El Campo ISD board approves 2025 bond sale, secures roughly $36 million for construction

At its July 23 regular meeting, the El Campo Independent School District Board of Trustees voted to authorize the issuance, sale and delivery of the district's unlimited tax school building bond series 2025, approving a competitive sale that district advisers said generated roughly $36 million in proceeds to fund construction projects approved in the 2025 bond program.

The board approved an order to issue bonds with the principal amount stated in meeting materials as $35,380,000. District financial adviser Louis Wilkes of US Capital Advisors told trustees that competitive bids produced premium proceeds that raised total available funds to about $36.0 million and that the district planned to close the transaction on Aug. 12. "We will close on August 12," Wilkes said.

Why this matters: the proceeds will be deposited to the district's project fund for the 2025 construction program the board discussed earlier in the meeting, including high school renovations and projects at Hutchins. Wilkes and bond counsel said the sale was executed with a favorable number of bidders and a strong credit profile, which reduces borrowing cost relative to recent local sales.

What trustees heard and approved - Bond counsel presented an order authorizing the issuance, sale and delivery of El Campo ISD's unlimited tax school building bonds, series 2025, and explained the administrative steps that follow board approval, including submission to the Texas Attorney General for approval. - Louis Wilkes, financial adviser with US Capital Advisors, summarized the sale: the district received 10 competitive bids, saw true interest cost (TIC) in a narrow band the adviser described as roughly 4.78% to 4.84%, and received a bid from Truist Securities selected as the winning bidder. - Wilkes said the sale produced a premium that allowed the district to reduce the par amount sold while still delivering about $36 million to the project fund. He also outlined expected uses of proceeds, cost-of-issuance deductions and a small leftover amount expected to be returned to the district's debt service fund.

Key financing details reported to the board (as described in the meeting) - Principal amount shown in the board materials: $35,380,000. - Total proceeds including premium: roughly $36.0 million (the advisers described the project fund receiving $36,000,000). - Competitive bids received: 10 bidders. - Adviser-reported TIC range: about 4.78% to 4.84% (adviser provided a more precise TIC figure in materials shown to trustees). - Credit: Standard & Poor's underlying rating A+ with a triple-A rating via the Permanent School Fund bond guarantee, per the materials Wilkes reviewed with trustees. - Capitalized interest at closing (reported figure): approximately $14,007.41 due Aug. 15 (Wilkes said an interest payment of $14,007.41 would be deposited at closing). Wilkes also referenced roughly $14,740 in capitalized interest in the packet materials. - Underwriter discount reported in the sale materials: $49,008.71. - Cost of issuance: budgeted; Wilkes said any small remainder (he estimated $6,000'$8,000) would be returned to the district's debt service fund. - Closing date: Aug. 12; sale still requires Attorney General approval before final closing.

Board action Board member Mister Canel moved to approve the order authorizing issuance, sale and delivery of the bonds; Miss Hobbits seconded. The board approved the order; the meeting record states the motion "carries unanimously." The motion text as read at the meeting was: "approve an order authorizing the issuance sale and delivery of El Campo Independent School District unlimited tax school bond series 2025."

Next steps and context After the board vote, bond counsel and the district's financial adviser said the district will submit final documents to the Texas Attorney General for review and proceed to closing on Aug. 12 if AG approval is received. Wilkes told trustees the district sold the bonds in the first of three planned tranches tied to the $80 million voter authorization passed in May and that later tranches may be sold as market conditions permit.

No additional board action related to the bond sale was announced coming out of the meeting's closed session.

Ending note Trustees received detailed sale documents at the meeting and were invited to review the full preliminary official statement and related materials circulated by the district's advisers prior to closing.