Starting in January 2022, the E-470 Public Highway Authority lowered toll rates for all its customers despite the pandemic. The Authority’s debt and financial management strategy during the pandemic focused on achieving a long-standing goal of reducing and leveling the debt service profile. Throughout the pandemic, the Authority didn’t request or seek state and federal funds. Instead, it relied only  on strategic planning and financial strategies to ensure its capital plan, debt plan, and overall credit rating remained strong. Even with the economic downturn, E-470’s Board of Directors extended 2020 toll rates through 2021 without any toll rate increases. The Board also approved the 2020 bond refunding plan and updates to the Authority’s debt management policy, which included for the first time, financial goals for the future. These goals included debt service coverage levels, bond ratings, fund balance levels, toll rate management, and self-funding its capital program and paying off debt early, if possible. This enabled the Authority to move forward with its long-standing goals to restructure and level its future debt service profile, achieve $80 million in savings in the 2020 bond transaction, additional savings with the 2021 bond transaction of $2 million, as well as lower toll rates for all customers.