Agencies maintain Huntington's AAA rating

Moody's Investors Service and Fitch Ratings have maintained Huntington Town's AAA ratings with a negative outlook for general obligation bonds.

Standard & Poor's Ratings Services has also maintained the town's AAA rating but with a stable outlook for the same bonds.

The ratings apply to the $8.3 million in bonds the town expects to sell next month to finance capital projects.

"The reports were comprehensive, and I'm thrilled with the AAA ratings," Town Supervisor Frank Petrone said. "On the negative outlook, the things they've talked about we're already addressing."

Moody's attributed the AAA creditworthiness rating to the town's "diverse economic and employment base" and "satisfactory reserve."

However, Huntington's negative outlook reflects "the structurally imbalanced nature of the town's budgets and a declining reserve position," Moody's announcement reported. "Failure to structurally balance future budgets with recurring revenues and without the use of one-time revenues or deferral of expenditures could lead to a rating downgrade," the agency warned.

Fitch cited the town's "affluent local economy," debt that is "low on a market value basis" and other variables for the AAA ranking.

The negative outlook reflects the agency's concern about the town's recent financial performance, with a significant deficit posted in 2013 and another projected for 2014.

Standard & Poor's based its rating on the town's "very strong" economy, liquidity, and management conditions, "adequate" budgetary performance, and "strong institutional framework," among other items.

As for the stable outlook, the agency reported that "while management's strong financial practices and policies further support the rating, we note that this view could change should the town not return to compliance with its 10 percent reserve policy."All three agencies also reaffirmed AAA ratings on the town's $81 million in outstanding general obligation debt.