HCR Affiliate Agency Receives 2010 "Deal of the Year" Award from The Bond Buyer

ALBANY, NY (12/14/2010)(readMedia)-- One of the integrated housing agencies that comprise New York State Homes and Community Renewal (HCR) has received a prestigious award from The Bond Buyer, a century-old national trade newspaper covering the municipal bond industry.

The State of New York Municipal Bond Bank Agency (MBBA) won a "2010 Deal of the Year" award for the Northeast region for its $184 million Recovery Act Bond issue in December, 2009.

"This award demonstrates how innovative ideas can be turned into jobs and economic activity in New York," said Brian E. Lawlor, HCR Commissioner and CEO. "Thanks to the ingenuity and hard work of our MBBA staff, towns and counties around the state were able to save money on their capital investment programs."

The bond issue, which was the only pooled bond issue in the country to take advantage of bonds authorized by the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), enabled six local governments in New York State to finance public improvements and help stimulate their local economies.

The bond issue was so successful that MBBA has since sold two subsequent Recovery Act Bond issues-a $116.3 million bond issue in May 2010 for five local governments and a $50.67 million bond issue in November 2010 for five county governments.

MBBA's Recovery Act Bonds utilized Building America Bonds (BABs) and Recovery Zone Economic Development Bonds (RZEDBs) authorized by ARRA together with tax-exempt bonds to finance local capital projects. BABs and RZEDBs are taxable bonds that receive federal government subsidies for the life of the bonds.

Pooling the capital needs of several local governments into one bond issue enabled local governments to save money on its borrowing costs.

In nominating MBBA for The Bond Buyer award, Jefferies & Company, Inc. said Recovery Act Bonds were unique because:

• the bond issue represented a significant collaboration among several state agencies and local governments;

• all local participants achieved "substantial cost savings" by working together on a pooled issuance;

• the bond issue was innovative in the way it resolved complex financing issues raised by the ARRA statute; and

• the concept of Recovery Act Bonds could be replicated in future bond issues.

MBBA is one of the State's agencies integrated under the banner of NYS Homes and Community Renewal. Merging the state's housing and community renewal agencies under a single management structure has provided for better decision-making, a reduction of costs and increased coordination of resources.

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The State of New York Municipal Bond Bank Agency was created in 1972 to provide municipalities with access to the capital markets for special programs.

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