S&P Global Ratings raised its long-term rating and underlying rating (SPUR) on Austin, Texas' parity separate-lien electric utility system revenue debt to 'AA' from 'AA-'. At the same time, we assigned our 'AA' rating to the city's series 2017 electric utility system revenue refunding bonds. The outlook is stable. The raised ratings reflect the electric system's very strong financial performance trend as evidenced by its ability to maintain stronger fixed-charge coverage and total available liquidity levels. In particular, based on what we view to be a plausible financial forecast, we expect fixed-charge coverage to be around 1.6x through fiscal 2021 with debt financing roughly half of its capital improvement plan (CIP). We factored into our analysis of projected fixed-charge coverage
