Albany board backs using SPLOST funds to pay off GPO loan, staff says payoff would cut future interest by about $359,000

The Albany Utility Board on Oct. 9 recommended that the city commission consider using SPLOST revenues to pay off a GPO loan associated with the East–West interceptor project.

Staff told the board they contacted GPO and presented a payoff figure staff reported as roughly $10,000,076 (staff described the figure as the amount provided by GPO and asked that the exact payoff date be confirmed). Staff estimated the city would save about $359,000 in future interest if it repaid the loan early. The proposal would reallocate portions of SPLOST 5, 6 and 7 and use about $615,000 from those accounts to cover part of the payoff, reducing the balance requested in SPLOST 6.

Board members asked for a more detailed written explanation before the item goes to the city commission, including the precise payoff figure as of a specified date, the short- and long-term budget impacts and how the reallocation would change SPLOST project lists. Several members said the finance trade-offs are significant even if potential interest savings are real; staff noted that GPO financing was originally a low-interest structure and that paying it off would change future borrowing capacity and the city’s debt profile.

The board approved a motion to recommend the payoff to the city commission and directed staff to provide clearer documentation of the proposal and alternatives.

Next steps: staff will prepare resolution language and detailed financial backup for the city commission, and the exact payoff amount will need to be confirmed with GPO at a specified payoff date.