ANNAPOLIS, Md. (March 27, 2019)—Maryland State Treasurer Nancy K. Kopp announced that the Board of Public Works (BPW), composed of Governor Larry Hogan (represented at the sale by Lieutenant Governor Boyd Rutherford), Treasurer Nancy Kopp, and Comptroller Peter Franchot, completed the sale of $490,000,000 of General Obligation bonds in two bidding groups.
Competitive sales for Bidding Group 1 and Bidding Group 2 of the 2019 First Series Bonds occurred at yesterday's BPW meeting, with the State receiving five bids for the $265,040,000 of Tax-Exempt General Obligation Bonds (Bidding Group 1) and bids from the same five bidders for the $224,960,000 of Tax-Exempt General Obligation Bonds (Bidding Group 2).
In yesterday's competitive sales:
• $265,040,000 in Tax-Exempt Bonds (Bidding Group 1), with maturities from 2022—2029, sold at an all-in true interest cost of 1.787%; the winning bidder was Bank of America Merrill Lynch; and the premium was $53,420,531;
• $224,960,000 in Tax-Exempt Bonds (Bidding Group 2), with maturities from 2030—2034, sold at an all-in true interest cost of 2.713%; the winning bidder was Citigroup Global Markets, Inc.; and the premium was $39,329,370; and
• The all-in true interest cost for the overall sale of the $490,000,000 in Tax-Exempt Bonds was 2.344%.
Treasurer Kopp commented, "This is great news for Maryland. Investors recognize that Maryland's dynamic economy, highly educated workforce, above-average wealth and history of prudent fiscal management make Maryland's bonds the highest quality investment possible. The confidence that investors have in Maryland's stability, combined with the State Treasurer's Office's innovative and carefully managed approach to bond offerings, has resulted in low interest rates that will save Maryland taxpayers millions of dollars. When you consider these savings and the benefit that will be derived from investing $490 million in Maryland's schools, colleges, hospitals, and other vital public projects, yesterday's sale truly was a win—a win for both Maryland residents and our investors."
Maryland is one of only twelve states to hold the AAA rating, the highest possible rating, from all three major bond rating agencies. The AAA rating was recently affirmed by Fitch Ratings, Moody's Investors Service, and S&P Global Ratings in anticipation of this bond sale.
The Maryland State Treasurer's Office expects to conduct another bond sale during the summer of 2019.