As opposed to a revenue bond, which is paid from the revenues generated by the project being financed, a general obligation bond is guaranteed by the issuing government at large. General obligation bonds are normally backed by the full faith and credit of the government, meaning that the government will use any money available, or raise taxes, to pay them off. Limited-tax general obligation bonds, however, may limit how much taxes may be raised in this case.
Payment of a state’s GO bonds, as an example, takes priority, unless money in those funds is already set aside in law for a specific purpose, it may be used for debt service, if necessary, rather than other state activities.