DebtWatch Glossary
Accreted Interest:
In-period (Annual Debt Transparency Report) - The amount of compounded interest that has accumulated during the reporting period and increased the issuer's repayment obligation to debt holders. The accretion of interest is based upon a rate and schedule determined at issuance and continues until debt maturity, or upon conversion to a structure that pays interest currently. (See Capital Appreciation Bond.)
Ad Valorem Tax:
Derived from Latin, this term is commonly applied to a tax imposed on property owners based on the value of their property.
ADTR:
The annual report that is required to be submitted to CDIAC pursuant to Government Code section 8855(k). The report, known as the Annual Debt Transparency Report, is required of state and local agencies for any issue of debt for which they have submitted a Report of Final Sale to CDIAC on or after January 21, 2017. The data required on the ADTR covers a July 1st to June 30th reporting period and must be submitted for each issue of debt that is outstanding during the reporting period. The ADTR must be submitted annually, no later than seven months (effectively, January 31st) following the close of each reporting period, until the debt has been repaid and the proceeds fully spent. The information required on the ADTR falls into three main categories: 1) debt authorization; 2) debt outstanding; and 3) use of debt proceeds.
ADTR Filing Status:
The filing status of the ADTR for the most recently closed July-June reporting period. The field will return one of the following seven status codes:
- Pending: The ADTR has not been submitted to CDIAC, but the deadline for submittal has not past. The status will be "Pending" if the first reporting period for the issue has not closed
- Filed : The ADTR has been filed
- Ended: The obligation to file has ended. This will occur when a prior year ADTR indicated that the principal was repaid and the proceeds of the debt were completely spent
- Late: The deadline of January 31st has past and the ADTR has not been submitted. Upon submittal of the ADTR, the status will change to "Filed"
- Past Due: Twelve months have passed since the close of the reporting period and no ADTR was submitted to CDIAC. This status will not change until an ADTR for the most recently closed reporting period has been submitted
- NA: The requirement to submit an ADTR does not apply to this issue
- Proposed: The debt issue is in its proposed stage. The status will change to "Pending" following submittal of the Report of Final Sale
ADTR Last Reported Year:
The year of the reporting period for which the last ADTR was submitted. For example, if the last ADTR submitted was for the July 1, 2017 to June 30, 2018 reporting period, the field will return 2018.
ADTR Reportable:
Refers to whether or not an issue of debt is reportable under Government Code section 8855(k). If the field returns "Yes", the issue is reportable because the Report of Final Sale was submitted on or after January 21, 2017. If "No", he report was submitted prior to this date. Nearly 57,000 issues are not reportable. If the field is blank, the Report of Final Sale has not been received and the debt is in the proposed stage.
ADTR Reportable Next Fiscal Year:
Refers to whether or not the obligation to submit an ADTR extends to the subsequent reporting period (July 1st to June 30th fiscal year). If the field returns "Yes", an ADTR for the issue has been submitted with information indicating that principal remains outstanding or proceeds remain unspent. "No" indicates that a submitted ADTR reported all principal repaid and all proceeds spent. "No Report" means that no ADTR has been submitted, therefore a determination cannot be made. "NA" will appear for all issues that are not statutorily required to submit an ADTR. A blank field indicates that the issue is in the proposed stage.
API:
API stands for application programming interface, and refers to routines, protocols and tools used for building software applications. On this site, developers looking to build applications using DebtWatch data may access API information via Data Lens pages. For example, visit the State of California Data Lens page.
Assessed Value (Mello-Roos Yearly Fiscal Status Report):
The value established annually on the equalized tax roll for all parcels within the community facilities district subject to the special tax to repay the bonds.
Assessment Date (Mello-Roos Yearly Fiscal Status Report):
The as-of date for the assessed value reported from the equalized tax roll or the date of the appraisal.
Assessment Type (Mello-Roos Yearly Fiscal Status Report):
Type of assessment upon which the assessed value is reported. Most often the type will return "equalized tax roll," the assessment established by the county assessor. Infrequently, the field will return "appraisal of property," meaning the assessed value is based on appraisal. An appraisal basis is an indication that the bond may have been issued prior to tax billing commencement or that the bond was issued with 12 months of capitalized interest. It will only appear in the first year of the bond issue.
Authority (Annual Debt Transparency Report):
The formal action that was taken, either by the issuer's governing body or through a vote of the electorate, that authorizes the agency to issue debt up to a specific amount. The authority to issue debt may be granted through a resolution, in the case of revenue bonds, refunding bonds, or commercial paper, or by a measure or proposition passed by vote, in the case of general obligation bonds.
Bond:
A bond is a loan. It is a documented promise issued by a borrower to repay the lender the amount borrowed plus interest, at a stated interest rate, over a specific period of time. When a public agency "issues" a bond, it is typically structured to include individual bonds with various interest rates, maturities and redemption provisions. Municipal bonds are used by municipalities, states, and sovereign governments to raise money and finance a variety of projects and activities that benefit the public.
Bond Anticipation Notes (BANs):
Short-term notes issued by a governmental unit, usually for capital projects, that are repaid from the proceeds of the issuance of long-term bonds.
