Dauphin County, Bond Trustees and Assured Guaranty Municipal File Complaints Related to Harrisburg Authority Resource Recovery Facility Revenue Bonds

Filings Seek to Appoint Receiver for the Facility and to Obtain Order of Mandamus against the City of Harrisburg

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Dauphin County (the County), Pennsylvania, bond trustees and bond insurer Assured Guaranty Municipal Corp. (AGM) today filed complaints to seek the appointment of a receiver for the Harrisburg Authority’s (the Authority) Resource Recovery Facility and to obtain an order of mandamus to compel the City of Harrisburg (the City) to meet its obligations on the defaulted Harrisburg Authority Resource Recovery Facility Revenue bonds. AGM and its affiliates have consolidated net par outstanding of $198.3 million to the Authority’s Resource Recovery Facility Revenue Bonds, of which $ 107.4 million is guaranteed by both the City and the County and the remaining $90.9 million is guaranteed only by the City.

The County, the trustees and AGM took these actions based on increasing concern about the Mayor’s and City Council members’ inability to work together toward a viable restructuring plan, as evidenced by lack of agreement on the appointment of board members to constitute a quorum on the Authority’s board.

“We continue to hold out hope that the City will begin to work with the other parties to develop a responsible solution to their debt crisis. It is disappointing that the City has not even acknowledged our proposed solution offered in August 2009 or our most recent offer to develop a plan to address the refinancing of the December 2010 payment,” said Dauphin County Commissioner Jeff Haste. “While we are committed to working with the City on a responsible solution, we have an obligation to also protect the interests of the other 39 municipalities in Dauphin County.”

Dominic Frederico, Chief Executive Officer of AGM, said: “Though we have been forced to exercise our legal rights and remedies, we are committed to continue to work with the County, Authority and City to develop a restructuring plan that allows the Authority and City to meet their obligations.“

As of September 13, 2010, AGM has made debt service reserve surety payments totaling $0.9 million on the Authority’s Series F 2003 bonds and a scheduled interest payment of $0.4 million on the Authority’s Series A 2002 bonds.

About Dauphin County

Dauphin County, located in the heart of central Pennsylvania and home of the state capital, consists of 525 square miles and 40 municipalities. Dauphin County and its 40 departments are governed by a board of three elected commissioners. Situated within a short driving distance of Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Baltimore, Washington , D.C. and New York City, the region contains the best of both worlds - both cosmopolitan chic and down-home country.

About Assured Guaranty Municipal Corp.

AGM is a financial guaranty insurance subsidiary of Assured Guaranty Ltd. (together with its subsidiaries, Assured Guaranty or the Company) (NYSE:AGO). Assured Guaranty is a Bermuda-based holding company that provides, through its operating subsidiaries, credit protection products to the public finance, infrastructure and structured finance markets in the United States, as well as internationally. The Company applies its credit underwriting expertise, risk management skills and capital markets experience to develop insurance, reinsurance and credit derivative products. AGM’s principal product is a guaranty of principal and interest payments on debt securities issued by governmental entities such as U.S. state or municipal authorities and obligations issued for international infrastructure projects.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements:

Any forward-looking statements made in this press release reflect the Company's current views with respect to future events and financial performance and are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements involve risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those set forth in these statements. For example, Assured Guaranty's forward-looking statements regarding financial strength and growth opportunities and its calculations of adjusted book value, PVP, net present value of estimated future installment premiums in force and total estimated net future premium earnings could be affected by a rating agency action, such as a ratings downgrade, developments in the world's financial and capital markets, changes in the world's credit markets, more severe or frequent losses affecting the adequacy of Assured Guaranty's loss reserve, the impact of market volatility on the mark-to-market of our contracts written in credit default swap form, reduction in the amount of reinsurance portfolio opportunities available to the Company, decreased demand or increased competition, changes in accounting policies or practices, changes in laws or regulations, other governmental actions, difficulties with the execution of Assured Guaranty's business strategy, contract cancellations, Assured Guaranty's dependence on customers, loss of key personnel, adverse technological developments, the effects of mergers, acquisitions and divestitures, natural or man-made catastrophes, other risks and uncertainties that have not been identified at this time, management's response to these factors, and other risk factors identified in Assured Guaranty's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements which are made as of September 13, 2010. Assured Guaranty undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Assured Guaranty
Media:
Betsy Castenir
Managing Director, Corporate Communications
212-339-3424
[email protected]
or
Fixed Income Investors:
Robert Tucker
Managing Director, Fixed Income Investor Relations
212-339-0861
[email protected]
or
Michael Walker
Director, Fixed Income Investor Relations
212-261-5575
[email protected]
or
Assured Guaranty Ltd.
Equity Investors:
Sabra R. Purtill, CFA
Managing Director, Investor Relations
212-408-6044
[email protected]
or
Ross Aron
Assistant Vice President, Investor Relations
212-261-5509
[email protected]
or
Dauphin County Board of Commissioners
Media:
Amy M. Richards
Press Secretary
717-780-6311
[email protected]

Source: Assured Guaranty Municipal and Dauphin County