Sienna Municipal Utility District 3, TX -- Moody's assigns A1 to Sienna MUD No. 3, TX's Series 2022 refunding bonds
Rating Action: Moody's assigns A1 to Sienna MUD No. 3, TX's Series 2022 refunding bondsGlobal Credit Research - 31 Jan 2022New York, January 31, 2022 -- Moody's Investors Service has assigned an A1 rating to Sienna Municipal Utility District (MUD) No. 3, TX's $3.5 million Unlimited Tax Refunding Bonds, Series 2022. Moody's maintains the A1 rating on $22.3 million in outstanding parity debt.RATINGS RATIONALEThe A1 rating is based on the district's moderately sized, built out tax base that is favorably located southwest of Houston (Aa3 stable). The rating also reflects the district's strong financial position. The district's debt burden is slightly above the median for the rating, with no plans for additional debt.RATING OUTLOOKMoody's typically does not assign outlooks to local government credits with this amount of debt outstanding.FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OF THE RATING- Material reduction of the debt burdenFACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO A DOWNGRADE OF THE RATING- Trend of operational deficits narrowing reserves and liquidity- Material decline of taxable valuesLEGAL SECURITYPrincipal and interest on the bonds are payable from the proceeds of an annual ad valorem tax, without legal limitation as to rate or amount, levied against all taxable property within the district.USE OF PROCEEDSProceeds of the bonds will be used to refund certain outstanding obligations for savings with no extension of maturity.PROFILESienna Municipal Utility District 3, TX is in Fort Bend County (Aa1 stable), approximately 22 miles southwest of Houston. The district provides water, wastewater, and drainage infrastructure to an entirely residential area located within the Sienna Plantation master planned community.METHODOLOGYThe principal methodology used in this rating was US Local Government General Obligation Debt published in January 2021 and available at https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBM_1260094. Alternatively, please see the Rating Methodologies page on www.moodys.com for a copy of this methodology.REGULATORY DISCLOSURESFor further specification of Moody's key rating assumptions and sensitivity analysis, see the sections Methodology Assumptions and Sensitivity to Assumptions in the disclosure form. 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For further information please see the ratings tab on the issuer/entity page for the respective issuer on www.moodys.com.Regulatory disclosures contained in this press release apply to the credit rating and, if applicable, the related rating outlook or rating review.Moody's general principles for assessing environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks in our credit analysis can be found at http://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_1288235.Please see www.moodys.com for any updates on changes to the lead rating analyst and to the Moody's legal entity that has issued the rating.Please see the ratings tab on the issuer/entity page on www.moodys.com for additional regulatory disclosures for each credit rating. LeRoy Ousley Lead Analyst REGIONAL_SOUTHWEST Moody's Investors Service, Inc. 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