Oxnard Union High School District
Comprehensive Financing Strategy Supports Districtwide Capital Needs and Significant Taxpayer Savings through Refinancing
Background
Oxnard Union High School District (the District), located in Ventura County, California, serves students across multiple comprehensive high school campuses and alternative education sites. As part of its ongoing capital planning, the District evaluated opportunities to finance new facility improvements while reducing debt service on outstanding obligations.
On February 5, 2026, Baird’s California K-12 Public Finance group served as sole managing underwriter for three concurrent transactions: $75,000,000 of new money bonds, $12,500,000 of current refunding bonds, and $17,000,000 of forward refunding bonds. The District is rated Aa3 by Moody’s.
Opportunity
The District entered the market seeking to efficiently address multiple objectives in a single coordinated financing—funding new capital projects, capturing near-term refunding savings, and locking in future savings ahead of an upcoming May 2026 optional redemption date. Market tone on pricing day was constructive, with investors showing a preference for high-quality California school district credits and longer-duration bonds.
Solution & Implementation
Baird structured and priced all three series simultaneously to optimize investor demand across the yield curve. The $75 million new money series generated the strongest demand, with moderate participation in the front end and rapidly building books beyond 2036. Long maturities were oversubscribed between 4x and 11x, enabling yield reductions of 3 to 11 basis points. Final yields ranged from 1.86% in 2027 to 4.20% in 2047.
The $12.5 million current refunding saw more targeted demand. While the 2026 maturity was lightly subscribed, strong interest in 2028 and steady support in the 2034–2035 range allowed for yield adjustments of 1 to 7 basis points. Final yields ranged from 1.92% to 2.35%.
The $17 million forward refunding performed as expected for a forward-delivery structure, with steady demand around 2x in the front and middle of the curve. The 2038 maturity stood out with 4.1x subscription, allowing for a 4-basis point repricing and a final yield of 3.16% on a 4% coupon.
Across all three series, institutional investors leaned into longer maturities, providing flexibility to tighten spreads where support was strongest, particularly in the long end of the new money bonds.
Results & Impact
The coordinated execution enabled the District to secure funding for priority capital projects while generating debt service savings through both current and forward refunding issues ($2mm gross savings, $1.6mm net present value or 5.22% net present value %.) Strong investor participation across the platform demonstrated continued demand for high-grade California school district credits and validated the District’s comprehensive approach to debt management.