Bonds

North Carolina and Georgia grant anticipation revenue vehicle bonds were upgraded to Aa3 from A2 by Moody’s Ratings. Simultaneously Georgia’s grant anticipation reimbursement bonds were upgraded to Aa3 from A1. The outlooks are stable. The North Carolina upgrade affects $846 million of debt and the action on Georgia affects $375 million. Moody’s upgraded Georgia’s Garvee

After three years of preparation and just over three months after the official implementation date, the move to a T+1 settlement cycle is beginning to show signs of success. That’s according to a white paper issued by the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, a key stakeholder and thought leader in preparing the market for

Dallas will contribute $11 billion to its Police and Fire Pension System over 30 years under a plan approved Wednesday by the city council to comply with a Texas law aimed at keeping the system, which is just 39% funded, with a $3.2 billion unfunded liability, solvent.  The 14-1 vote came after the retirement system

North Carolina’s Local Government Commission approved about $320 million in bonds and $15 million of other financings, such as state revolving loans and installment purchases. The commission, headed by State Treasurer Dale Folwell, approved $73 million of limited obligation bonds for Rowan County to repair and replace school facilities in the Rowan-Salisbury school system and

House Republicans are squabbling over legislation that ties keeping the government open past Sept. 30 to legislation that would strengthen voting rules, as state and local governments brace for a possible curtailment of federal funding.  The bill, labeled as the “Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act” adds additional obstacles to prevent non-U.S. citizens from voting in

In his more than 50-year career in government finance, David Thompson focused on mentoring his employees and treating clients fairly. Thompson worked for other firms for more than 30 years before, in 2004, he started his own successful and respected municipal advisory firm, Phoenix Advisors in New Jersey. He grew the firm from four employees

Jacksonville, Florida, public utility JEA plans to bring $476.6 million in electric system revenue bonds next week in a deal designed to sharply reduce the system’s exposure to variable-rate debt and derivatives. “This transaction will result in a significant simplification of JEA’s Electric System balance sheet,” the utility said in an online investor presentation. “Upon

The New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority has been coping with a capital fiscal cliff since June, when Gov. Kathy Hochul canned congestion pricing, and the toll revenue that was supposed to fund $15 billion of projects. But that’s just the beginning of the authority’s capital shortfalls, according to New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli.  A

Municipal triple-A scales were little changed Wednesday, ignoring the U.S. Treasury market’s weaker tone following August inflation data that tempered expectations of a higher rate cut this month, while investors focused on the muni primary as more large new-issues cleared the market. The August consumer price index showed inflation remains above the Federal Reserve’s target

Raphael Bostic, president and chief executive officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.Bloomberg News Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Raphael Bostic violated the central bank’s trading rules and policies in 2022, according to a government watchdog report. The Federal Reserve’s Office of the Inspector General, or OIG, released the findings from its review

Chattanooga, Tennessee’s issuer default rating and general obligation rating were downgraded to AA-plus by Fitch Ratings. The outlook is stable. Fitch explained the downgrade, which stemmed from the implementation of Fitch’s revised local government rating criteria, by citing a weak population trend and midrange demographic and economic level metrics. The city had $351 million in

Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump shined no new light on the economic and tax policies important to the municipal bond market during their high-stakes debate Tuesday night, though brief mentions of housing, energy policy and tariffs carry modest interest to participants. “The debate was pretty light in general,” said Matt Fabian,

House Republicans are turning up the heat on their war against environmental, social and governance considerations in capital markets, this time going after proxy advisors who provide ESG-related services to investment officers. That was the subject of a House Financial Services Committee hearing Tuesday, which quickly descended into a partisan battle on whether investors need

Robust weekly issuance has become the norm over the past several months, as pent-up capital needs, dwindling federal aid and front-loaded issuance have prompted state and local governments to come to market in earnest. The pace of issuance is not letting up, leading some strategists to revise their 2024 volume forecasts higher again. HilltopSecurities recently

If it weren’t for S&P’s policies — and the ability to go part-time when her children were young — Robin Prunty says she wouldn’t have had the career she had. Even after spending 17 years as a part-time analyst, she was able to return as a manager in 2009 and lead analyst — and would

Freda Johnson’s influence, leadership and mentorship has touched many women and men in public finance over more than four decades in the industry.  When her career began, the industry was not an easy one for women. “In order to succeed, Freda of course was very smart and capable, but I think she persevered at a

When Community Memorial Hospital in Hicksville, Ohio, shuttered on Aug. 31, it became the latest small-town healthcare provider in the Midwest to run into insurmountable financial trouble. The hospital in the rural community of 3,114 residents closed its doors for good three months after the state’s tax commissioner rejected its request to file for Chapter

Municipals were steady to slightly firmer in spots while the primary market took focus with at least 17 deals over the $100 million market hitting the screens led by billion-dollar-plus pricings from Washington, D.C., and Illinois. The New York City TFA priced $1.5 billion for retail investors and Chicago accelerated a pricing of water revenue

Texas Children’s Hospital, which was hit with rating downgrades this summer in the wake of operating losses, is moving ahead with an approximately $222 million revenue bond sale this week.  The tax-exempt, fixed-rate debt issued through the Harris County Cultural Education Facilities Finance Corp. is scheduled to price Thursday. Proceeds are earmarked for capital projects

When Citi shuttered its storied public finance division in December, nearly all of the firm’s roughly 120 bankers quickly landed new positions in the municipal market. But banker Archana Chandrasekhar hit the pause button for several months and ended up veering off in a fresh direction. “I was so busy for 16 years that I

Atlanta’s issuer default rating, general obligation, and guaranteed bonds were raised to AAA by Fitch Rating from AA-plus, based on the implementation of the rater’s updated criteria. Fitch also upgraded its rating to AAA from AA-plus on the Atlanta Downtown Development Authority, Atlanta Urban Residential Finance Authority, Atlanta Urban Redevelopment Agency and Atlanta Public Safety