March 7, 2012 THE VILLADOM TIMES IV • Page 5 Mahwah Township receives triple-A bond rating from S&P by Frank J. McMahon Standard & Poor’s Financial Services, LLC has assigned a triple-A rating to the $11,255,000 in Series 2012 general improvement refunding bonds the Township of Mahwah wants to refinance. The aim is to save three percent or more in interest. Mayor William Laforet advised that the township is one of only a handful of the municipalities in the state to receive this rating, and the savings from the refinancing of the bonds could save the township $400,000 to $500,000 in interest. Laforet thanked Mahwah Business Administrator Brian Campion and Mahwah Chief Financial Officer Kenneth Sesholtz for their hard work in achieving the tripleA rating. The township’s previous bond rating was AA1. According to Standard & Poor’s Financial Services, the township’s financial outlook is “stable,” a level considered to be very strong, despite newly implemented revenue raising restrictions. The company stated that the township’s stable economy and very strong wealth and income levels further support that outlook. The triple-A rating also reflects the company’s recognition of the township’s participation in the New York metropolitan statistical area, which contributes to very strong economic indicators; a large and diverse property tax base with a mix of residential and commercial uses; a very strong financial position bolstered by a diminishing reliance on general fund reserves to balance the budget; and a low to moderate debt burden. In addition, the rating recognizes that the township has an estimated population of 25,000 and covers a 27 square mile section of northwest Bergen County where residents have several transportation alternatives, including bus and train service to New York City, access to three major highways, and an unemployment rate that averaged 8.3 percent in 2010, which was below the state and national averages. “We consider the township’s income levels to be very strong,” the rating document states, “with median household and per capita effective buying income at 177 percent and 205 percent of national levels, respectively. “The township’s available general fund balance is very strong in our opinion, despite decreases in each year since fiscal 2007, and management projects the fiscal 2012 general fund budget to use $3.3 million of reserves, which is smaller than the $3.8 million appropriation in 2011, the $4.6 million appropriation in 2010, and the $4.8 million appropriation in 2009, and the fiscal 2010 available general fund balance totaled $6.3 million which we consider very strong at 19.3 percent of expenditures. “The current year property tax collection rate continues to be strong, in our view, with collections averaging more than 99 percent over the past five years.” Standard & Poor’s considers the township’s financial management practices “good” according to the company’s financial management assessment methodology, and considers the township’s debt burden moderate, at roughly $3,500 per capita and low at 1.4 percent of market value, including overlapping county and school district debt. The Mahwah Thunderbirds finished their dual meet season at the top of the Tri County Youth Wrestling League with a record of 13- 1. This league is recognized as one of the toughest youth wrestling leagues in the state. Thunderbirds defeated teams throughout northern/western New Jersey including Philipsburg, Randolph, and Paramus. Front row: Max Grainger, Travis Arata, Sam Spira, Aidan Wallace, Ryan Kozdra, Daniel Nelson, Matt Surich, Justin Bierdumpfel, and Hunter Albrecht. Back row: Garrett O’Shea, Danny Surich, Liam Diaz, David Cabrera, Daniel Chappel, Coach John O’Shea, Dean Maneri, Kyle Bierdumpfel, Cole Kreshpane, Dominic Roca, and Doug Ervin. Not pictured: Nick Cowan and Justin Walker. Top team