Menlo Park school district bond refinancing saves $3.7 million

The Menlo Park City School District will save taxpayers over $3.7 million by refinancing its voter-approved bonds.

The district refinanced the bonds on Sept. 10 after receiving a triple A rating from Moody’s Investors Service, according to a district press release. The school board approved the refinancing at an Aug. 29 meeting.

The move will lower district residents’ property tax bills, according to the district’s financial adviser Keygent.

“Our primary mission is to serve our students, making sure they are all engaging, achieving, and thriving in the classroom and as developing young people,” said Superintendent Erik Burmeister in a prepared statement. “Every voter and taxpayer in MPCSD can be proud that our business office is looking out for their bottom line. They should also know that this smart management allows MPCSD to punch above its weight, consistently delivering the highest quality education at a much lower per student cost than any of our neighboring community-funded districts.”

The district refunded bonds sold in 2005, 2012, 2014 and 2015 in a process similar to refinancing a home loan, according to the district’s website. The district took advantage of the current low interest rates and replaced bonds with an average interest rate of 4.5% with new bonds at an interest rate of 2.61%.

In the past decade, the district has saved the taxpayers $28.9 million by taking advantage of refunding opportunities, according to the press release.

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