SAN FRANCISCO (Standard&Poor's) May 4, 2012--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services assigned its 'AA+' rating to Seattle, Wash.'s series 2012 water system revenue refunding bonds. At the same time, we affirmed the 'AA+' rating on Seattle's existing water system parity debt. The outlook is stable. "We anticipate that the system will continue to set rates to provide good debt service coverage and sufficient capital funding," said Standard&Poor's credit analyst Robert Hannay. "With the system's low unrestricted cash position, we do not anticipate raising the rating during the next two years. If cash levels or debt service coverage were to fall, we could lower the rating," added Mr. Hannay. The $229 million series 2012 bonds are being issued