Bond Counsel:
The attorney or law firm retained by the issuer to give a legal opinion that the proposed debt is a valid obligation of the issuer, and, to the extent applicable, the interest on the proposed debt is exempt from federal or state income tax. A blank field indicates that the issuer did not use the services of a bond counsel to issue the debt or did not submit the name of the bond counsel to the California Debt and Investment Advisory Commission (CDIAC).
Bond Counsel Fee:
The fee paid to the bond counsel firm at the time of issuance. The fee may or may not be paid from the proceeds of the debt issuance. A blank field indicates that the issuer did not use the services of a bond counsel or did not submit the specific payment made to the bond counsel.
Borrower's Counsel:
The attorney representing the issuer who gives a legal opinion that the proposed debt is a valid obligation of the issuer, and, to the extent applicable, the interest on the proposed debt is exempt from federal or state income tax. A borrower's counsel is used when the debt is a direct loan from a bank or other financial institution. A blank field indicates that the services of a borrower's counsel were not used to issue the debt or that the issuer did not submit the name of the borrower's counsel to CDIAC.
Borrower's Counsel Fee:
The fee paid by the issuer to its counsel at the time of issuance. The fee may or may not be paid from the proceeds of the debt issuance. A blank field indicates that the services of a borrower's counsel were not used to issue the debt or that the issuer did not submit the specific payment made to the borrower's counsel.
California Debt and Investment Advisory Commission (CDIAC):
Chaired by the California State Treasurer, the Commission provides information, education and technical assistance on debt issuance and public fund investments to local public agencies and other public finance professionals. Learn more about CDIAC.
Capital Appreciation Bond (CAB):
A bond structured so the investment return on the principal amount is not paid to the investor periodically as is the common practice with a current interest bond, but reinvested at a stated compounded rate until maturity. At maturity, the issuer makes a single payment to the investor including both the initial principal amount and the total compounded investment return. If this data field indicates a "Yes" then all or a portion of the issue was comprised of capital appreciation bonds. If a "No", capital appreciation bonds were not issued. A blank field is indicative of an issuance that predates CDIAC's collection of this data.
CDIAC # of Issue Redeemed (Annual Debt Transparency Report):
The CDIAC number of the issue of debt that was fully or partially repaid during the reporting period with an expenditure of proceeds from the debt issue being reported on the ADTR. The corresponding fund name and expenditure description should indicate the repayment of another debt. If the CDIAC # of the issue redeemed is blank and the fund name and expenditure description indicate the repayment of debt, the debt issuance subject to the repayment was not reported to CDIAC. (See CDIAC Number.)
CDIAC # of Refi Issue (Annual Debt Transparency Report):
The CDIAC number of the issue of debt from which the proceeds were used to refund, refinance or pay down all or part of the outstanding principal of the issue that is the subject of the ADTR. (See CDIAC Number.)
CDIAC (California Debt and Investment Advisory Commission) Number:
A unique number that identifies the debt issue within the CDIAC debt issuance database. The number is assigned automatically upon submission of the notice of proposed debt issuance. The numbering convention begins with the year the proposed issuance report is submitted followed by a sequential number. The convention is reset at the beginning of each calendar year. The CDIAC number does not always indicate the year of issuance.
Certificates of Participation (COPs):
Certificates, very much like bonds, that represent undivided interests in the payments made by a municipal issuer pursuant to a financing lease or installment purchase agreement. This form of indebtedness is not subject to voter approval.
Cities:
Refers to debt issuers that are cities, city redevelopment agencies, or successors to city redevelopment agencies. California includes about 475 municipalities that call themselves either cities or towns. San Francisco is a consolidated city-county, and is listed under counties on this website.
Co-Bond Counsel:
The name of the attorney or law firm working on behalf of the issuer as a bond counsel (see Bond Counsel) in cooperation with another bond counsel. Issuers employ the services of co-bond counsel in complex debt issuances where the required expertise is found in multiple firms. A blank field indicates that the issuer did not use the services of a co-bond counsel to issue the debt or failed to submit the name of the co-bond counsel to CDIAC.
Co-Bond Counsel Fee:
The fee paid by the issuer to the bond counsel firm at the time of issuance. The fee may or may not be paid from the proceeds of the debt issuance. A blank field indicates that the issuer did not use the services of a co-bond counsel or failed to submit the specific payment made to the co-bond counsel.
Commercial Paper:
Short-term obligations issued by municipal entities that typically mature within 270 days, and are usually backed by a line of credit with a bank. The issuer typically pays maturing principal of outstanding commercial paper with newly issued commercial paper, referred to as a roll over, thereby borrowing funds on a short-term basis for an extended period of time.
Conduit Revenue Financing:
The issuance of municipal debt by a governmental issuer (referred to as the conduit issuer) to finance a project to be used primarily by a third party (referred to as the conduit borrower or obligor), which may be a for-profit private enterprise, a 501(c)(3) organization, or another governmental entity. In a conduit financing, the conduit borrower is responsible for making debt service payments on the debt.
Counties:
Refers to debt issuers that are counties, county infrastructure and service districts, county redevelopment agencies, successors to county redevelopment agencies, and the City and County of San Francisco.
