The Town of Brookhaven has maintained its top-tier credit ratings, with both Moody’s and S&P Global Ratings assigning the municipality an AAA rating with a stable outlook. This marks the seventh consecutive year that Moody’s has awarded Brookhaven its highest Aaa rating. S&P Global Ratings also assigned its 'AAA' long-term rating to Brookhaven’s $45.5 million series 2025A general obligation serial bonds and $17.4 million series 2025B GO refunding serial bonds.
Supervisor Dan Panico commented on the news, stating, “The affirmation of the strong finances of Brookhaven Town is a credit to the long-term fiscal planning practices and core management team that we have instituted and kept in place for over a decade. Our stellar credit rating exceeds that of even the US government. We will continue to be mindful of our finances. Our AAA bond rating enables us to build capital improvements at a far superior interest rate, thus saving taxpayers money.”
Councilwoman Jane Bonner, who serves as the Town’s Finance Liaison, said, “For more than a decade, the Town’s financial position has been gaining strength. As a result, we have maintained our superior bond rating despite the downturn in the economy. I’m proud to work with Supervisor Panico and our financial team at Town Hall as we continue to spend wisely and always have a sharp eye on the bottom line.”
Moody’s report cited several strengths for Brookhaven, including its large and diverse tax base in Suffolk County with convenient access to New York City, as well as significant institutional presences such as Brookhaven National Laboratory and Stony Brook University. The agency highlighted that “Brookhaven benefits from a large and diverse tax base conveniently located in Suffolk County with relatively easy access to New York City. The local economy is also a strength, given significant institutional presences provided by Brookhaven National Laboratory and Stony Brook University. The town also benefits from strong fiscal management and ample reserves and liquidity. The strong management team continues to actively manage the loss of landfill revenues, a significant source of General Fund revenues.” Moody’s further stated: “The Town of Brookhaven’s reserves will remain healthy over the next three years given conservative budgeting and active management of day-to-day operations,” adding it also benefits from “strong fiscal management.”
S&P Global Ratings noted in their report that the “AAA rating reflects Brookhaven's continued positive operation, supported by the town’s robust management framework, which we expect will support positive operations even with transitioning revenue framework for its general fund. In addition, Brookhaven’s expanding tax base, with numerous residential and commercial projects, further supports the town’s transition to being primarily funded by property taxes rather than landfill revenue. With rapidly amortizing debt and an aggressive approach to leveraging grant money for capital projects, we expect the town will maintain balanced operations.”