CHICAGO (Standard&Poor's) Aug. 2, 2007--The tragic bridge collapse in downtown Minneapolis (AAA/Stable) is not expected to have an impact on the credit quality of either the city or the state of Minnesota (AAA/Stable). The state bears responsibility for maintenance of the bridge, and will also be responsible for rebuilding. As part of the federal highway system, the bridge was built with state and federal transportation dollars. The federal government has already pledged some money for reconstruction. (Listen to the related podcast titled, "How The Minneapolis Bridge Collapse Affects U.S. Transportation Funding And Credit," dated Sept. 3, 2007.) The bridge is part of the state's trunk highway system; bonds sold to fund projects for the system are backed by
