Laserfiche WebLink
Mr. Schmidt replied that he nomial experties in the area of bonds, that he <br />view bonds after they have been reviewed by financial consultants. <br /> <br />Commissioner Buchanan inquired if a city goes from statutory to charter, is <br />their bond rating decreased because of that. <br /> <br />Mr. Schmidt replied that certain cities, because of actions taken at an <br />organizational level, were not able to go from a non-rated situation to a <br />rated situation. <br /> <br />Mr. Schnelle stated that Ramsey's rating is BAA1, which is not that good. <br /> <br />Mr. Schmidt stated that principle factors considered when being rated is <br />how much taxes are being generated by the people, how much industry does the <br />city have. <br /> <br />Chairman Heitman asked where Ramsey goes from down, that maybe a charter would <br />improve the rating. <br /> <br />Mr. Schmidt stated that the method of taxation, which rises from charter <br />Chapter 7, will certainly have a bearing on Ramsey's rating and urged the <br />Commission to take advantage of all the expertise in this area possible. <br /> <br />Commissioner Gamec also noted that City publicity has a bearing on the rating. <br /> <br />Mr. Schmidt stated that the clarity and amount of detail this Charter Commission <br />goes into is all important because nobody has to buy Ramsey's bonds, there is <br />a wide market and if we come out with one that is a lot different from the <br />others, either this City will pay a lot more to get them sold or we'~will not <br />get them sold at all. <br /> <br />Mr. Schnelle stated that Ramsey is going after a much higher bond rating, <br />that we are rated BAA1 because we do not have industrial growth. To do so <br />we have had to adopt a Comprehensive Plan, Capital Improvement Budget and <br />an Assessment Ordinance. The charter does not have to pre-empt these efforts. <br />There are problems when too much taxes are carried by residential areas. <br />Mr. Schnelle stated that he and Mr. Schmidt will review Chapters 7 and 8 <br />and submit their opinion to the Commission in writing. As an added item, <br />Mr. Schnelle suggested that it would be good for the charter to establish <br />that a cross section of citizens be delegated to review the budget and <br />provide input to Council. In this way, the citizens would become educated <br />regarding City budget. The input from this committee would not be binding <br />and no citizen should serve no more than two consecutive terms and terms <br />should alternate so that every year new persons could be appointed. <br /> <br />Commissioner Buchanan stated that it appears citizen involvement in city <br />government can lower our bond rating. <br /> <br />Commissioner Gamec replied that the bond rating companies understand that <br />charters come up because of controversial issues, they would like to see <br />those charters allow for change and not tie the city up. <br /> <br />Mr. Schmidt stated that he is not suggesting that a charter will hurt the <br />City's rating, a poorly written charter will. <br /> <br />Commissioner Buchanan stated that if 'poorly written' refers to citizens <br />being able to stop public improvements, there are two sides to consider. <br /> <br />CC/October 13, 1983 <br />Page 4 of 9 <br /> <br /> <br />