NATCHEZ — Adams County is on track to reduce existing debt by 76 percent by 2016.

A debt analysis recently reviewed by the Adams County Board of Supervisors revealed its projected debt service payments on existing debt for the next six years.

The county’s total, current debt is approximately $11 million.

In the 2010 fiscal year, which ends Thursday, the county paid $2.96 million on principal and interest payments for bonds and loans.

For 2011, the county has budgeted to pay $2.24 million, or $711,012 less than the year before on debt services.

By 2016, the county should have paid off enough of its long- and short-term debt to owe only $817,000.

Adams County Chancery Clerk Tommy O’Beirne said the debt payments are made to a variety of types of loans and bonds.

General obligation bonds can often be paid off in up to 20 to 30 years, O’Beirne said.

O’Beirne said since the county’s bond rating was downgraded in 2009 to “questionable credit quality,” the county is likely refrain from entering long-term bonds until the bond rating is reassessed.

Negotiable notes are similar to general obligation bonds but must be paid off on a shorter term, such as three to five years, O’Beirne said.

O’Beirne said lease-purchase loans are often used on items such as automobiles or equipment. Once lease purchase loans are paid off, the county owns the item.

Existing bond debt should be paid off completely at the end of the 2012 fiscal year, when a final payment of $568.980 will be made.

Existing lease-purchase loans should be paid off completely at the end of the 2014 fiscal year, when a final payment of $92,108 will be made.

O’Beirne said the existing debt analysis does not include loans for projects that will come up in the future — only payments on cumulative debt that has been built up over the years.

Today, the county will be reviewing short-term, $2.4 million bond bids to be spent on road maintenance work. The five-year bond will likely add $500,000 to the debt service payments for 2011.

O’Beirne said if the county’s bond rating were better, the county would have used a longer term bond, but the higher interest rates due to the bond rating make a long-term bond a less viable option.

Demery Grubbs, the county’s financial advisor discussed with Moody’s Investor Services the possibility of reassessing the county’s bond rating when O’Beirne made him aware of the county’s improved finances in July — but the agency said it will not consider reassessing the rating until the end of this fiscal year, at the earliest.

O’Beirne said it is possible the agency might reassess the rating in 2011, which would aid the supervisors in attaining long-term general obligation bonds.

O’Beirne said he thinks the county is making progress to get out of debt because the supervisors have been careful about borrowing money unless they find it necessary.

Board of Supervisors President Darryl Grennell said the board has made an effort to reduce debt as much as possible.

“That’s something we’ve been working on for several years. We’ve gone down from $20 million down to $11 million (recently, in cumulative debt).”

At a budget hearing earlier this month, District 2 Supervisor Henry Watts said the county is doing a good job on the path to pay off its debt.

“We need to get out of debt, and we’re doing it,” Watts said.