NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) Nov. 25, 2008--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services has assigned its 'AA-' rating to Seattle, Wash.'s municipal light and power and improvement and refunding bonds, series 2008. At the same time, Standard&Poor's upgraded the system's (doing business as Seattle City Light [SCL]) parity lien debt outstanding and our underlying ratings to 'AA-' from 'A+'. The outlook is stable. "The upgrade reflects the city's improved debt leverage and improved debt service coverage," said Standard&Poor's credit analyst Peter Murphy. SCL will use approximately $75 million of the bonds to refund existing debt, and the rest for improvements to the electric system, including conservation programs. SCL is a municipally owned electric utility that provides service
