...S&P Global Ratings assigned its '##' long-term rating to Hudson County, N.J.'s series 2019 general obligation (GO) bonds, consisting of the county's series 2019 vocational-technical (vo-tech) school bonds and county college bonds. The outlook is stable. The rating reflects our view of the county's very strong economy, with a growing property tax base and access to the New York City metropolitan statistical area (MSA). In addition, although fiscal 2018 should result in a planned one-time reserve drawdown, we believe the county has historically maintained strong budgetary performance, and we expect management will likely continue to manage the budget accordingly and maintain reserves at levels that we consider, minimally, adequate. The county's very weak debt-and-contingent-liability profile continues to limit the rating due to elevated debt and large pension liabilities. However, we believe management will likely continue to manage debt and fixed costs properly while maintaining balanced...
