OREANDA-NEWS. Fitch Ratings has assigned a rating of 'F1' to the $200,000,000 Miami-Dade County, Florida Aviation Commercial Paper Notes, Series C (AMT) Miami International Airport (the notes).

KEY RATING DRIVERS:
The 'F1' rating is based on the support provided by an irrevocable direct pay letter of credit (LOC) issued by Bank of America, N.A. (BANA, rated 'A+/F1', Stable Outlook) which has a stated expiration date of March 2, 2019 unless extended or earlier terminated. The BANA LOC provides coverage for the principal amount of the notes and interest due on the maturity dates of the notes.

The Bank of New York Mellon is the Issuing and Paying Agent (IPA) for the notes, and as IPA, is directed to request an advance under the LOC to pay principal and interest on maturing notes. The LOC provides sufficient coverage for the principal amount of notes and 270 days of interest calculated at 12% based on a 365-day year.

All notes will be issued at par, with interest due at maturity. Following the occurrence of an event of default under the LOC, BANA may direct the IPA to immediately stop the issuance of any additional notes. In such an event the LOC will expire after all the notes supported by the LOC mature and have been paid from funds drawn on the LOC. Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated is the dealer for the notes

RATING SENSITIVITIES:

The rating is exclusively tied to the short-term rating that Fitch maintains on the bank providing the LOC and will reflect all changes to that rating.