Standard&Poor's Ratings Services assigned its 'AAA' long-term rating to Albuquerque, N.M.'s series 2015A gross receipts tax (GRT) refunding and improvement revenue bonds and 2015B GRT improvement revenue bonds. At the same time, we affirmed our 'AAA' rating on the city's outstanding GRT debt. The outlook is stable. The ratings reflect our view of the city's: Very strong, 10.4x maximum annual debt service (MADS) coverage by pledged state-shared GRT revenue alone; Good, 108% retail sales per capita, reflecting the city's role as the economic center for the region, with strong links to the government, defense-related research, health care, and high-technology sectors; Stabilization in GRT collections since fiscal year 2010; and Strong, 2.25x additional bonds test (ABT) and dependence on