Credit Enhancement Fee:
The fee paid by the issuer (or conduit borrower or obligor) to a financial services firm, usually a bank or a bond insurer, to provide debt repayment security in addition to that provided by the issuer or obligor. The fee may or may not be paid from the proceeds of the debt issuance. A blank field indicates that the debt was not issued with a third-party guaranty, insurance, or other credit enhancement or the issuer failed to submit the specific amount paid for the credit enhancement.
Data Lens
Data Lens pages available on this website provide users with interactive sets of charts that provide deeper insight into data. See a sample Data Lens page.
Debt Policy:
The issuer certification, pursuant to Government Code section 8855(i), that it adopted local debt policies concerning the use of debt and that the proposed debt issuance was consistent with the adopted policies. The requirement of local issuers to make this certification became effective in statute on January 1, 2017. As such, this field will be blank for proposed debt issuance reported to CDIAC prior to this date. The field will return "Yes" if the issuer certified that it had adopted local debt policies in compliance with statute or "No" if the certification was not made by the issuer. The field may also return "NA" if the issuance was not of local debt, such as an issuance by the state or instrumentality of the state or the entity that will use the debt proceeds is a non-governmental entity like a private non-profit.
Debt Type:
The type of instrument used to create debt. This website tracks more than two dozen types of debt that include varieties of bonds, notes, loans, warrants, certificates of participation, commercial paper, lines of credit, installment purchases, and capital leases.
Delinquent Amount (Mello-Roos Yearly Fiscal Status Report):
The cumulative amount of special taxes unpaid for all fiscal years that remain unpaid as of the parcel tax roll date.
Description (Annual Debt Transparency Report):
The name or characterization given to expenditures made from a specific fund during the reporting period. The description is determined by the submitter of the ADTR.
Disclosure Counsel:
The attorney or law firm retained by the issuer to provide advice on the issuer and/or obligor's securities law disclosure obligations and to assist in the preparation of the official statement or other offering document. Disclosure counsel may also assist in preparation of the bond purchase contract, official notice of sale (in a competitive sale) and/or continuing disclosure agreement. The disclosure counsel may be the same firm as the bond counsel. A blank field indicates that the issuer did not use the services of a separate disclosure counsel or did not submit the name of the disclosure counsel to CDIAC.
Disclosure Counsel Fee:
The fee paid to the disclosure counsel firm at the time of issuance. The fee may or may not be paid from the proceeds of the debt issuance. A blank field indicates that the issuer did not use the services of a disclosure counsel or did not submit the specific payment made to the disclosure counsel.
Federally Taxable:
Most of the municipal debt reported to CDIAC is federally tax-exempt. The interest paid to the investor or debt holder is excluded from the investor's or debt holder's gross income in the calculation of their federal income tax. Some municipal debt pays interest that is not federally tax-exempt and some pays interest that is subject to the federal alternative minimum tax. A blank field indicates that the debt is federally tax-exempt. Otherwise, the field will indicate that the debt is "federally-taxable" or "subject to alternative minimum tax."
Final Maturity Date:
The date that the issuer is obligated to make the final payment -- including principal, interest or other sums due -- to repay the entire outstanding debt without exercise of options of the issuer or the investor to prepay (or redeem) the debt earlier. Prior to 1995, the only maturity date captured in the database was that for term bonds or debt with only a single maturity date. Serial bonds or debts with multiple maturity dates issued prior to 1995 will return a blank field.
Financial Advisor:
The person or firm that advises the debt issuer or obligor on matters pertinent to the issuance, such as structure, timing, marketing, fairness of pricing, terms, and ratings. A blank field indicates that the issuer did not use the services of a financial advisor or did not submit the name of the financial advisor to CDIAC.
Financial Advisor Fee:
The fee paid to the financial advisor at the time of issuance. The fee may or may not be paid from the proceeds of the debt issuance. A blank field indicates that the issuer did not use the services of a financial advisor or did not submit the specific payment made to the financial advisor.
Fiscal Year End Date (Mello-Roos Yearly Fiscal Status Report):
The field returns the as-of date for the data reported as "principal outstanding," "current reserve balance," "capitalized interest fund balance," and "construction fund balance." The date will always be June 30 of the year of the report.
Fitch Rating:
Fitch Ratings is a nationally recognized bond rating organization that provides an opinion of the credit-worthiness of a bond. Fitch Ratings assigns long-term bond credit ratings of AAA, AA, A, BBB, BB, B, CCC, CC, C, D and uses a system of + and - to further delineate credit quality within grades. The highest quality are rated AAA. Fitch Ratings assigns short-term bond credit ratings of F1+, F1, F2, F3, B, C. A blank field indicates that the issuer did not have their bond rated by Fitch or did not submit the rating to CDIAC.
Foreclosure Amount (Mello-Roos Yearly Fiscal Status Report):
The delinquent amount owed on all of the parcels that are subject to a formal foreclosure proceeding. If the field is blank, no foreclosures were reported.
Fund (Annual Debt Transparency Report):
The name given to specific amounts of the debt proceeds that are set apart and used for specific types or classes of expenditures. The fund names are determined by the submitter of the ADTR. The total of the initial proceeds established for each fund are required to equal the total reportable proceeds. (See Total Reportable Proceeds.)
