Treasury, DAS present Oregon debt picture; governor's budget proposes about $2.2 billion in GO bonds and $571 million in lottery bonds

At a March 2025 informational meeting of the Joint Committee on Ways and Means subcommittee on Capital Construction, Oregon State Treasury and the Department of Administrative Services (DAS) presented the state's outstanding debt, credit ratings and debt-capacity forecasts that underlie the governor’s recommended bond package.

The presentations matter because the capacity calculations and interest-rate assumptions determine how much the state can responsibly authorize and issue for capital projects, including housing, university maintenance and state facility upgrades.

Jaime Alvarez, director of debt management at the Oregon State Treasury, told the committee that “in aggregate, we have approximately 12,800,000,000.0 outstanding and this is as of fiscal year end, 2024.” He said general-fund-supported bonds account for roughly $7.7 billion of that total, with about $5.5 billion in general-fund-supported debt and $2.3 billion tied to dedicated funds. Alvarez noted increased use of Article XI‑Q (state-owned property) bonds and continued use of the LIFT housing program as drivers of rising issuance.

Alvarez described the state’s credit profile as very strong and said rating agencies cite sound financial controls, stable budgetary position, growing reserves and…