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The City of Milwaukee (the “City”) invites firms to submit proposals for underwriting services for a current refunding of its $37,000,000 Sewerage System Revenue Bonds, Series 2013 S5 (“Series 2013 S5”) and its $89,830,000 Sewerage System Revenue Bonds, Series 2016 S7 (“Series 2016 S7”, collectively the “Bonds”).
The City will use the responses to this Request for Proposals (“RFP”) to select a Senior Manager firm and/or co-managers based on the criteria listed in this RFP, including responsiveness of the proposal, experience of the underwriter in similar transactions over the past three (3) years, commitment to municipal finance, experience of the proposed team, proposed fees, references, and demonstrated commitment to the City.
The City intends to enter into this financing during the first half of 2026, dependent upon market conditions.
By the issuance of this RFP, the City is not obligating itself to issue the sewerage system revenue refunding bonds.
Please limit the response to twelve (12) pages, excluding a one-page cover letter, resumes that may be included in an appendix, the three (3) years of transaction history requested in Item 2, and the list of the firm’s competitive bidding on the City’s financings requested in Item 4 below. Proposals should be in a minimum of 11-point font with minimum margins of one inch.
Please provide brief resumes for your proposed team assigned to the City that will have an actual substantive and ongoing role, clearly noting who the City’s primary contact and underwriter will be. Resumes may be included in an appendix, which would not count against the page limit specified above.
Provide the total par amount and number of sewer revenue transactions that your firm has underwritten in 2023, 2024, and 2025. As a separate appendix, please provide a list of the transactions, including the sale date, issuer name, series name, par amount, and your firm's role in the transaction.
Additionally, please provide the total par amount and number of transactions your firm has underwritten during that same time for:
Describe your firm’s experience serving as senior manager on municipal transactions over the past five years. Identify whether your firm was the sole manager or served as co-senior manager.
Illustrate the various ways that your firm has demonstrated commitment to the City. Include in a separate appendix a list of your firm’s competitive bidding on the City’s financings for the last five (5) years, including your firm’s role and the syndicate leader.
State how many ratings your firm recommends for this transaction and from which agencies. Highlight any credit challenges you foresee and your recommendations for addressing them. Describe a specific situation where you have assisted a sewer utility in developing a successful ratings strategy.
Describe your proposed marketing strategy and how it will benefit the City in today’s market. Identify the specific issues and questions investors will likely have pertaining to the credit and provide your recommended responses.
Provide your thoughts on current market conditions. Include any case studies that illustrate your firm’s ability to creatively structure bonds and/or develop creative finance plans that support client bond sales in volatile markets.
Provide a sample timeline for the sale, understanding the City’s timing for its General Obligation sales. Address how quickly your firm could bring the City to market.
Describe your firm’s corporate structure (bank, investment bank, etc.), capital committed to the trading and underwriting of municipal bonds, and the largest transaction size for which you are willing to be the sole underwriter.
Provide the names of up to two firms you would be willing to utilize as Underwriter’s Counsel and the attorneys from each firm who would be assigned to the transaction. Minority Underwriter’s Counsel is encouraged. The City reserves the right to negotiate the Underwriter’s Counsel firm and fee.
Describe any professional liability errors and omissions insurance coverage carried by your firm.
Provide any additional information on why your firm should be selected as a senior manager or co-manager on the City’s transaction.
Provide your firm’s maturity-by-maturity takedown request. Include a detailed breakdown of expenses (e.g., not-to-exceed Underwriter’s Counsel) in terms of $/bond and total dollars for each category, assuming a principal amount of $65 million.
State whether your takedown proposal changes if your firm is asked to underwrite unsold bonds or if the par amount changes. Include all assumptions associated with your proposed fee. In addition, provide your firm’s proposal for fees to serve as dealer manager.
Under the terms of this RFP, the City is not obligated to select the firm(s) with the lowest cost. The evaluation and review will consider all aspects of the proposals. The City will select the firm(s) most responsive to the needs of City and most capable of providing the services to meet those needs. Based upon the review of the proposals, those determined to meet the needs of the City most closely may be interviewed.
To be considered, please submit an electronic copy of the proposal by 4:00 p.m. CT on Friday, January 9, 2025 to:
Additionally, an electronic copy must be submitted to both contacts listed below at PFM Financial Advisors LLC, the City’s municipal advisor:
Contact us if you need more information or have questions about this RFP.