General Obligation Bonds (GO Bonds):
General obligation bonds are secured either by a pledge of the full faith and credit of the issuer or by a promise to levy property taxes in an amount necessary to pay debt service, or both. The State of California's general obligation bonds are full faith and credit bonds payable from the State's General Fund. By contrast, local general obligation bonds are typically payable only from ad valorem property taxes, which are required to be levied in an amount sufficient to pay interest and principal on the bonds coming due in each year and are not subject to the 1 percent cap set by Proposition 13. Property tax revenues imposed to repay general obligation bonds are distinct from general property tax collections and are dedicated to debt service payment and cannot be levied or used for any other purpose. In California, local government GO Bonds require a supermajority (two-thirds) voter approval and as a result are not often used. However, under Proposition 39, school districts may obtain authority to issue them with 55 percent voter approval.
Governing Agency Type (Mello-Roos Yearly Fiscal Status Report):
Community facilities districts (CFDs), also known as Mello-Roos districts, are created by local government agencies as separate legal entities for the purpose of financing facilities and services. The field describes the type of government agency that formed the CFD.
Green Bonds:
Municipal debt securities labeled as "green bonds" that are issued to finance climate-related or environmentally beneficial projects. These bonds also could be labeled as "Climate Bond Certified," although the bond does not need to be called Climate Bond Certified to be considered a green bond. Green bonds could be designated as a "GreenStar" bond if it is guaranteed with GreenStar bond insurance provided by Build America Mutual (BAM).
Guarantor:
The entity or financial services firm (sometimes also called a "credit enhancer"), usually a bank or a bond insurer, that is providing a form of debt repayment security, such as bond insurance, in addition to that provided by the issuer or obligor. Prior to 1994, CDIAC did not capture the name of the guarantor in the database. From 1994 onward, a blank field indicates that the debt was not issued with a third-party guaranty, insurance, or other credit enhancement, or the issuer did not to submit the name of the firm providing the guaranty or credit enhancement to CDIAC.
Guarantor Flag:
The type of guaranty or credit enhancement provided by the guarantor. The field will return bond insurance ("Ins"), letter of credit ("LOC"), state intercept program ("Int"), other ("Oth"), or a blank. A blank field indicates that the debt was not issued with a third-party guaranty, insurance, or other credit enhancement, or the issuer did not submit the information to CDIAC.
Interest Type:
The type of interest cost reported for the bond issuance. The field will return true interest cost ("TIC"), net interest cost ("NIC"), variable ("VAR"), other ("O"), or blank. If the field is blank and there are no interest costs reported in the TIC Interest Rate or the NIC Interest Rate fields, the interest costs were not reported to CDIAC. A return of "VAR" means that the interest costs are based on an interest rate structure that may vary over the term of the debt. A return of "O" means that interest costs were reported by the issuer in another form, perhaps because the issuer did not calculate the TIC or NIC.
Issuance Documents:
The documentation of the debt issuance that was submitted to CDIAC by the issuer with the issuer's Report of Final Sale. Documents vary depending upon the type of debt issued. Types of documents include official statements, bond specimens, indentures, resolutions of the governing body, promissory notes, leases, loan agreements, instalment sales agreements, and other issuance-related disclosures. If the field does not return a link to view the documents, it will return either "Pending", meaning documents have been submitted by the issuer but have not yet been posted to DebtWatch, or "None Submitted", indicating that the issuer submitted no documentation with the Report of Final Sale.
Issue Costs Pct of Principal Amt:
The total of all reported costs of issuance expressed as a percentage of the total principal or par amount. Only the costs reported by the issuer are included in the calculation. The principal is not increased or reduced for any net premium or discount. A zero return or an unreasonably low percent indicates that some or all of the costs were not reported to CDIAC and could not be obtained or verified through submitted documentation.
Issuer:
The entity of State or local government that is legally authorized to enter into the debt obligation. An issuer may serve as a legal conduit through which third-party borrowers or obligors can utilize federally or state tax-exempt financing. (See Conduit Revenue Financing.)
Issuer County:
The county in which the issuer is located. The field will return either the name of one of California's 58 counties, "State of California" for the State or an entity of the State, "SLC" for the Student Loan Corporation, a statewide entity, or "Multiple" for a joint powers authority that is issuing on behalf of agencies in multiple counties.
Issuer Group:
DebtWatch has categorized all issuers into one of eight issuer groups including:
- Cities: Cities, city redevelopment entities and successors
- Counties: Counties, county service districts and authorities, county redevelopment entities and successors, City and County of San Francisco
- State of California: State of California, State programs and departments, State entities, State joint powers authorities, Student Loan Corporation
- K-14 Schools: K-12 school districts, community college districts
- UC & CSU: University of California, California State University
- JPA & Marks-Roos: Joint powers authorities, entities authorized under the Marks-Roos Bond Pooling Act
- Mello-Roos: Community facilities districts
- Special Districts: Local municipal service districts (water, sewer, electric, flood control, vector control, hospital, fire, library, etc.) that are not a county entity
Issuer Type:
Specifically identifies the type of issuing entity in greater detail than the Issuer Group field. The field will frequently inform users of the type of entity and purpose or service for which the debt was issued. CDIAC tracks 59 different issuer types.
