Liquor Revenue Bond Sold, Hospitals to be Paid Within Weeks‏

Augusta, Maine - The State of Maine’s liquor revenue bond has been sold. The revenue bond, part of Governor LePage’s plan for a new wholesale liquor contract, will be used to repay $183.5 million in welfare debt the state owes to Maine hospitals. This payment will trigger a federal match of $305 million.

“With the sale of the liquor revenue bond, Maine hospitals are now just weeks away from being repaid the more than $484 million in welfare debt owed to them,” said Governor Paul R. LePage. “This is good news for these employers and their local communities.”

The full payment is expected to be paid during the month of September. Meanwhile, the $220 million liquor operation revenue bond received an “all-in rate,” or total interest cost, of just 3.79 percent.

“High demand from investors helped drive the interest rate down,” said Mike Goodwin, executive director of the Maine Municipal Bond Bank. “The interest shown by investors and the positive ratings received from the rating agencies demonstrate the strength of the liquor business in Maine.”

Standard & Poor’s assigned its ‘A+’ rating and Moody’s Investors Services assigned their ‘A1’ rating to the Maine liquor revenue bond. Both ratings received a stable outlook from the rating agencies.

The Maine Municipal Bond Bank is scheduled to settle the bond sale on September 5, 2013.