Lower Borrowing Costs Benefit Highline’s Future
Highline Public Schools secured competitive interest rates on the latest sale of school bonds approved by voters in 2022. Highline’s strong credit rating and budget management helped land many more offers than necessary, resulting in better interest rates for the district.
This is the second bond sale from the 2022 authorization, following a $280 million sale in June 2023.
“Lower borrowing costs for bonds help taxpayers,” said Highline Chief Financial Officer Jackie Bryan.
“When bonds sell at lower interest rates than projected, less is owed in interest over time. This also allows our community to consider another series of construction projects as soon as 2026 to rebuild more schools while keeping property taxes stable.”
Highline received a strong Aa3 credit rating from Moody’s Investors Service ahead of the January 28 bond sale, reaffirming the district’s “stable financial position.” Unlike many districts in the Puget Sound region that recently saw their ratings downgraded, Highline’s rating remains steady. Moody’s stated that “the stable outlook reflects our expectation that the district will maintain a satisfactory financial position, supported by proactive budget management.”
The $140 million bond sale enables Highline to complete construction of Evergreen and Tyee high schools — both scheduled to open in September 2025 — and begin the two-year construction project to replace Pacific Middle School. The 2022 bond also funds critical capital improvements, including:
- Emergency repairs
- Replacement of Transportation Building L
- Installation of a new synthetic field at Sylvester Middle School
- Remodeling space for Highline Virtual Academy
A third and final sale of $98.4 million in remaining bonds is anticipated in fall 2025. Bond sales are packaged and sold to institutional investors and are not available for individual purchase.
For updates on Highline’s school construction projects and bond progress, visit our school construction webpages at highlineschools.org/keepingourpromise.