JPA & Marks-Roos:
Refers to debt issuers that are joint powers authorities (JPAs). JPAs issue debt under the Joint Exercise of Powers Act. JPAs may issue debt under Article 2 of the act to finance local projects or under Article 4 of the act, known as the Mark-Roos Bond Pooling Act of 1985 (Marks-Roos), to purchase debt obligations of local agencies or make loans to local agencies. There are two types of JPAs: multijurisdictional JPAs and captive JPAs. Multijurisdictional JPAs are statewide or regional joint powers agencies that function as conduit issuers on behalf of their members or other local agencies, also known as bond pools. Captive JPAs are created when two or more public agencies such as a county, a water district, and public energy agency join to form an agency to exercise, jointly, all the power(s) common to each of them. The beneficiaries of these Marks-Roos purchases or loans may be local agencies from within the JPA's own jurisdictions or from agencies outside the JPA's jurisdiction. These recipient agencies are referred to as local obligors (LOBs). LOB debt issues are also reported to CDIAC and included separately under the debt of cities, counties, Mello-Roos community facilities districts, and special districts.
K-14 Schools:
Refers to debt issuers that are K-12 public school districts and community college districts.
Lapsed: In-period (Annual Debt Transparency Report):
The amount of the unissued authority that has expired or that the governing body has taken formal action to revoke or terminate. The authority no longer provides the legal basis to issue or borrow this lapsed amount.
Lease Revenue Bonds:
Bonds that are secured by lease payments made by the party leasing the facilities that were financed by the bond issue. Typically, lease revenue bonds are used to finance construction of or acquire facilities used by a State or municipal entity. In many cases, lease payments may be subject to an annual appropriation or will be made only from revenues associated with the facility financed. In other cases, the leasing state or municipality is obligated to appropriate funds from its general tax revenues to make lease payments as long as it has beneficial use and occupancy of the leased property. Similar to COPs, these bonds typically do not require voter approval.
Limited Tax Obligation Bonds:
Bonds that are secured by a special tax on property that is limited to the established rate and method of application. This is in contrast to an unlimited tax, which is required to be levied in an amount sufficient to pay interest and principal on the bonds as is the case with local general obligation bonds. Limited tax obligation bonds are issued by community facilities districts, also known as Mello-Roos districts.
Loan:
Also referred to herein as a "direct loan", a money borrowing from a single bank or other financial institution that is used by municipal entities as a financing alternative to a public offering or private placement of securities.
Local Obligation:
If the debt issuance was purchased by a joint powers authority under the Marks-Roos Bond Pooling Act of 1985, the field will return "Yes." (See JPA & Marks-Roos.)
Mello-Roos:
Refers to debt issuers that are community facilities districts (CFDs), also known as Mello-Roos districts. CFDs are legally constituted governmental entities, the sole purpose of which is to finance facilities and services. Debt is issued for a variety of infrastructure development and community services, including K-12 school construction. Debt issued by CFDs is secured by a levy of special taxes, which must be approved by a two-thirds vote of registered voters or landowners within the proposed CFD.
Mello-Roos Yearly Fiscal Status Report:
State statute requires issuers of community facilities district (CFD) or Mello-Roos bonds issued after Jan. 1, 1993, to file a yearly fiscal status report (YFSR) with CDIAC until the bonds are no longer outstanding. The YFSR includes, among other data, the principal amount of bonds outstanding, the balance in the reserve fund, the balance in the capitalized interest fund, the number of parcels delinquent, and the assessed value of all the parcels subject to the tax. The reports are due by Oct. 30 each year.
Minimum Reserve Required (Mello-Roos Yearly Fiscal Status Report):
A reserve is an account that can be drawn upon to pay the debt service if the revenues pledged for the payment of debt service are temporarily insufficient. If a reserve is required under the terms of the bond issuance, this field will return the minimum amount the issuer agreed to maintain in the reserve account.
MKR Authority:
If a joint powers authority used bond proceeds to purchase local debt obligations of local agencies or make loans to local agencies under the Mark-Roos Bond Pooling Act of 1985, the field will return a "Yes." (See JPA & Marks-Roos.) The local debt obligations purchased by a Marks-Roos authority are tracked separately in this website under the debt of cities, counties, Mello-Roos community facilities districts, and special districts.
MKR CDIAC Number:
If the debt issuance was purchased by a joint powers authority under the Marks-Roos Bond Pooling Act of 1985, the field will return the CDIAC Number of the joint powers authority issuance that purchased the debt. (See JPA & Marks-Roos.)
Moody's Rating:
Moody's Investors Service is a nationally recognized rating organization that provides an opinion of the credit-worthiness of a bond. Moody's assigns long-term bond credit ratings of Aaa, Aa, A, Baa, Ba, B, Caa, Ca, C, and uses a scale of 1-3 (1 highest) to further delineate credit quality within grades. The highest quality are rated Aaa. Moody's assigns short-term bond credit ratings of P-1, P-2, P-3, and Not Prime. A blank field indicates that the issuer did not have the bond rated by Moody's or did not submit the rating to CDIAC.
