Financial Services

The Vendor is required to provide financial advisory services under a one-year contract with option of renewal.
- Requirement:
1. Financial condition review and baseline assessment
•    Review the city’s recent financial performance, including audited financial statements, budgets, and management reports. 
•    Evaluate the city’s current budget, revenue structure, operating trends, and expenditure patterns. 
•    Review any existing financial projections, capital improvement plans, or long-range financial studies prepared by the city or other consultants. 
•    Identify and utilize relevant analyses already completed for the city by outside consultants, auditors, engineers, or other advisors in order to avoid duplication of effort or cost.
•    Evaluate the city’s current debt profile, including outstanding obligations, repayment schedules, and debt service coverage levels. 
•    Analyze the city’s capital structure relative to its revenue sources and projected financial capacity. 
•    Identify potential financial risks or structural issues that could affect the city’s long-term financial condition. 
•    Provide recommendations regarding financial management practices, budget planning, and debt management strategies. 
2. Capital planning and financial modeling
•    Develop a comprehensive capital planning model to evaluate long-term capital needs and financing strategies. 
•    Incorporate variables such as project timing and costs, available revenue sources, cash versus debt funding strategies, debt amortization structures, and projected growth in revenues and expenditures. 
•    Evaluate various financing scenarios and their impact on the city’s operating budget and financial position. 
•    Analyze the city’s debt capacity and affordability under multiple economic scenarios. 
•    Develop scenario analysis to evaluate the financial impact of different capital project priorities and funding strategies. 
•    Work collaboratively with city staff to refine model assumptions and ensure the model can be maintained internally by the city. 
•    Assist in presenting capital planning scenarios to the city council or other governing bodies as requested. 
3. Debt issuance and financing advisory services
•    Evaluate financing options including general obligation bonds, revenue bonds, installment financings, bank loans, direct placements, and other financing structures. 
•    Develop recommended plans for proposed financings. 
•    Evaluate alternatives including public market debt versus private placements. 
•    Assist the city in preparing for debt issuance, including preparation of financing schedules and financial data review. 
•    Prepare quantitative schedules including sources and uses of funds, debt service schedules, and key bond statistics. 
•    Assist the city in selecting members of the financing team such as underwriters, lenders, trustees, or other participants.
•    Assist in developing and evaluating solicitation materials such as requests for proposals for lenders or underwriters. 
•    Coordinate interviews with prospective financing providers and assist in negotiating financial terms. 
•    Develop and maintain financing timetables identifying key milestones and required approvals. 
•    Assist in preparing and presenting financing information to the city council or other governing bodies.
•    Advise the city regarding market conditions and factors affecting interest rates and investor demand. 
•    Assist in negotiating final pricing and terms of the financing. 
•    Assist in coordinating closing logistics and preparation of flow-of-funds schedules.
4. Credit rating strategy and ongoing advisory services
•    Prepare credit profiles for the city and evaluate factors affecting its credit ratings. 
•    Assist in preparing rating agency presentations and supporting materials. 
•    Develop rating strategies and assist the city in meetings with credit rating agencies. 
•    Monitor the city’s existing debt portfolio and identify potential refinancing opportunities. 
•    Provide ongoing advice regarding market conditions affecting municipal borrowing. 
•    Assist in reviewing and updating financial policies including debt management and reserve policies. 
•    Provide guidance regarding regulatory developments affecting municipal issuers. 
•    Serve as the city’s independent registered municipal advisor for purposes of applicable federal regulations.
5. Capital planning tools and analytical capabilities
•    Respondents should describe any proprietary or internally developed capital planning, financial forecasting, or debt capacity modeling tools available to assist the city. 
•    Provide examples of how such tools have been used to assist other municipal clients in evaluating capital project timing, funding sources, and long-term financial sustainability. 
•    The ability of such tools to model alternative financing structures, project phasing, revenue projections, and financial ratios. 
•    Explain how the city’s staff could utilize or maintain the planning tools following initial implementation. 
•    Provide examples of deliverables or dashboards that may be produced to support decision making by elected officials and staff.