IRS closes examination of Burlington, Vermont, bonds

The Internal Revenue Service has closed its examination of the City of Burlington, Vermont’s $9.7 million general obligation public improvement bonds, Series 2010A Qualified School Construction Bonds with no change after the city provided documentation of its use of proceeds.

At stake was Burlington’s eligibility to continue receiving federal tax credits pursuant to the QSCBs, which like Build America Bonds, are debt instruments that were created by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

“On April 14, 2022, the City of auditing QSCB issuances in the last few years, as evidenced by its notices sent to multiple school districts in Idaho in 2019 and 2020.

Vermont’s largest city has gone to market with multiple issuances in recent years and on Aug. 15, the Burlington City Council voted to allow a bond request on November’s ballot, where the district hopes to borrow up to $165 million to build a new high school and technical center.