Standard&Poor's Ratings Services assigned its 'AAA' long-term rating to Portsmouth, N.H.'s general obligation (GO) capital improvement loan of 2014 bonds, and affirmed its 'AAA' long-term rating and underlying rating (SPUR) on the city's parity debt. The outlook is stable. The GO bonds are secured by the city's unlimited property tax pledge. Bond proceeds will finance various capital improvements. The long-term rating reflects our assessment of the following factors for the city: Very strong budgetary flexibility with a fiscal 2013 available general fund balance of 45.6% of expenditures; Strong budgetary performance, with surpluses for both the general and total governmental funds in fiscal 2013; Very strong economy, which benefits from participation in the broad and diverse Boston-Cambridge-Newton metropolitan statistical
