Governor Ron DeSantis, who is seeking the Republican presidential nomination, is able to brag that Fitch Ratings affirmed Florida’s AAA credit rating, the highest rating available, making it higher than the nation’s under Democratic President Joe Biden.
“As excessive spending and irresponsible governance ballooned our nation’s debt to detriment to its credit rating, Florida remains the standard-bearer for smart fiscal policy,” Governor DeSantis said.
This Florida announcement follows Fitch’s recent downgrade of the Federal government’s credit rating from AAA to AA+. The AAA rating reinforces Florida’s position as the standard-bearer amongst the states and the federal government for sound fiscal responsibility. Florida has maintained the highest rating category by the three major credit rating agencies for five consecutive years.
The report reinforces that Florida is “well-positioned to maintain a high level of fundamental financial flexibility through economic downturns, with broad expenditure and revenue controls buttressed by robust reserves,” and comes weeks after Governor DeSantis announced that Florida paid off nearly one-quarter of the state’s outstanding debt since he took office in 2019.
“Today’s announcement reinforces that Florida’s track record of conservative policy, early debt repayment , and strong reserves is the blueprint for states and the federal government to follow,” Governor Ron DeSantis said at the time.
The report finds that Florida’s consistent AAA ratings and prudent financial decisions are in line with “its history of sound financial management practices, high gap-closing capacity and reserves, and low long-term liability.” The rating reinforces the state’s strong economic conditions and ability to provide long-term business growth opportunities.
To read the full report, click here.