Net Issue Discount/Premium:
Issue discount is created when the lender or underwriter pays less for a bond than the amount of the principal - known as par value. Issue premium is generated when the lender or underwriter pays more for a bond than the par value (or principal amount). Issue premium is created when the issuer structures the bond to periodically pay (or accrete) interest payments higher than the market interest rates for bonds of similar maturity and credit. Periodic interest payments (or accretion) that are lower than the market rate create a discounted issuance price. Issuers may generate premium and discount within the same issue of bonds (some of the maturities of the issue of bonds can be sold at par, some at premium, and some at discount). The field shows the net amount that was generated at original issuance. Generally, the net issue discount/premium can be added to the principal amount to know the total proceeds, before issuance costs, of the issue.
New Money:
The portion of the principal amount that is not used for refunding (or refinancing) other outstanding debt. New money is the amount by which the issuer's debt liability increases. This field is calculated by subtracting the refunding principal amount from the total principal amount. The refunding principal amount reported by the issuer may include premium or costs and fees associated with the financing and thus may underrepresent new money, or return a negative value. The field data should be considered approximate.
NIC Interest Rate:
One method of calculating the overall rate of interest to be paid by the issuer over the life of all the bonds in an issuance. The NIC (net interest cost) interest rate takes into account net issue premium/discount and the interest to be paid over the life of the issue, but does not account for the time value of money. (See TIC Interest Rate.) A blank field indicates that the issuer provided an alternative interest cost calculation (such as a TIC interest rate), the rate could not be calculated as with a variable interest rate, or the issuer did not provide the rate to CDIAC.
No Value
A data field may show no value if the debt issuer failed to provide the data, the data type did not apply to the debt issuance in question, or if the data was not collected at the time the issuance took place.
Number of Delinquent Parcels (Mello-Roos Yearly Fiscal Status Report):
The number of parcels with special taxes unpaid for any prior fiscal year as of the parcel tax roll date.
Number of Foreclosed Parcels (Mello-Roos Yearly Fiscal Status Report):
The number of parcels upon which the county has begun formal foreclosure proceedings as a means to collect the delinquent amount owed on the specific parcels subject to the foreclosure. If the field is blank, no foreclosures were reported.
Open Data:
Open data allows information to be freely used, reused and redistributed by anyone. The Treasurer established DebtWatch to encourage users to review, compare, visualize, and analyze data - and share their discoveries - in real time.
Other Interest Type:
The field shows a description of the interest type when the interest type is submitted by the issuer as "O," or other. This is common in direct-lending structures when the issuer has not calculated TIC (true interest cost) or NIC (net interest cost), or in some federally subsidized structures which effect a zero interest cost to the issuer.
Other Issuance Expenses:
Expenses paid at the time of issuance for services directly associated with the issuance of the debt that are not paid to the underwriter, bond counsel, borrower's counsel, disclosure counsel, rating agency, guarantor, financial advisor, placement agent, or trustee. The expenses may or may not be paid from the proceeds of the debt issuance.
Other Rating:
An opinion of the credit-worthiness of the bond from a rating organization that is not Moody's Investors Service, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services or Fitch Ratings. A blank field indicates that the issuer did not have the bond rated, had it rated by one of the other three agencies, or did not submit the rating to CDIAC.
Parcel Tax Roll Date (Mello-Roos Yearly Fiscal Status Report):
The date of the equalized tax roll that is used as the basis for determining the parcels within the community facilities district that have delinquent special taxes. The date is an as-of date for reporting delinquent parcels and special taxes.
Pension Obligation Bonds:
Bonds issued by a State or local government to finance an unfunded pension liability of an entity. Pension obligation bonds do not require voter approval. The interest paid to the investor or debt holder is federally taxable, but exempt from State tax.
Placement Agent:
The individual or firm acting as agent on behalf of the issuer or obligor to arrange for the sale of a new issue of municipal debt directly to investors rather than by purchasing the debt from the issuer and reselling it to investors. The services of a placement agent are often used in private placements. A blank field indicates that the issuer did not use the services of a placement agent or did not submit the name of the placement agent to CDIAC.
Placement Agent Fee:
The fee paid to the placement agent at the time of issuance. The fee may or may not be paid from the proceeds of the debt issuance. A blank field indicates that the issuer did not use the services of a placement agent or did not submit the specific payment made to the placement agent.
Principal Amount:
In a bond or note transaction, the amount that is the face value, also known as the par amount, of the bonds or notes. It does not include net issue premium/discount or any of the costs of issuance. In a direct-lending structure, it is typically the amount borrowed. In a capital lease structure, it is approximately the fair market value of the asset rights conferred to the municipal entity through the lease. The principal amount is the amount that is typically charged against an entity's legal issuance authority.
Principal Outstanding (Mello-Roos Yearly Fiscal Status Report):
The principal amount of the bonds outstanding as of the fiscal year end date.
Private Placement:
An issue of municipal debt securities sold directly to institutional investors through a negotiated sale rather than through a public offering to a broad group of investors. Purchasers of these securities are often required to agree to restrictions on the resale. Direct lending from banks or other financial institutions is categorized as private placement in the CDIAC database. Prior to January 2012, CDIAC did not capture whether an issue was a private placement. A return of "No" in this field for an issuance prior to 2012 is not necessarily accurate.
Project Name:
The name given to the issue or the project for which the debt is being issued. This field is often used by the issuer to provide additional information about the purpose of the debt, its relationship to other debt issues, or the area benefiting from the debt proceeds.
