Bond Rating Continues to Improve

By Rosalind S. Helderman and Nelson Hernandez
Washington Post Staff Writers
Thursday, May 31, 2007

Prince George's officials have reported success from their visit to the bond rating agencies on Wall Street.

On Thursday, County Executive Jack B. Johnson (D) announced that Moody's Investors Service upgraded the county's bond rating from Aa2 to Aa1, the second boost the county has received from Moody's in three years. It is the fourth year in a row that one of the agencies -- the other two are Fitch Ratings and Standard & Poor's -- has boosted the county's rating. County officials claim it's the first time any jurisdiction has seen four consecutive improvements.

The designations are important because counties with higher ratings can borrow money at lower interest rates. Also, the ratings are made by investors after examining economic prospects, so improved rankings indicate confidence about the county's health.

The ranking means the county now has Moody's second-best rating for a government jurisdiction. In granting the improvement, the company's analysts cited Prince George's "strong growth in new office, industrial, and retail investment." They particularly praised the $2 billion National Harbor project, as well as the completion of 350,000 square feet of office space and 222,000 square feet of industrial space in 2006.

"The county's economy remains very strong with increasing income levels and a growing tax base. We expect to continue this economic growth as we continue to expand our commercial and residential tax base," Johnson said.

Revisionist Politics

If at first you don't succeed . . .

It's an old saying that may have been at work last week when County Executive Jack B. Johnson (D) sent a revised letter to the County Council to ask for approval of his proposal to raise the county phone tax by 3 percent.

Johnson called his proposal "the preferred method for funding the school system's budget." He said the tax would provide "a reliable source of ongoing revenue with which to fund major programmatic improvements" for schools. And he said a council idea to possibly use school surplus funds could create an imbalance in future years once the surplus is gone.

But these haven't been Johnson's only words on the topic. A day earlier, his staff unveiled a draft of the same letter to the council during a committee meeting. In that version, Johnson was far more blunt.

He called the tax the "responsible path" for school funding and said it would "not be sound fiscal practice" to use the school surplus in place of the tax.

"In light of our successes in improving the financial position of the county, it would be unwise and unfortunate if the Council were to substitute a temporary fix for a viable ongoing revenue source that can pay for school improvements on a permanent basis," he wrote in the first draft.

Reports from the committee meeting indicate council members were not pleased by the letter, particularly its implications that they were putting school system funding at risk. In strong terms, they urged revisions. Apparently, they got them.

In an interview May 23, Chairman Camille Exum (D-Seat Pleasant) declined to comment on reports that Johnson had felt the tax was the "responsible" path for funding. She indicated in public comments that schools would receive "funding priority" regardless of the fate of the tax.

Johnson spokesman James Keary said formal letters often go through several drafts. "The final version is the actual document," he said.

Personnel Changes

The Department of Environmental Resources officially has a new director. The County Council confirmed Charles W. Wilson this month as director of the department, one of the county's most important. DER oversees permits for all development projects, along with health and safety inspections and environmental management, such as storm water treatment.

Wilson, formerly director of the county's Office of Information Technology and Communications, had been serving as acting director since December.

One other top-level staffing change from county government: On Friday, health department employees were told Gwendolyn T. Clerkley would end her service as the department's second in command as of Monday. According to a letter they received, she will be transferred to another, as of yet unnamed, county agency.

On the schools side, another top lieutenant of Superintendent John E. Deasy has bid farewell.

Shelley Jallow, the chief academic officer for the Prince George's school system, resigned this month, shortly after it became public that she was applying for a job as the superintendent of schools in Camden, N.J.

"My understanding is that she is pursuing that and other positions," Deasy said. "She wants to be a superintendent. I wish her well."

Jallow, who was once the No. 2 academic official in New Orleans, has been with Prince George's since 2004. She follows Creg Williams, another recent hire, who left the system for a superintendent's post in a system near Chicago.

Jallow did not get the job in Camden. According to a report in the Courier-Post of southern New Jersey last week, the Camden school board picked Philadelphia educator Bessie LeFra Young.