Hilltop Securities municipal adviser Matt Blaise told the Chariho Regional School Committee Nov. 18 that a conceptual $110 million bond for district capital needs could be structured on a 30-year amortization under conservative market assumptions.

Blaise presented a baseline analysis using a 5% assumed interest rate and showed how Rhode Island Department of Education reimbursement reduces the district's net debt service. Using the district's typical 61% base reimbursement, Blaise said net debt service would be about $2.8 million per year (roughly 39 cents on the dollar of gross debt service); at a 65% reimbursement sensitivity the net annual payment appeared closer to $2.5 million. He explained those figures are estimates tied to market conditions and to the state's reimbursement calculation and that exact rates would be known only when bonds price following legislative approval and a referendum.

Blaise emphasized the bonds would be issued through the Rhode Island Health and Educational Building Corporation to capture reimbursement on the interest portion; that conduit process entails additional board approvals and typically takes about 10 to 12 weeks from preliminary approval to issuance, he said. He also discussed structuring options used by other districts, such as breaking a large project into multiple series or using interest-only or bond-anticipation notes for timing flexibility.

Committee members asked about the district's credit rating, Moody's double-A3 designation and steps that could improve or stress the rating (e.g., changes to unrestricted fund balance, pensions, leverage). Blaise said the rating agency evaluation considers multiple factors and that the reimbursement materially mitigates leverage concerns for Rhode Island districts.

Because bond-language drafting and legislative timing require additional legal and town-council input, the committee did not approve final language at the meeting and agreed to place the item on the December agenda and to coordinate outreach with the member towns.