Purchaser:
The bank or financial services company in a private placement transaction that is purchasing the debt of the issuer or making a direct loan. In a capital lease structure, the purchaser may be a leasing company. The purchaser may also be a municipal financing authority (joint powers authority) that has purchased the debt of the issuer with the proceeds of its own simultaneous debt issuance. Prior to 2010, the purchaser was not separately identified as such, but was included as underwriter.
Purpose:
The principal purpose for which the debt has been incurred by the issuer. Issuers may select one of 49 purposes.
Rating Agency Fee:
The fees paid by the issuer at the time of issuance to the rating agencies that have rendered their opinion of the credit-worthiness of the bond. The fee may or may not be paid from the proceeds of the debt issuance. A blank field indicates an unrated bond issuance or that the issuer did not submit the specific payment made to the rating agencies.
Refund/Refinance (Annual Debt Transparency Report):
The amount of debt proceeds from a specific issuance of refunding/refinancing debt that was used to repay the outstanding principal during the reporting period. The CDIAC number of the refunding/refinancing issue that was the source of the principal repayment will be appear adjacent to the amount unless the source was a debt issuance not reported to CDIAC. (See CDIAC # of Refi Issue.)
Refunding Amount:
The amount of the proceeds from the debt issuance that the issuer or other party obligated to repay the debt intended to use for the purpose of refunding, redeeming, or refinancing other outstanding debt. Unlike the principal amount, the refunding amount reported to CDIAC may include issue premium that was raised specifically for refunding.
Repaid: In-period (Annual Debt Transparency Report):
The amount of principal repaid in the reporting period from all sources. (See Payments/Redemptions and Refund/Refinance.)
Reporting Year End (Annual Debt Transparency Report):
The date of the year for the end of the reporting period. The reporting period begins on July 1st and ends on June 30th. The data displayed in an ADTR as of reporting year end 2018 will cover activity for the issue from July 1, 2017 to June 30, 2018.
Revenue Bonds:
A bond that is payable from a specific source of revenue, usually derived from the operation of the financed project, or sale of a commodity, such as water. Generally, no voter approval is required prior to issuance of revenue bonds as the source of repayment is not based on tax support. Only the revenue specified in the bond documents is available to be used for repayment of interest and principal.
S&P Rating:
Standard & Poor's (S&P) Ratings Services is a nationally recognized statistical rating organization that provides an opinion of the credit-worthiness of a bond. S&P assigns long-term bond credit ratings of AAA, AA, A, BBB, BB, B, CCC, CC, C, D and uses a system of + and - to further delineate credit quality within grades. The highest quality are rated AAA. S&P assigns short-term bond credit ratings of A-1+, A-1, A-2, A-3, B, C. A blank field indicates that the issuer did not have the bond rated by S&P or failed to submit the rating to CDIAC.
Sale Date:
The date the proceeds of the debt issue were made available to the issuer or other party obligated to repay the debt, and the evidence of indebtedness was provided to the underwriter, purchaser or lender. An issue with "sold status" of "proposed" will return the most current proposed sale date submitted to CDIAC by the issuer. When the debt is issued, the sale date will reflect the date the debt was actually issued. (Note: Most frequently the sale date that will return for bonds and other similarly issued securities is the date of bid acceptance or execution of a bond purchase contract. This is based on the interpretation of the statute prior to 2015.)
Sale Type (Comp/Neg):
Indicates whether the debt issuance was sold competitively (comp) or through a negotiated (neg) sale. In a competitive sale, the issuer sells the securities to the winning underwriter or syndicate presenting a bid that provides the lowest interest rate cost and conforms to the issuer's stipulated debt criteria. In a negotiated transaction, the issuer sells the debt directly to an underwriter or underwriting syndicate selected by the issuer after negotiating the required terms. Private placement transactions always return a sale type "neg."
Social Impact Bonds:
Municipal debt securities labeled as "Social impact bonds" or "social bonds" that are issued to finance projects that provide social benefits such as affordable housing, food security improvements, access to education and healthcare. Bonds that have this classification are self-designating and do not have any objective guidelines or criteria.
Sold Status:
Indicates whether the debt is "proposed" for sale on the "sale date" or has been "sold" on the "sale date".
Source of Repayment:
The principal source of funds that the issuer will use to repay the debt obligation. Issuers select one of 14 different repayment sources, among which are property taxes, general fund, enterprise revenues, special assessments, and special taxes.
Special Assessment Bonds:
Bonds issued by a local agency. The source of payment of principal and interest is derived from an assessment imposed upon real property by the local agency for a special benefit conferred upon the real property from the financed public improvement. The levy of the assessment is subject to a majority protest ballot. In the event of a majority protest, the proposed assessment cannot be imposed.
Special Districts:
Refers to debt issuers that are local municipal service districts sanctioned under State law to provide public services within specified boundaries including, but not limited to, water, sewer, electricity, flood control, vector control, hospitals, fire suppression, and libraries.
Special Taxes Due (Mello-Roos Yearly Fiscal Status Report):
The total amount of special taxes that were levied on all parcels of property within the community facilities district which are subject to the special tax to repay the bonds during the tax year. The revenues pledged for the repayment of Mello-Roos debt are derived from a special tax that is levied on property owners on the annual property tax bill.
