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County pledges full faith and credit, moves ahead with Bank intercounty drain financing
Summary
After extended debate about cost and statutory recusals, the Eaton County Board voted to pledge full faith and credit and adopt a notice of intent to finance the Bank intercounty drain, enabling a May bond sale and preserving lower interest rates for assessed property owners.
The Eaton County Board of Commissioners voted April 16 to pledge the county's full faith and credit for the Bank intercounty drain and to adopt a notice of intent to issue capital-improvement bonds to finance the county's share.
Commissioner Drosius moved the separate motion for the Bank intercounty drain, and Commissioner Haskell supported it. Bond counsel Steve Mann of Miller Canfield and financial adviser PFM outlined options and said the notice of intent (Act 34) preserves financing choices while administrators finalize rates and terms. "That resolution declares the county's intent to issue bonds" and would authorize bonds "not to exceed $12,000,000 payable over a period not to exceed 30 years," Mann told the board.
Advisors and staff explained the full faith and credit pledge acts as a secondary source of payment so the drainage district can obtain market bids and lower interest rates. Municipal finance advisor Bobby Benzinski said the pledge reduces interest costs for property owners: "It also reduces the interest rate because you would be paying a very high rate of interest if the county didn't provide full faith and credit." Counsel Roger Swetz outlined the mechanics of assessments and delinquency remedies, saying shortfalls would first proceed through the county delinquent-tax collection process.
Commissioners debated timing and statutory recusal rules for the drain commissioner; staff said a petition and a probate-court appointment had enabled a different drain commissioner to stand in for certain early steps. Administration warned that delaying authorization could force the bond sale date to move and increase costs to assessed property owners. Ben Dawson, county staff managing the project, said engineers originally estimated the project between $40 million and $70.5 million and that contractors and project changes reduced that top-line figure by about $1.6 million.
The board then conducted a roll-call vote on the pledge. The clerk recorded a unanimous "yes" from commissioners present and the motion carried. The county and project team said prepayment letters and final assessment amounts would go to property owners, with a prepayment window to reduce borrowing costs.
