this truly great news with with sustainable long term benefits to the residents and taxpayers!

more from the JC Independent - http://www.jerseycityindependent.com/ ... ys-municipal-bond-rating/

Quote:

Tax base refers to the number of tax payers whereas increased taxes paid could be a result of more tax payers or higher tax rates, or both.

Is there a difference between an "extraordinary tax base growth" and more taxes being paid to the city?

Moody?s Gives Boost to Jersey City

By Heather Haddon - The Wall Street Journal
July 10, 2012, 6:00 AM

Jersey City, the long trumpeted ?sixth borough,? now has a new booster for its renaissance: Moody?s.

The credit rating agency upgraded the Hudson County city?s bond outlook from negative to positive on Thursday, citing the waterfront community?s ?dramatically increased wealth levels? and improved finances in its report.

The improved outlook by Moody?s Investors Service on the city?s $847 million in bonded debt didn?t go so far as to upgrade Jersey City?s credit rating. But local leaders still championed it as a sign of a broader turnaround.

?We are pleased that during this time of worldwide economic malaise, that our measures of fiscal restraint, downsizing, and prospective budgetary planning has paid off,? said Mayor Jerramiah Healy, in a statement Monday.

Dan Solender of Lord Abbett, an institutional investment firm based in Jersey City, agreed that the city has made efforts to boost its finances in the last decade.

?There still is a ways to go but at least it?s in the right direction,? said Solender, director of municipal bond management for the firm, which does not work on the city?s bonds.

The indicator was a bright note in what has largely been a gloomy period for municipal finances.

Nationwide, Moody?s downgraded 2.7 local governments for each that it upgraded on average in the first quarter of 2012, according to an April report. A ?lackluster economic recovery? was cited for the downgrades, and Moody?s predicted it would continue throughout 2012.

But in addition to rising incomes, Jersey City has benefited from a spurt of development in the early 2000s that triggered an ?extraordinary tax base growth,? Moody?s wrote. Development slowed in recent years, but new projects have begun to resume and additional revenue has come from natural growth, according to the report.

?It?s a remarkable turnaround,? said Joseph Seneca, an economics professor at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University, about Jersey City. ?Like the New York region, it?s made a comeback.?

Moody?s also credited the city for trimming expenses, including lowering health benefit costs and a reduction of 366 city job through layoffs and retirements since 2009.

?We?re pretty stable now and pretty confident,? said Donna Mauer, the city?s chief financial officer.

Still, Moody?s cited Jersey City?s above average debt burden and ongoing issuance of tens of millions of dollars worth of new bonds as concerns. A property revaluation last year also depressed the city?s tax base by $1.4 billion from 2010.

Down the road, a positive outlook could lead to a credit upgrade from Moody?s if the city?s finances continue to improve. That would translate into lower borrowing costs for Jersey City, a potentially significant cost reduction in the municipal budget, Solender said.

?Anything that moves in a more positive direction is a good thing given the environment we?re in,? he said.

http://blogs.wsj.com/metropolis/2012/ ... ves-boost-to-jersey-city/