2008-08-06 23:47:03 -

- Fitch Ratings will hold a teleconference to discuss its 'Water and Sewer Revenue Bond Rating Guidelines' criteria report on Wednesday, August 13, 2008 at 3:00 p.m. EDT. The call will be hosted by Gabriela Quiroga, Associate Director, along with members of the Water and Sewer team in Fitch's Public Finance Group. The criteria report is currently available on Fitch's

web site at www.fitchratings.com.

According to the report, the criteria is virtually unchanged with Fitch continuing to make its comprehensive analysis based on the '10Cs' introduced to the market in 1997. The new report, however, is enhanced in this latest release as follows:

--Fitch's 10Cs are grouped into categories to better reflect Fitch's published issuer reports;

--The 10Cs are presented in the order of significance that effects credit quality;

--Answers to frequently asked questions are included throughout the report;

--A table of the key ratios used in the rating process was added; and

--A checklist of the information Fitch requires during the review process is provided.

To participate in the teleconference, interested parties should call 866-723-3590 five minutes prior to the 3:00 p.m. EDT start time and give the title of the call 'Water and Sewer Revenue Bond Rating Criteria Update' or the call leader name 'Gabriela Quiroga'. To ensure there are sufficient telephone lines available, use internal conferencing capabilities, if possible, for multiple listeners at a single location. PowerPoint slides for the teleconference will also be available on the day of the call at www.fitchratings.com under the heading 'Events' and 'Teleconferences'.

A replay of the teleconference will be available starting two hours after the teleconference is completed and will be available until August 27th close of business. To listen to the teleconference replay, participants should call 800-642-1687. The conference ID number for the replay is '59329805'.

Additionally, the teleconference will be archived on the Fitch web site. For the archive, interested parties can find the appropriate links at www.fitchratings.com. Click on the 'Events' button, and then click 'Teleconferences'.

Fitch's rating definitions and the terms of use of such ratings are available on the agency's public site, www.fitchratings.com. Published ratings, criteria and methodologies are available from this site, at all times. Fitch's code of conduct, confidentiality, conflicts of interest, affiliate firewall, compliance and other relevant policies and procedures are also available from the 'Code of Conduct' section of this site.

Fitch Ratings
Gabriela Quiroga, 512-215-3731, Austin
or
Media Relations:
Cindy Stoller, 212-908-0526, New York