Contra Costa County received an early New Years present last week when credit rating agency
Standard and Poors upgraded the County's credit rating to the highest possible rating - 'AAA'.
Only a handful of other California counties have this highest rating.
This upgrade shows the public and potential investors that our County is well managed and has the capacity to meet our ongoing financial commitments.
In its favorable analysis,
Standard and Poors stated, "We view the County's management conditions as very strong, with "strong" standard financial practices.....The county also maintains comprehensive debt and investment policies, and has a formal reserve policy to maintain its general fund at minimum 10% of general fund revenues."
What does this higher rating mean? It means that when the County issues bonds in the future, the higher credit rating could save county taxpayers millions of dollars over the life of the bonds.