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Event Notice Pursuant to SEC RULE 15c2-12(b)(5)(C):
Disclosure of Issuer's Intent to bid and to Submit Hold Order at Auction of Bonds
| Issuer: |
Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (the “Issuer”) |
Issue to which this report relates: |
$125,600,000 outstanding principal amount Variable Rate Revenue Refunding Bonds, Series of 2007 (the “Bonds”) |
| CUSIP Number: |
842039AA7 |
| Date of Auction: |
May 29, 2008 (the “Auction Date”) |
| Broker-Dealer: |
Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated (the “Broker-Dealer”) |
| Event Reported: |
Intent of Authority to Submit Bid and Hold Order For Auction Rate Bonds |
The Bonds
The Bonds currently bear interest in the Auction Mode with an Auction Period of 7 days. Auctions are generally conducted on Thursdays.
As has been reported in the national business press, the tax-exempt auction rate markets have experienced extreme disruptions in the past few months. While the Issuer has not experienced a failed auction for the Bonds, the Auction Rate for the Bonds has increased dramatically during this period over prior levels.
Regulatory Guidance
Federal regulators have issued guidance on the ability of issuers to bid on their own auction rate bonds, including a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Letter dated March 14, 2008 (the “SEC Letter”) and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Notice 2008-41 (March 25, 2008). In reliance on this guidance, the Issuer intends to bid from time to time on a portion of the Bonds in order to reduce a portion of its interest rate expense.
Issuer Intends to Submit Bid and Hold Order on Bonds
In the auction held on May 8, 2008, the Issuer submitted a bid for the purchase of $30,000,000 of the Bonds at an interest rate equal to the SIFMA Municipal Swap Index as of May 7, 2008 plus 140 basis points. The SIFMA Municipal Swap Index resets each Wednesday at 4:00 p.m. EST and can be found at http://archives1.sifma.org/swapdata.html. The Issuer’s bid was accepted. In the auction held on May 15, 2008, the Issuer submitted a Hold Order without regard to rate for the $30,000,000 it owned, and the Issuer also submitted a bid for the purchase of $10,000,000 of additional Bonds at an interest rate equal to the SIFMA Municipal Swap Index as of May 14, 2008 plus 140 basis points. The Issuer’s bid was accepted. In the auction held on May 22, 2008, the Issuer submitted a Hold Order without regard to rate for all $40,000,000 of the Bonds it owned. On the Auction Date, the Issuer again intends to submit a Hold Order for all $40,000,000 of the Bonds it owns without regard to rate.
The Issuer is submitting its Hold Order on the Bonds it owns in order to reduce a portion of its interest rate expense by holding a portion of the Bonds. The Issuer does not intend to submit a bid for any additional Bonds on the Auction Date. The Issuer has no current intention of bidding on or attempting to hold all or nearly all of the Bonds although it reserves the right to do so. It is the Issuer’s current intention to submit Hold Orders with respect to the Bonds it currently owns in future auctions although it reserves the right not to do so.
The Issuer is considering its financing options with respect to the Bonds, including without limitation, (1) conversion of the Bonds to another Mode, (2) continuing to bid for Bonds in subsequent auctions, (3) permitting the continuation of the auction process without bids being made by the Issuer, and (4) restructuring, redeeming or refunding all or a part of the Bonds.
The Issuer does not currently intend to purchase Bonds outside of the auction process but it reserves the right to do so.
Investors who currently hold the Bonds or who choose to submit bids in any auction in which the Issuer submits a bid or a Hold Order or Sell Order should understand that the interests of the Issuer are different from, and, in fact may be contrary to, the interests of other investors in the Bonds in that the Issuer would benefit from lower interest rates on the Bonds whereas investors generally seek higher interest rates on the Bonds.
Information Regarding the Immediately Preceding Auction for the Bonds
The Issuer hereby provides the following information regarding the immediately preceding auction of the Bonds which took place on May 15, 2008.
| The principal amount of Bonds for sale (i.e., the total dollar amount of Bonds for which Hold Orders were not submitted): |
$39,925,000 |
| Number of bids made: |
24 |
| Aggregate dollar amount of bids made: |
$401,900,000 |
| High bid: |
5.00% |
| Low bid: |
2.70% |
| Median bid: |
3.90% |
| Clearing rate: |
3.97% |
| Number, interest rate and amount of bids by the Issuer: |
Number: None* Interest Rate(s): N/A Amount: N/A |
| Number, interest rate(s) and amount of bids by the Broker-Dealer: |
Number: 1 Interest Rate(s): 5.00% Amount: $125,600,000 |
| Number of bidders other than the Issuer and the Broker-Dealer: |
23 | *The Issuer did submit a Hold Order without regard to rate for $40,000,000 of Bonds as described above.
Dissemination of this Notice and the Results of the Auction
The Issuer has contracted with Digital Assurance Certification LLC (“DAC”) to disseminate this notice. This notice will be disseminated by DAC to the following nationally recognized municipal securities information repositories:
- Bloomberg Municipal Repository (http://www.bloomberg.com/markets/rates/municontacts.html),
- DPC Data Inc. (http://www.Munifilings.com)
- Interactive Data Pricing and Reference Data, Inc. (http://www.interactivedata-prd.com)
- Standard & Poor’s Securities Evaluations, Inc. (http://www.disclosuredirectory.standardpoors.com/).
This notice will also be posted on the Issuer’s public website at: http://www.septa.org/news/bonds_auction/ and on the Broker-Dealer’s website at http://ml.com/index.asp?id=7695_8425_8016_7296#ARS1 (through a link to http://www.dacbond.com/dacContent/todaysARSs.jsp).
This notice will also be emailed by DAC to The Wall Street Journal, The Bond Buyer and other financial media.
Following the Auction Date, the Issuer will disclose, in a subsequent notice, information regarding the results of the auction held on the Auction Date. Such notice will be disseminated using the same methods described above for the dissemination of this notice.
Additional Information Concerning the Issuer
The Bonds were issued pursuant to an Official Statement dated February 27, 2007 (the “Official Statement”). Since that date, the Issuer has filed certain limited information with the NRNSIRs pursuant to its continuing disclosure obligations as described in the Official Statement. The Issuer is not providing any additional information regarding its business affairs or financial performance. The Issuer will provide a paper or electronic copy of the Official Statement, at no cost, to any person upon request submitted to: Kurt Weidenhammer, Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, 1234 Market Street, 9th Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19107; Telephone No.: (215) 580-7889.
Date Submitted: May 23, 2008 SOUTHEASTERN PENNSYLVANIA TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY
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