Sun Staff Writer

The Mississippi Department of Transportation (MDOT) has designed $145 million to fund road projects in Madison County.

The money is coming through the Highway Enhancements through Local Partnerships (H.E.L.P.) bond program.

“The proceeds from these MDOT H.E.L.P. bonds will construct a new split diamond interchange and frontage roads in Madison County and connector roads in the cities of Ridgeland and Madison,” MDOT officials announced.

The program is an innovative financing program. It is authorized by state statute which allows MDOT to enter into cooperative agreements with cities or counties to accelerate the completion date of a scheduled highway construction project, according to a press release.

The statute allows a city or county to advance to MDOT the cost of a highway construction project which is repaid by MDOT.

The Mississippi Development Bank, in cooperation with Madison County, issues the bonds. MDOT will pay the debt service on the bonds because of an interlocal agreement with the county.

“The bond offering was a success in the marketplace with MDOT achieving an interest rate of 4.55 percent on the $145,000,000 issue,” according to an MDOT press release.

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has signed an agreement with MDOT to reimburse the department for approximately 85 percent of the debt service on the bonds for the Madison County project.

MDOT’s H.E.L.P. program bonds are rated A1 by Moody’s Rating Agency and AA- by Standard & Poor’s. Standard & Poor’s recently upgraded its rating of the MDOT H.E.L.P. program bonds from A+ to AA- based on the strength of the MDOT program, according to MDOT officials.

Larry “Butch” Brown, executive director of MDOT, said the department is proud to have been able to structure and sell a program that is recognized by the marketplace as an innovative method to finance our priority projects. “The partnership with the FHWA to reimburse most of the debt service for these projects insures that the costs of these projects will primarily be borne by the federal government,” he said. “The rating upgrade for the MDOT H.E.L.P. program bonds is also evidence that this innovative program is viewed as a secure investment by the marketplace, and is a program that is being managed well by MDOT.”

The bonds were sold on September 21 through a syndicate lead by UBS, with an anticipated closing date of October 11.