Agency Confirms Forsyth County's Outlook as Stable

Forsyth County's credit rating has strengthened with its outlook changed to stable by Moody's Investors Service, the leading provider of credit ratings, research, and risk analysis.

Moody's confirms that Forsyth County's Aaa rating outlook has changed from negative to stable on Wednesday.

“Forsyth County’s strong financial condition, as illustrated by Moody’s Aaa rating, is certainly something of which we can all be very proud,” said Commission Chairman Brian R. Tam.

Forsyth County is one of only three counties in Georgia with the Aaa rating from
Moody’s.

Obligations rated Aaa are judged to be of the highest quality, with minimal credit risk, according to the agency's Web site.

Wednesday's actions are based on an expanded evaluation of the exposure each county has to the U.S. government, including economic sensitivity to federal spending reductions, dependence on federal transfers and exposure to capital markets disruptions, said Moody's Managing Director Naomi Richman.

Forsyth County was among 119 local governments and two states (South Carolina and Tennessee) whose rating outlooks were reassessed due to having been identified as indirectly linked to the U.S. government.

Due to this indirect linkage to the U.S. government, the rating outlooks for Forsyth County and many others had been reviewed to determine whether they would be confirmed as stable or potentially downgraded to negative, according to a news release by Forsyth County government.

“The county is fortunate to have a dedicated, talented staff and an outstanding management and legal team," said Tam. "Through their counsel and the Board policies that are in place, confirmation of the county’s stable outlook was achieved.”