News
Public Finance Wrap-Up: November 2020
Financings in November
The Comptroller’s office did not execute any financings during the month of November but remains active in monitoring markets and identifying opportunities. Information on upcoming financings will be announced via our website.
Popular Annual Financial Report Summarizes Spending
Comptroller Stringer released New York City’s Popular Annual Financial Report (PAFR) on November 30. The PAFR is a transparency tool that serves as a user-friendly companion to the City’s Comprehensive Annual Financial Report. It distills important information about local government and its finances into an easy-to-understand 30-page roadmap to City government. The PAFR received the Government Finance Officers Association’s Award for Outstanding Achievement for the fifth consecutive year, which recognizes creativity, presentation, understandability, and reader appeal.
Upcoming Transactions
New York City Municipal Water Finance Authority (NYW)
The New York City Municipal Water Finance Authority (“NYW”) is planning the sale of approximately $479 million tax-exempt, fixed rate bonds. Proceeds from the bond sale will be used to fund capital projects and refund certain outstanding bonds for savings. Subject to market conditions, institutional pricing for the bonds will take place on Wednesday, December 2, 2020. Individual investors will have priority in placing orders during a one-day retail order period on Tuesday, December 1, 2020.
The bonds will be sold via negotiated sale through an underwriting syndicate led by book-running lead manager Siebert Williams Shank, with Barclays, BofA Securities, Goldman Sachs, Loop Capital Markets, Raymond James and UBS serving as co-senior managers on the transaction. View the press release here.
The City of New York General Obligation Refunding Bonds
The City of New York plans to sell approximately $1.5 billion of fixed rate taxable refunding bonds through a negotiated sale. Proceeds from the bond sale will be used to advance refund certain outstanding tax-exempt and taxable bonds to achieve debt service savings in Fiscal Years 2021 and 2022. Subject to market conditions, pricing will take place on Wednesday, December 16, 2020, via negotiated sale through an underwriting syndicate led by book-running lead manager Jefferies, with Loop Capital and Siebert Williams Shank serving as co-senior managers. The Preliminary Official Statement is expected to be available on or before Wednesday, December 9, 2020 at www.MuniOS.com and www.nyc.gov/bonds. Read full press release here.
Passing of Mayor Dinkins
The Comptroller’s Office honors the memory of Mayor David Dinkins, who passed away in November. He blazed a trail to City Hall and made history several times over as the first Black man to hold the city’s highest office. He invested in communities that had been overlooked for too long and made mental health a priority for his Administration. In many ways, he was ahead of his time. Read the Comptroller’s full statement here.
Financial Plan and Economic Updates
The Office of Management and Budget released its first quarterly update to the 2021-2024 Financial Plan, with an overview of revenues and expenditures. You can review the full financial plans update here. Read the Comptroller’s revenue update and budget outlook here.
The Comptroller’s Office continues to provide updated economic and fiscal information in our New York by the Numbers – Weekly Economic and Fiscal Outlook. The Comptroller’s Cash Report and Cash Projection report are also excellent resources. To view both visit the Comptroller’s Cash Report page and Cash Projection page.
Season’s Greetings
As we approach the holiday season, we want to extend our best wishes to you and your family for a safe and healthy time. We also encourage you to appreciate the many places in New York City that are now open and safe for visiting like Rockefeller Plaza and the larger museums along Museum Mile. Visit each of these locations’ websites for information on operating hours and visitor protocols.
Marj Henning
Deputy Comptroller for Public Finance
Discover New York – The Rockefeller Holiday Tree
Located on the east side of Midtown, along Fifth Avenue, each year, Rockefeller Plaza boasts one of the largest trees in New York City, as a holiday tradition and beacon of celebration. First erected in 1933, the tree attracts more than 125 million visitors yearly. The tree, usually a Norway Spruce, ranges from 70 to 100 feet in height, and is decorated with more than 50,000 multi-colored LED lights. Its star top is a Swarovski crystal. The tree is further decorated with three million crystal light spots. The tree’s average weight, along with all decorations, amounts to nearly 900 pounds.
The Rockefeller Christmas Tree | Photo Credit: lazyllama/Shutterstock