Bonds

Fitch Ratings upgraded Orlando, Florida’s $166.925 million of Series 2017A senior tourist development tax revenue bonds to BBB from BBB-minus. The outlook on the bonds is stable. The bonds are a limited obligation of the city backed by a senior lien on 50% of the “6th-cent TDT,” which is a one-cent tax on hotel room

A project to repair a berth at the Port of Camden in New Jersey will receive a boost of support from this fiscal year’s federal omnibus spending bill. U.S. Rep. Donald Norcross, a Democrat whose district includes Camden, recently announced an additional $750,000 in federal funds to support work on long-neglected portions of the South

California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta announced two lawsuits against the city of Huntington Beach for violating state housing laws during a Thursday press conference. What follows may be a test case for recent state laws designed to lower the barriers to new housing construction. Housing’s high cost and low availability has

Chicago-based Illinois Institute of Technology lost its investment grade rating over rapidly escalating operating deficits that are expected to persist through at least 2024, governance practices, a risky debt structure and concerns over whether capital investments will pay off. Moody’s Investors Service cut the private nonprofit university’s rating two notches to Ba2 from Baa3 Tuesday

Municipals were firmer on the front end of the curve as more billion-dollar deals priced, while U.S, Treasuries rallied hard inside 10 years and equities sold off. The potential for a strong employment report, which would amp up belief of a 50-basis-point move by the Federal Open Market Committee later this month, and higher for

President Joe Biden unveiled a 2024 budget Thursday that raises taxes on high earners and large corporations while providing relief for struggling urban mass transit systems and sending money to states and locals for climate resiliency projects. The proposal totals $6.9 trillion, up from last year’s $6.4 trillion of federal spending. Discretionary spending would total

Fitch Ratings Thursday removed the formerly Disney-controlled Reedy Creek Improvement District, Florida, from rating watch negative and assigned a stable rating outlook to its successor entity. The rating agency was satisfied that legislation renaming the special district and putting it under control of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ appointees protects bondholders. It affirmed the newly named Central

Eligible local governments in Michigan with weak pension funding ratios will soon get an infusion of funding promised by the state through a $750 million grant program.   The Michigan Department of Treasury has kicked off the funding process with the launch of the Protecting Michigan Pension Grant Program, authorized in the state’s fiscal 2023 budget. The

Responding to a looming debt ceiling dust up in Congress, the House Ways and Means Committee voted Thursday to advance House Resolution 187, dubbed the Default Prevention Act, which would prioritize paying U.S. sovereign bond holders first to avoid a credit default.  The bill passed through the Committee on a 21 to 17 vote. The contentious

The largest tax cut in West Virginia’s history has been signed into law by Gov. Jim Justice. “The world is watching West Virginia. The world sees West Virginia in a different light today,” Justice said at the signing ceremony in Charleston on Tuesday. “We’re not the blunt end of a bad joke. We’re the diamond

California has no plans to issue short-term notes to manage cash flow this year despite faltering revenues and disaster declarations that delay the income tax filing deadline for most Californians until October. Gov. Gavin Newsom announced on March 2 the state, like the IRS, would extend the tax filing deadline to Oct. 16 for Californians

Kansas legislation targeting environmental, social, and governance criteria in public investments and contracts was held in House and Senate committees Wednesday as lawmakers work on changes after concerns were raised about projected big pension fund losses due to divestment.  Anti-ESG efforts have popped up in several state legislatures with bills seeking to protect certain industries,

Municipals were little changed in secondary trading Wednesday amid an active primary market with two billion-dollar deals priced, although details on one were not immediately available. U.S. Treasury yields were weaker in spots and equities ended mixed. The three-year muni-UST ratio was at 59%, the five-year at 61%, the 10-year at 66% and the 30-year

Illinois expects another $575 million of general fund revenues in the current fiscal year as steady income and sales tax collections through February pushed worries over an economic slowdown and the impact of a potential recession further out on the horizon.   The legislature’s non-partisan Commission on Forecasting and Accountability raised its estimate for revenues

After a lackluster 2022, the pipeline for public-private partnership deals may fatten this year as federal infrastructure funds flow and the industry develops novel structures to manage risks from inflation and rising interest rates. That’s the top-line view from law firm Husch Blackwell, which Tuesday released its 2023 P3 trends report. Sectors poised for action

States with general funds and reserves that are currently flush should take heed of what a natural disaster can do to municipal finances, as Washington, New Mexico, and California are all trying to keep their budgets intact after suffering from wildfires that have become more frequent and devasting.  On Wednesday, the U.S. Senate Budget Committee

Voters in South Burlington, Vermont, approved a $34 million wastewater bond proposal on Tuesday, the largest of several similar local referendums approved statewide. The South Burlington wastewater bonds will fund overhauling and replacing pumps that serve the Bartlett Bay Wastewater Treatment Facility, which provides service to nearly all of South Burlington’s 20,282 residents. The facility,

State government finances will likely remain in decent shape this year despite signs revenues are weakening, according to rating agencies. Total state tax revenues declined 8% in nominal terms in December and 13.5% when -adjusted for inflation from a year earlier, the Urban Institute reported. In the July to December period, total state tax revenues

Nossaman added Michelle McCarthy as a partner in its Los Angeles office and changed the name of the practice she joined to reflect the new line of services her addition brings. The practice she joins was renamed to Pension, Benefits & Investments Group from the Public Pensions & Investments Group. “Michelle’s deep, nuanced experience in

The U.S. has until mid-August before it runs out of cash, Moody’s Analytics chief economist Mark Zandi told a Senate panel Tuesday, and the longer the debate over the debt ceiling persists, the more damage it will do to the economy and the financial markets. “That gives you about six months” to take action on

Keybanc Capital Markets has been added to the growing list of underwriters, which so far has included BNY Mellon, Jefferies, Oppenheimer and TD Securities, among others, charged by the Securities and Exchange Commission for violating its limited offering exemption. The Commission just began enforcing the failure of firms to acquire adequate disclosures from those purchasing