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Wall Street gives the District a credit ratings boost

WASHINGTON — Standard & Poor’s and Fitch bond rating services have upgraded the District’s general obligation bond rating from AA to AA+, the second-highest ratings issued by the two agencies.

The ratings increases cover $4.8 billion in outstanding D.C. general obligation bonds.

Moody’s Investors Service will announce its rating decision early next week.

As of November 2017, Moody’s carried an Aa1 rating on the District’s GO bonds, also its second-highest credit rating.

The rating agencies cited the District’s strong financial performance and growing economy despite federal government contraction, and say the District has managed its budgets to meet needs such as dedicated funding for the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority.

“The upgraded ratings communicate to our investors that the nation’s capital is a great place to invest. Most importantly, it means we can borrow at the lowest interest rates making more funds available for essential programs,” said D.C. chief financial officer Jeffrey DeWitt.

Surrounding counties, including Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, Prince William, Prince George’s and Montgomery, all have the highest AAA ratings from the credit rating agencies.

Massachusetts court hears arguments in lawsuit alleging Meta designed apps to be addictive to kids

BOSTON (AP) — Massachusetts' highest court heard oral arguments Friday in the state's lawsuit arguing that Meta designed features on Facebook and Instagram to make them addictive to young users. The lawsuit, filed in 2023 by Attorney General Andrea Campbell, alleges that Meta did this to make a profit and that its actions affected hundreds of thousands of teenagers in Massachusetts who use the social media platforms. “We are making claims based only on the tools that Meta has developed because its own research shows they encourage addiction to the platform in a variety of ways,” said State Solicitor David Kravitz, adding that the state's claim has nothing to do the company's algorithms or failure to moderate content. Meta said Friday that it strongly disagrees with the allegations and is “confident the evidence will show our longstanding commitment to supporting young people.” Its attorney, Mark Mosier, argued in court that the lawsuit “would impose liabilities for performing traditional publishing functions” and that its actions are protected by the First Amendment.
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