Fitch Ratings-New York/Chicago-01 October 2025: Fitch Ratings published an exposure draft for proposed revisions to its “U.S. Public Finance Charter School Rating Criteria” on Aug. 4, 2025. The comment period for feedback on the draft criteria ended on Sept. 30, 2025.
Fitch is reviewing feedback received on the draft criteria. The agency expects to address comments and publish the final criteria following the close of the comment period. Fitch will publish all written responses received by the end of the comment period, including the respondent’s name, unless the response was clearly marked as confidential.
The exposure draft outlines proposed changes to Fitch’s methodology for assigning Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) and instrument ratings to U.S. charter schools. Charter schools offer K–12 education under authorized charters, providing curriculum choice and school-level operational flexibility while remaining accountable to performance and compliance standards. The criteria address demand and enrollment dynamics, financial resilience and liquidity, leverage and debt structure, governance effectiveness and charter renewal risk, and legal and security frameworks supporting operating continuity and bondholder protections.