For Immediate Release
Monday, 15 May 2000
ALL SC SCHOOL DISTRICTS UPGRADED
Columbia, SC – Today, Standard & Poor’s notified State Treasurer Grady L. Patterson, Jr. that they have upgraded all SC school districts from a double-‘A’ bond rating to a double-‘A’-plus. It will now cost less to borrow money to meet local schools’ needs – meaning local taxpayers will pay less on school district bond issues.
"Our schools can better prepare our children for the new South Carolina economy without overburdening people’s taxes," declared Mr. Patterson.
Standard & Poor’s took note of South Carolina’s "current constitutional and statutory provisions" when upgrading the rating – many of those provisions came during Mr. Patterson’s thirty years as State Treasurer.
"We have a history of smart fiscal management," Mr. Patterson noted. "And that history made Standard & Poor’s comfortable extending a better rating to our local schools. Because we’ve been responsible with folks money in the past, we’ll save money in the future to provide their children with better schools."
Standard & Poor’s also based its decision on South Carolina’s recent rededication to improving the public school system. According to Standard & Poor’s: "the rating upgrade is based on the [state’s] sound legal provisions … and the state’s strong commitment to fund education as evidenced by increasing appropriations."
Mr. Patterson ended by saying: "Our prudent fiscal management and our steadfast dedication to improving the quality of South Carolina schools are paying great dividends today. This is a great day. Our children will soon be learning in 21st century classrooms, preparing for the jobs of the future at a great savings to their community."
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For more information contact:
David A. Adams, 803/734-0380