Minnesota expects to save $226 million in interest payments due to its early payoff Monday of outstanding debt from a 2014 issue that covered the public tab for the Minnesota Vikings’ stadium. The state enacted electronic pull-tab gambling to help repay a $498 million appropriation-backed bond issue with a final 2043 maturity for the NFL
Bonds
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is on a mission to eventually eliminate property taxes that fund public school district operations, but he’s having a hard time getting a legislature controlled by fellow Republicans to agree on a way to take a major step towards that goal. The Lone Star State is not alone in its struggle.
Capital Markets Advisors and Richard Ganci , formerly municipal advisors to Rochester, New York, have requested partial judgment against Securities and Exchange Commission claims that they misled investors, ignored signs of financial distress and failed to disclose material conflicts of interest to nearly 200 municipal clients. That’s the latest in the lawsuit against the City
For an industry historically averse to change, the municipal market is slowly beginning to incorporate artificial intelligence into workflow systems, tools that succinctly summarize documents, such as official statements, as well as internal and external communication systems. But it is far away from broad acceptance for an industry dependent on human interaction to get business
Former Nevada Treasurer Kate Marshall is on the short list to be chancellor for the Nevada System of Higher Education. Marshall was state treasurer from 2007 to 2015. After an unsuccessful candidacy for secretary of state, she won election as lieutenant governor in 2018. She resigned in 2021 to become a special assistant to President
A nearly 30-year-old rule restricting solicitation of municipal securities business would be reconsidered under a Republican environmental, social and governance-related investment bill that also tackles other high-profile muni market issues. The bill, introduced last week by Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky., would examine the effectiveness of Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board Rule G-38, which prohibits a dealer
Municipals were slightly firmer Friday ahead of a larger new-issue calendar with bellwether names, as U.S. Treasuries were stronger to close out the week while equities ended in the red. The $6.9 billion new-issue calendar features several high-grade deals, including nearly $1 billion of refunding general obligation bonds from Massachusetts, $886 million of GOs from
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey on Thursday announced a five-year, $14 billion capital plan that would lean on a mix of funding to carry out work across the state. The fiscal 2024-2028 Capital Investment Plan, Healey’s first capital spending proposal since taking office, includes spending for housing development, transportation, and green energy. “We’re also expanding support
Broker-dealers remain hopeful for policy issues vital to the municipal bond market including restoring advance refunding and raising the bank-qualified limit following a Bond Dealers of America fly-in event Thursday. Representatives of BDA member firms descended on Congress in a lobbying blitz that included visits with lawmakers on the House Financial Services Committee and the
As New York City officials grapple with finding ways to balance their budget for the next fiscal year, one area of growing concern revolves around the very ground that the city is built on — commercial real estate. Comptroller Brad Lander’s office last week took a deep dive into how hybrid work is affecting the
Market data platform SOLVE has launched a new platform that provides information for market professionals through the aggregation, curation and delivery of available historical and real-time fixed-income data. Some of the resources available include color from SOLVE’s AI-powered technology, regulatory compliance solutions, coverage of illiquid securities and a suite of tools for new-issue and secondary
The California Housing Finance Agency had its rating upgraded to Aa2 by Moody’s Investors Service, which cited the state treasurer conduit’s improved financial strength. It is the highest rating in agency history, according to CalHFA, and is among the top ratings that Moody’s assigns to housing finance agencies nationwide. “This rating has CalHFA well-positioned to
After a late-night legislative session on Wednesday, members of the Nashville Metropolitan Council voted 38-0 to approve a fiscal year 2024 budget that matches the $3.2 billion size and most substance of Mayor John Cooper’s May budget plan, preserving his signature proposal for a pay increase for public employees, while shifting some funds to do
Municipals had another constructive session by holding steady Thursday as inflows returned to municipal bond mutual funds for only the second time since early February. U.S. Treasuries were weaker, and equities ended mixed. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Thursday was at 61%, the three-year at 63%, the five-year at 65%, the 10-year at 67% and the
A “working group” made up of city, state, and labor officials tasked by Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson with finding long-term funding and structural fixes to pension funding strains held its first meeting this week with a fall legislative veto session the target for initial action. The group has taken shape in recent weeks after being
U.S. District Court Judge Laura Taylor Swain suspended the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority bankruptcy schedule. This means the plan of adjustment hearing scheduled for July 17-28, the final hearing of the federal bankruptcy process that is part of Title III of the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act, will be postponed. Acting
Boosted by two rating upgrades, the Orange County Transportation Authority saw heady demand when it refunded $48.68 million in toll revenue refunding bonds. “It was strong investor demand from the get-go,” said Andy Oftelie, OCTA’s chief financial officer. “There were flurries of interest right from the jump, and we slowly continued to get good activity.”
A second group of Texas-based public finance attorneys at Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe has jumped to a different firm in the state. Jackson Walker announced this week the launch of its first public finance practice group with four Orrick attorneys — Rick Witte, Todd Brewer, Tanya Fischer, and Hoang Vu — along with Russell Miller,
Cook County expects to end the current fiscal year with a surplus providing some cushion as it looks to erase an $85.6 million gap looming in the next budget as rising salary and pension expenses, healthcare, and a state change on personal property replacement tax distributions weigh on the county’s fiscal landscape. The gap next
The Puerto Rico Oversight Board said challenges to its Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority projections are “irrelevant.” The board filed its argument Tuesday evening in response to a PREPA bondholders filing a week earlier defending their right to have U.S. District Court Judge Laura Taylor Swain consider their attacks on the assumptions of the fiscal
Municipals were steady Wednesday, U.S. Treasuries were little changed, no more than a basis point or two, and equities ended down. A firm tone and hearty demand were noticeable in the municipal market as new issues were highly oversubscribed — especially on the long end — amid the summer doldrums, municipal players said. Some of