LCSA Receives High Ratings and Stable Outlook from all 3 Rating Agencies

Leesburg –The Loudoun County Sanitation Authority (LCSA) has received a triple A (AAA) rating from Fitch, a AA+ from Standard and Poor’s and an Aa2 from Moody’s rating agencies.

Fitch forecasted a stable outlook for The Authority and cited several key items in their assessment of the rating, including a flexible capital spending plan; strong financial operations; a willingness to raise rates; and a Board-adopted Fund Balance Policy to maintain cash reserves at 2 to 3 times a three year average of total expenses.

Standard and Poor’s AA+ rating for LCSA is one step from the AAA. They also forecasted a stable outlook for the Authority, and cited the items above plus, a service area that supports diverse growth in an affluent County; affordable rates, rate autonomy, a recently adopted multiyear rate increase; and conservative management with multiyear planning in their assessment. Standard and Poor’s discussed increasing LCSA’s rating to a AAA, pending evidence of a stabilized growth rate and successful opening and operation of the Broad Run Water Reclamation Facility (BRWRF).

Moody’s Aa2 rating is two steps from the Aaa. Moody’s is the most conservative of the agencies in rating revenue bonds, and cited all of the same factors above in rating LCSA. Moody’s will also consider a higher rating for LCSA upon growth stabilization and successful opening and operation of the BRWRF.

LCSA focused on Moody’s rating because it is the lowest. However, to put it into perspective, there are only eight combined water and sewer utilities of the 258 national ratings which are rated higher by Moody's than LCSA. This places LCSA in the top 97 percent of all combined utilities nationwide. Based upon Moody’s rating, only one Virginia combined utility, Chesterfield County, is rated above LCSA. 

                                                                           

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