Tampa CFO and advisors outline $1.2B+ borrowing capacity, warn of tax‑exempt risk and urge caution

Tampa — The city’s chief financial officer and outside municipal advisors gave a detailed briefing on the city’s current debt profile, near‑term financing plans and theoretical borrowing capacity — and cautioned that federal policy and revenue uncertainty could change the calculus.

Dennis Rojero, the city’s CFO, and municipal advisors from Ford & Associates and Public Resources Advisory Group presented what they described as a conservative plan for potential non‑ad valorem and enterprise issuance. The briefing summarized outstanding principal and projected principal‑and‑interest payments, and showed a potential future issuance plan that staff described as illustrative and not prescriptive.

Key figures presented include roughly $1.37 billion in outstanding principal (across governmental and enterprise funds as of late 2024) and total principal‑plus‑interest obligations that staff showed at about $2.73 billion under current assumptions. The presentation also noted planned project financing requests for 2025–28 that would, under the draft plan, result in additional non‑enterprise borrowing capacity in the high hundreds of millions of dollars if council were to authorize it.

The briefing also flagged two policy risks. Ford & Associates’ Will Reid told council that a proposal in Congress to restrict or eliminate tax‑exempt municipal debt — a financing tool widely used by local governments — has reappeared on the federal policy agenda and could make future borrowing materially more expensive if enacted. "If tax‑exempt financing goes away, those borrowings will become more expensive, which will lead to either reducing the project lists or increasing rates to meet those increased costs," Reid said.

Second, staff noted that some planned capital lines assume proceeds from a voter‑approved Community Investment Tax (CIT) renewal scheduled to begin in late 2026; those projected revenues drive part of the city’s capacity work—staff said they are preparing multiple funding scenarios because the renewal revenues will not begin for nearly two years.

Council members asked many questions showing concern about (a) how much of project budgets rely on reimbursable state or federal grants, (b) whether the city should wait for firm grant payments before bonding, and (c) the advisability of accelerating or pausing some components to reduce exposure to market risk.

Legal counsel explained one near‑term financing matter involving city loans to private affordable‑housing developers: bond counsel said state law requires court validation in some cases where debt benefits private entities more than "insubstantially," and recommended taking a validation action to minimize future legal risk. Counsel said validation would be a separate, two‑to‑three‑month court process before the city finalizes loan documents and bank facilities.

Why it matters: Tampa’s CIP and capital projects depend on a mix of pay‑as‑you‑go funds, grants and borrowed dollars. The city’s triple‑A ratings and borrowing record give it flexibility, but substantial added borrowing increases long‑term interest obligations and leaves the city exposed to changes in federal tax policy, grant timing and revenue forecasts.

Next steps: CFO staff and advisors will return with refined issuance timing, project‑level funding plans, and, where applicable, requests for council reimbursement resolutions and bond approvals once council decides how much new debt to authorize.