...Standard & Poor's Ratings Services assigned its 'SP-1+' rating to Houston's series 2015 tax and revenue anticipation notes (TRANs). At the same time, Standard & Poor's affirmed its 'SP-1+' rating on the city's series 2014 TRANs. The rating reflects our view of the city's strong general creditworthiness, liquidity, and 1.45x projected coverage of principal and interest. The series 2015 TRANs are payable from pledged revenues that include general ad valorem taxes and sales-and-use taxes, franchise charges and fees, and other general revenues for fiscal 2016 after payment of the city's fiscal 2016 bond debt service. As with previous short-term borrowings, the city does not have mandated set-aside dates, but the timing of property tax receipts due Feb. 1 of each year allows for early set-asides and an adequate period to ensure full and timely repayment of the notes. For fiscal 2016, officials are projecting maximum end-of-the-month general fund cash flow disbursements of $207 million (not including...
