Bonds

Owners of some defaulted revenue bonds issued in 2018 for a senior living community in Plano, Texas, reached a binding settlement with the project’s bankrupt owner that calls for the re-issuance of debt. The agreement involves nearly $57.3 million of Series A and B senior bonds sold through the New Hope Cultural Education Facilities Finance

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board has filed proposed amendments to Rule G-3 on professional qualifications with the Securities and Exchange Commission that would add an exemption for municipal advisors currently forced to requalify their registration after a two-year lapse in their Series 50 exams. The rule amendments make it so that those who have experienced

Municipals were slightly firmer to start off the week as a larger new-issue calendar looms, while U.S. Treasury yields fell and equities ended the session up. Triple-A yields fell one to two basis points while UST fell two to three. Munis started off last week at “extremely rich valuations throughout most of the curve after

A group of Wall Street banks are set to avoid a long-awaited trial in Illinois over charges of inflating interest rates on the state’s variable-rate debt after a Cook County judge Monday granted the banks’ motion to vacate the trial in light of a proposed settlement with the state. The deal may not be done

This month, the seven-member Puerto Rico Financial Oversight and Management Board (FOMB), which was created by Congress in 2016 and tasked with restructuring the island’s debts, was poised to achieve a significant milestone. Ending bankruptcy at PREPA, Puerto Rico’s Electric Power Authority, is the last remaining step in the restructuring of Puerto Rico’s debts, and

Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC) snagged two rating upgrades ahead of its upcoming trip into the municipal bond market to continue financing a $5.135 billion project to replace its facilities. The $429 million of general airport revenue bonds scheduled to price Wednesday through BofA Securities and J.P. Morgan will mark the fourth debt sale

Growing indicators suggest bonds from assisted living facilities and nursing homes may show increasing defaults in the coming months. Through the first six months of 2023, Municipal Market Analytics’ Default Trends found that 4.17% of all retirement sector par became impaired, compared to 3.09% of the sector’s par that became impaired in all of 2022.

Desert Community College District in California saw its general obligation rating upgraded by Moody’s Investors Service by one notch to Aa1 affecting $511.5 million of debt. The outlook was revised to stable from positive. The upgrade “reflects the district’s large and growing tax base and improving financial position,” Moody’s analysts wrote in Monday’s report. The

The Indiana Finance Authority will head into the market as soon as Tuesday with Indianapolis-based water and wastewater utility refundings using a tender and forward delivery structure popular in the current market to achieve savings. The Indiana Finance Authority serves as conduit the CWA Authority Inc. in an offering of an $80.7 million first-lien wastewater

Municipals were slightly firmer in spots Friday while U.S. Treasuries saw losses, snapping a two-day rally, following stronger-than-estimated consumer sentiment data. Equities were mixed. Municipals largely ignored the moves in Treasuries after underperforming the rally throughout the week. Some of the outperformance municipals have shown over the past few weeks is due to a dearth

UBS Financial Services has been granted preliminary approval to settle a class action lawsuit against it with bondholders for $2.5 million. The settlement stems from charges that UBS allegedly reported tax information incorrectly and cost investors millions, according to the suit.  The bank is accused of not reporting amortizable bond premiums on tax forms that

The Texas Legislature took final action Thursday on a massive property tax cut after beating back attempts in the House to include teacher pay increases and other measures in the bill. Senate Bill 2, which passed the Senate in a 31-0 vote, cleared the House in a 133-4 vote. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who advocated

Property owners fighting Oklahoma Turnpike Authority extension plans blasted the agency in filings this week with the state supreme court, which is nearing a decision on the validity of initial bonds for the $5 billion project. The briefs took issue with OTA’s response last month to questions from the high court concerning the U.S. Bureau

New York City’s capital program will be getting a much-needed bond boost as the New York City Transitional Finance Authority readies a sale of $1.08 billion of future tax-secured subordinate debt. Proceeds from the sale will be used to fund infrastructure projects in the city’s $164.8 billion 10-year capital plan. The fiscal 2024 executive capital

Benjamin S. Wolfe of Short Hills, New Jersey, a former public finance banker passed away on Saturday, July 8, 2023. He was 85. He was born on Aug. 18, 1937, in Newark, New Jersey, to Bertha and Milton Wolfe. He grew up in Newark and graduated from Weequahic High School before earning a bachelor’s degree

Municipals improved again Thursday as U.S. Treasuries extended their rally on more disinflationary economic data while equities were in the black as well. Triple-A yields were bumped two to five basis points, depending on the scale, while UST yields fell as much as 15 basis points at three years. The moves once again led to

Hospital and health system mergers picked up steam during the second quarter, providing signs of a strengthening COVID-19 pandemic recovery and the sector’s heightened attention to the benefits of consolidation as it navigates the pressures bruising margins. Transactions announced for the second quarter rose to 20 involving $13.3 billion of revenues from 15 in the

Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis President James Bullard, who called for aggressive interest-rate hikes to fight the recent inflation surge, resigned after 15 years in the position to become dean of a university business school. Bullard, 62, stepped down from his post as head of the bank effective Thursday and will fully depart Aug.

Congress has begun the work of crafting government funding bills for next year, with House Republicans proposing significant transportation grant funding cuts and blocking any money going to California’s controversial high speed rail project. Local government grant programs also face reductions under GOP 2024 spending targets. With about 25 session days left before the federal

California lawmakers are in negotiations on a bill that would ask voters for $15.5 billion of bond authority to help fill a gap in the state’s plans to spend $54 billion over five years to tackle climate change. The state Senate approved Senate Bill 867 on May 31on a 33-5 vote. The bill, currently in

The Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday approved amendments to its money market fund rules, increasing liquidity requirements, and allowing money market funds to suspend redemptions temporarily in efforts to limit runs on money market funds such as  those experienced in 2008 and 2020. The amendments will affect tax-exempt money market funds and the most