BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Louisiana borrowed $350 million on Thursday to keep money flowing to state-financed construction projects.
The Bond Commission, which oversees construction spending, approved the general obligation bond sale without objection.
The state borrows money by selling bonds to investors for upfront cash. The debt will be paid over 20 years with a 2.2% interest rate — a cheaper rate than the 3.2% that Louisiana received in its last general obligation bond sale in February 2019.
“This is just much less expensive money so there’s a lower burden on the budget,” said Louisiana’s financial adviser, Renee Boicourt with Lamont Financial Services Corp.
Citigroup Global Markets Inc. was the winning bidder for the bond sale because it offered the lowest interest rate.
The commission has sought to block Citigroup from involvement in other state borrowing deals because of the bank’s firearm restriction policies for corporate customers. No commission member raised objections Thursday about accepting Citigroup’s low bid.
