By Rick Pluta, Michigan Public Radio Network
LANSING, MI –
Governor Rick Snyder and members of his budget team were in New York Monday to meet with the agencies that set the state's credit rating. As we hear from Michigan Public Radio's Rick Pluta, the state's rating suffered due to the effects of the decade-long recession.
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The state's bond ratings are not that bad, but they could be better. Governor Snyder traveled to Wall Street with state Treasurer Andy Dillon and Budget Director John Nixon. They made the case that Michigan deserves an upgrade because it's overhauled its business tax and wrapped up its budget months ahead of schedule without resorting to accounting gimmicks and one-time fixes.
Sara Wurfel is the governor's press secretary.
"One change in a state's bond rating can actually mean millions of dollars in lower payments," she says.
The governor's itinerary included meetings with Moody's, Fitch Ratings and Standard & Poor's. The meetings only opened the discussions with Wall Street, and Wurfel says there will be further negotiations as the governor tries to reduce the cost to taxpayers when Michigan borrows money.