Fitch gives F1+ to Cook County tax notes, drops outlook to negative

Fitch Ratings said it assigned an F1+ to Cook County, Ill.'s $150 million series 2008 sales tax anticipation notes.

The notes are scheduled for negotiated sale on July 2 and will mature Nov. 15, 2009.

Fitch also affirmed the AA rating on $3 billion of the county's outstanding general obligation debt and revised the outlook to negative from stable.

The outlook revision reflects financial weakening, an increasingly high-tax environment for retail sales in a down economy, and the need for structural reform within the county's massive health system, where widening operating losses require an increasing amount of operating fund subsidy. Cook County includes the city of Chicago.

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