Maryland has ended a decades-long relationship with one of three major bond rating firms a year after that firm downgraded the state’s credit rating.
The state is scheduled to go to an $800 million bond sale on Wednesday with ratings from Fitch, Standard & Poor’s and a relatively new firm, Kroll Bond Rating Agency, which took the place of longtime rating agency, Moody’s. Maryland parted ways with Moody’s after it downgraded Maryland’s rating last year from AAA, the highest rating, to Aa1, although state officials said the downgrade was not the reason for the split.
All three of the current agencies rated the state’s upcoming bonds at AAA — once again giving the state a triple-triple-A designation that it bragged about for decades — but Standard & Poor’s lowered its outlook on outstanding debt from stable to negative…