Hillsborough County authorizes up to $650M for utility borrowing

Hillsborough County commissioners adopted an interim borrowing authorization on July 15 to help fund water and sewer projects, including the One Water Campus in South County.

The resolution allows the county to issue a subordinate utility revenue note with up to $650 million in aggregate advances. That amount is a not-to-exceed borrowing authorization, not approval of a $650 million cash expenditure or a completed construction program.

What commissioners approved

The financing is intended to provide near-term funding for capital improvements to the county’s utilities system while longer-term financing is arranged. The county’s official July 15 agenda identifies the One Water Campus as a specific project within the financing scope, along with other water and sewer capital work.

The note is to be repaid exclusively from Water/Wastewater System revenues. That means future utility budgets, system revenues, financing terms and bond decisions will be important for customers to follow.

The resolution itself does not approve a utility-rate increase. The available records also do not establish that customer rates will rise because of this action.

Why the One Water Campus is part of the plan

Hillsborough County describes the One Water Program as a long-term drinking water, wastewater and reclaimed-water initiative serving the South-Central Service Area. The area includes communities such as Apollo Beach, Brandon, Gibsonton, Riverview, Ruskin, Wimauma, Sun City and Valrico.

The county estimates the broader program at approximately $1.6 billion. Its components include an advanced wastewater treatment facility, the Balm Road Super Pump Station and pipelines for wastewater and reclaimed water. The county says the program is intended to improve South County’s drinking-water supply and pressure while expanding wastewater treatment capacity.

What happens to the borrowing authorization next

The authorized amount is scheduled to decline to $500 million on June 30, 2028, and then to $350 million on December 31, 2028. Those dates are not guaranteed refinancing deadlines. County staff expects the note could be refinanced sooner through one or more future bond issues.

The July 15 agenda estimates approximately $105.5 million in FY27 debt-service expense, including a planned $100 million principal repayment connected to a future bond issuance. That figure is an agenda estimate or planned expense, not a final audited result.

What Tampa-area residents should watch

The next major checkpoints are the county’s July 29 budget reconciliation hearing and the planned September 24 final FY27 budget vote. Future agendas and bond documents should show whether refinancing moves forward, how much of the borrowing is actually used, and how debt service fits into the utility system’s financial plans.

For residents in South County, the financing is tied to projects intended to expand and improve water and wastewater infrastructure. For utility customers countywide, the key issue is how the county manages repayment from system revenues without treating the July authorization as an immediate spending package or a confirmed rate increase.

Sources

• Hillsborough County BOCC July 15 agenda and utility revenue-note resolution
• Hillsborough County One Water Campus Program overview