Special Taxes Unpaid (Mello-Roos Yearly Fiscal Status Report):
The amount of special taxes levied during the tax year that remain unpaid as of fiscal year end date.
State of California:
Refers to debt issuers that are the State of California, State programs and departments, State joint powers authorities, State entities (State conduit issuers), and the Student Loan Corporation.
Sustainability Bonds:
Municipal debt securities labeled as "sustainability bonds" that are issued to finance a combination of both green and/or social projects.
Syndicate:
A group of underwriters formed and bound by an agreement to purchase a new issue of municipal debt from the issuer and offer it for resale to the general public.
Tax Allocation Bonds:
Bonds payable from the incremental increase in tax revenues realized from any increase in property value and other economic activity, often designed to capture the economic benefit resulting from a bond financing. These bonds, also known as tax increment bonds, were issued by redevelopment agencies and are now issued by redevelopment successor agencies to refinance outstanding debt.
Tax and Revenue Anticipation Notes (TRANs):
Notes issued with short-term maturities payable from future tax receipts and revenues at a future date. TRANs are typically issued for cash flow management purposes.
Teeter Plan Flag (Mello-Roos Yearly Fiscal Status Report):
This field shows "Yes" or "No" depending on whether the special taxes levied in the community facilities district are paid under the county Teeter plan. The Teeter plan guarantees that a community facilities district (CFD) receives 100 percent of levied taxes as opposed to the actual amount of taxes collected by the county for the CFD. Rather than wait for delinquent tax payments to be collected by the county, the special tax revenues are advanced to the CFD by the county so the debt service can be maintained. Once the unpaid special taxes are collected, the county is reimbursed for the Teeter advance plus any penalties and interest.
TIC Interest Rate:
One method of calculating the interest cost to be paid by the issuer over the life of all the bonds. The TIC (true interest cost) rate accounts for the time value of money. When the TIC Interest Rate is used to discount all of the issue's future principal and interest payments, the summation of the discounted values will equal the original proceeds of the debt issue inclusive of net issue premium/discount. A blank field indicates that the issuer provided an alternative interest cost calculation (for example, a NIC interest rate), the rate could not be calculated as with a variable interest rate, or the issuer did not provide the rate to CDIAC.
Total Issuance Costs:
The total of all issuance costs as reported to CDIAC, including underwriter total spread/discount, placement agent fee, financial advisor fee, bond counsel fee, co-bond counsel fee, disclosure counsel fee, borrower's counsel fee, trustee fee, credit enhancement fee, rating agency fee, and other issuance expenses.
Total Reportable Proceeds (Annual Debt Transparency Report):
The total amount of proceeds from the debt issuance that are subject to ADTR reporting. The amount is calculated by adding the original principal to the net original issue premium or discount and subtracting the amount of proceeds used to acquire local obligations. (See Net Issue Discount/Premium.)
Trustee:
A financial institution or government entity with trust powers, designated by the issuer or borrower, that acts, pursuant to a debt contract, in a fiduciary capacity for the benefit of the debt holders in enforcing the terms of the debt contract. For instance, counties often serve as trustees for K-14 schools. A blank field indicates that the services of a trustee were not used or the issuer did not report the name of the trustee.
Trustee Fee:
The fee paid to the trustee at the time of issuance. The fee may or may not be paid from the proceeds of the debt issuance. A blank field indicates that the issuer did not use the services of a trustee or failed to submit the specific payment made to the trustee.
UC & CSU:
Refers to debt issuers that are entities and departments of the University of California or California State University systems.
Underwriter (UW):
A municipal securities dealer that purchases debt from the issuer with an intention to resell it to other buyers. Prior to 2010, underwriter included purchasers of debt in a private placement transaction. A blank field indicates that the transaction was a private placement with a purchaser or the issuer did not submit the name of the underwriter to CDIAC.
Used to Acquire Local Obligations (Annual Debt Transparency Report):
The amount of the debt proceeds that were used by a JPA to acquire the debt obligations of a local obligor or make loans to a local obligor. (See JPA & Marks Roos.)
UW Expenses:
A component of the UW total spread/discount that is paid to a syndicate's managing underwriter to cover the costs of operating the syndicate. A blank field indicates that the transaction did not use an underwriter syndicate or the issuer did not submit UW expenses.
UW Mngmt Fee:
A component of the UW total spread/discount that is paid to a syndicate's managing underwriter for the costs of managing the affairs of the syndicate. A blank field indicates that the transaction did not use an underwriter syndicate or the issuer did not submit the "UW mngmt fee".
UW Takedown:
The largest component of the UW total spread/discount that is paid to an underwriter or members of the syndicate as a commission for the resale of the securities according to the syndicate agreement. A blank field indicates that the transaction did not use an underwriter syndicate or the issuer did not submit the UW takedown.
UW Total Discount/Spread:
The differential between the price paid to the issuer by the underwriter for a new issue of municipal debt and the price that the securities are sold to the public by the underwriter. The UW total discount/spread field returns a total of "UW expenses, mngmt fee, and takedown" if reported. The "UW total discount/spread" field may have a value even if the three component values are blank. A blank field indicates that the transaction did not use an underwriter or the issuer did not submit the UW total discount/spread.