Bonds

The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged Tensquare, a national charter school support organization, and its partner Karl Jentoft for acting as a municipal advisor on eight municipal bond issuances for eight separate charter schools in Minnesota. Without admitting or denying the findings, Tensquare had been ordered to pay $51,716 in disgorgement, $9,523.59 in prejudgement

Chicago plans to bring $1.003 billion of tax-exempt bonds to market Wednesday for O’Hare International Airport, part one of a three-phase financing plan for 2024. Interest on the $563.9 million of general airport senior lien revenue bonds, Series 2024A, is subject to the alternative minimum tax. The $440 million of general airport senior lien revenue

A class-action lawsuit filed Monday by Austin, Texas, property taxpayers against the city seeks the elimination of $187 million in property tax revenue allocated in the 2024 tax year for a light-rail project. The litigation is the latest salvo in a legal battle over the ability of the Austin Transit Partnership, a nonprofit corporation created

Municipals were narrowly mixed Tuesday as U.S. Treasury yields rose out long and equities were mildly higher near the close. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Tuesday was at 63%, the three-year at 66%, the five-year at 66%, the 10-year at 70% and the 30-year at 87%, according to Refinitiv Municipal Market Data’s 3 p.m. EST read.

A San Diego County joint powers authority plans to issue $433.3 million in tax-exempt interim notes to provide construction financing for an advanced water purification project. The East County AWP Joint Powers Authority plans to price the notes on Sept. 4 in two parts: $369.6 million and $63.6 million. Truist Securities is senior manager and

Mount Saint Mary College, a small liberal arts school in New York state, saw its bond rating downgraded to BBB from BBB-plus by Fitch Ratings, after persistent declines in student enrollment pressured the school’s finances.  The college on the bank of the Hudson River about 70 miles from New York City enrolled just 1,383 full

The major players in deal that would transfer ownership of the dilapidated RFK stadium site from the hands of the federal government to the District of Columbia is stuck two yards in front of the goal line.   “Everyone’s focused on the election,” said Josh Harris who’s the managing partner of the National Football League’s Washington

Bondholders of a chunk of unrated debt floated for the troubled American Dream megamall in New Jersey will see a partial payday next week when the borrower makes up some of the overdue interest payments. The $287 million of grant revenue bonds, which are backed by New Jersey economic development grants based on the mall’s

The nation’s largest children’s hospital has hit a rough financial patch, leading to two bond rating downgrades and plans to cut nearly 1,000 jobs, while it eyes a return to the municipal bond market. Ratings for Houston-based Texas Children’s Hospital were cut one notch to AA-minus by Fitch Ratings in July and Aug. 19 by

Municipals were steady Monday as U.S. Treasuries were slightly weaker and equities ended mixed. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Monday was at 62%, the three-year at 65%, the five-year at 66%, the 10-year at 71% and the 30-year at 87%, according to Refinitiv Municipal Market Data’s 3 p.m. EST read. ICE Data Services had the two-year

Fitch Ratings downgraded Guilford County, North Carolina’s issuer default rating and general obligation debt to AA-plus from AAA on Friday afternoon, reflecting a material increase in its debt load and “midrange” demographic and economic developments. Simultaneously, Fitch downgraded the county’s lease obligations to AA from AA-plus. The outlook is stable. The county had $673 million

Groundbreakings on public infrastructure projects jumped in July and are expected to accelerate later this year if the Federal Reserve begins to trim interest rates. That’s the latest update from Dodge Construction Network, which tracks construction projects across the nation from planning through groundbreaking. Its latest report highlighted a 19% increase in July from June

Individual investors pay more than institutional investors to access the recently issued market, a Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board research report found. That follows its 2023 report on a similar topic, which found from 2018 to 2022 that individual investors not investing through separately managed accounts had minimal participation in the primary market and were more

Ohio’s Eastern Gateway Community College will dissolve and close after a series of missteps and scandals. Red flags include settling a lawsuit with the Department of Education over its handling of Pell Grants for students; a grand jury indictment of its former president and his chief of staff; and failing to file on the Municipal

Junk-rated Pennsylvania nonprofit regional healthcare system Tower Health plans to exchange outstanding debt and issue new bonds to help bring about its turnaround. Tower Health plans to issue, through the Berks County Municipal Authority, $1.335 billion of revenue bonds. The hospital operator plans to exchange $1.178 billion of debt for new bonds. Reading Hospital in

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s speech in Jackson Hole Friday removed any uncertainty of a rate cut at the Fed’s September meeting, pushing U.S. Treasury yields lower on the short end, with municipals following suit, while stocks rallied on the news. “Powell has rung the bell for the start of the cutting cycle,” said Seema

The end is near for a 52-year public-private partnership that built a managed lanes toll road project in the Houston area, with the Texas Department of Transportation announcing Friday the state intends to take over the project’s operation in October. The move came after financing for the P3 termination was cleared Thursday by the Texas

Major infrastructure improvements will aid the U.S. Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority’s finances in the coming months and years, officials said. WAPA is under extreme financial pressure, according to board members, and its electric system revenue bonds were rated CC, before Fitch Ratings withdrew the rating in December. The Federal Emergency Management Agency approved

Nevada would get its first toll road under a public-private partnership floated by the city of Sparks. State lawmakers would need to approve the move, as Nevada law currently bans fees on roads that are part of P3s. The city manager of Sparks, located just east of Reno, has proposed a 13-mile toll road that

The Senate Committee on Banking Housing and Urban Affairs is facing major changes in its makeup depending on the outcome of the election, especially if Chairman Sherrod Brown, D – Ohio,loses his race.    “The committee is filled with senior members, so I assume the likes of Sens. Jack Reed and Elizabeth Warren will push for

Mirroring national trends, most states in the Far West enjoyed a double-digit jump in municipal bond issuance in the first half of the year as market conditions for borrowers improved. Issuance across the nine-state region totaled $49.7 billion, up 28.3% from $38.7 billion over the same period last year, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.