4 million on a present value basis).
The State Treasurer, as agent-for-sale, received 11 bids from broker-dealers, with UBS Financial Services, Inc. submitting the winning bid at an All-In True Interest Cost of 1.837 percent.
Earlier this month, Treasurer Ma announced the sale of $2.405 billion of tax-exempt general obligation bonds, which is expected to save taxpayers $690 million over the next 20 years. Since she was sworn in January, 2019, $6.1 billion of general obligation bonds have been refunded, saving taxpayers a total of more than $2.1 billion in the coming decades (or $1.69 billion on a present value basis).
The calendar of all upcoming state bond sales is available at BuyCaliforniaBonds.com.