Dallas County court approves notice to pursue up to $350 million in certificates of obligation
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Summary
At a special-called Dallas County Commissioners Court meeting, commissioners voted unanimously to approve a resolution authorizing publication of a notice of intent to consider issuing certificates of obligation to finance county needs. Counsel described the step as the statutory first stage; estimated P&I figures in the transcript were garbled and will be confirmed in the published notice.
Dallas County Commissioners Court on a special-called session voted unanimously to approve a resolution authorizing publication of a notice of intent to consider issuing certificates of obligation that would allow the county to pursue borrowing of up to $350,000,000, court participants said.
Commissioner Price moved to advance the resolution and the motion was seconded; the court recorded a unanimous voice vote to carry the item. Palafel and the clerk opened the court and announced that Judge Clay Lewis Jenkins was presiding.
Barto Aguilaro, the county's bond counsel, described publishing the notice as “the first step” of a two-step statutory process and said the notice will include the financial information read into the record so “the public [will] know that the intention of the county is to move forward with this financing.”
Commissioner Price requested that staff also publish comparative transparency material — specifically, debt-per-capita and peer-county comparisons — alongside the legal notice so residents can see how Dallas County’s debt position compares with other large Texas counties. Aguilaro said the legal notice follows a fixed statutory form but agreed that additional transparency material could be posted through county channels.
Esther Young, co-financial adviser with Tijuana Financial Consulting, told the court that rating agencies have been involved in planning and the county’s record of repayment should be presented to them as part of the financing. “We don’t foresee it being an issue,” Young said when asked whether the proposed financing would affect the county’s AAA rating.
The chief financial figures read into the record included a proposed maximum principal amount of $350,000,000 and a stated 5% interest rate. The transcript record includes an estimate for principal-and-interest that is garbled in the official transcript excerpt; the precise P&I totals will be published with the formal notice and resolution.
After the vote, the court announced there were no public speakers on the matter, recessed into the posted closed session items, and later adjourned the special-called meeting.
Votes at a glance: Resolution to publish notice of intent to issue certificates of obligation — motion moved by Commissioner Price; seconded by another court member on the record; outcome: approved unanimously.
The court will return in open session if any action arises from the closed-session discussions; no additional public action was recorded at the special-called meeting.
