La. sells $200M in bonds for building projects

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - Louisiana sold $200 million in general obligation bonds to generate upfront cash to finance state construction projects, the first such bond sale since September 2006.

The State Bond Commission on Tuesday awarded the winning bid to Barclay's Capital, with the bonds to be paid off over 20 years at an interest rate of just under 4 percent.

Commissioner of Administration Angele Davis, the governor's top financial adviser and a member of the Bond Commission, praised the deal. She said the state had a strong number of bidders and got good terms for the deal in the tough economic climate.

"It's the first time we've been to market with a large issuance since the national downturn," Davis said. "We came out and we tested the market, and this shows that Louisiana is very attractive."

Also Tuesday, the state refinanced $125 million in general obligation bonds from 1998, at a 1.5 percent interest rate for a four-year term with J.P. Morgan Securities. Davis said the refinancing will save the state more than $1 million in interest payments.

The money from the bond sales will be used to pay for state-funded construction projects in the "capital outlay" program.