Bonds

Municipal bonds are part of an Illinois city’s plan to help the local casino build a bigger venue at a new location. In its current form, Aurora’s Hollywood Casino occupies a barge tethered near downtown on the Fox River. The city wants to build a brand new casino resort about five miles away, near an

The focus shifted fully into the primary market Tuesday as the secondary took a backseat to large new-issues pricing in both negotiated and competitive markets while U.S. Treasuries halted its two-day sell off to see gains on the day. Equities ended mixed. Munis were little changed Tuesday, as UST yields fell six to nine basis

It was not long ago that the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), a historic tax-reform package, came together seemingly overnight and reshaped the U.S. tax code while also reshaping the municipal bond market by eliminating tax-exempt advance refundings.   Once the dust settled, a retrospective review illuminated further near disasters, with Senate Republicans saving private

Guam’s latest proposed budget was hailed by analysts who said its approach should be copied by other U.S. territories. Gov. Lourdes Leon Guerrero proposed a 5.9% bigger general fund budget for fiscal 2025 days after Moody’s Investors Service raised the territory’s general obligation bonds to investment grade (Baa3) from speculative grade (Ba1); the first time

Repair needs for the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority MTA will cost at least $43 billion over the next several years, according to a new report issued by state comptroller Thomas DiNapoli. DiNapoli said the estimates by his office of the 2025 to 2029 period don’t include any new priorities to address accessibility, resiliency or

The Biden administration will not be appealing to the Supreme Court an Eleventh Circuit ruling in favor of states, who’ve challenged the American Rescue Plan Offset Provision that bars states from using federal aid dollars to fund tax cuts, in what may be an end to those state challenges. That decision was communicated in a

The Education Finance Council is turning up the pressure on the Internal Revenue Service for clarifications on bond rules that have gone unanswered for four years.  The trade group, which represents state-based and nonprofit higher education finance organizations, is asking the agency via a letter to clarify requirements listed in Section 144(b) of the Internal

Los Angeles International Airport had the private-activity bonds supporting its people mover train downgraded to junk with Fitch Ratings citing continuous and ongoing delays and a strained relationship between the developer and the airport. The $1.2 billion in PABs issued through the California Municipal Finance Authority for the project were downgraded to BB-plus from BBB-minus

A small-town southwest Missouri hospital is scrambling to restructure after its bond trustee declared it to be in default. In a special meeting Friday, the board of Nevada Regional Medical Center agreed to hire Stroudwater Associates’ Jason McCormick as its chief restructuring officer. The hospital had been searching for someone to fill that role after

Municipals saw losses Friday but outperformed by mostly sitting out a larger sell-off in U.S. Treasuries after jobs data showed higher-than-expected gains, forcing another recalibration for participants on rate cut timing. The January employment report came in stronger than expected, with wages rising at the highest rate since March 2022, leading analysts to suggest Federal

Proposed changes to California’s mental health system and a $6.4 billion bond measure proposed in Proposition 1 continue to garner more support as the March 5 election draws near. The proposition, which will be the only one on the March ballot, would use funds from California’s so-called millionaire’s tax to create more slots for people

Municipals rallied Thursday as the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority doubled the size of its deal to $1.6 billion while muni mutual funds saw inflows hit nearly $1.5 billion. U.S. Treasury yields fell and equities improved. Muni yields were bumped two to 12 basis points, depending on the curve, while UST yields fell six to

The Florida State Board of Administration Finance Corp. has authorization to sell up to $3.8 billion of taxable revenue bonds this year to buttress the state’s Hurricane Catastrophe Fund. In October, the corporation’s board approved the sale of the taxable pre-event bonds and is contemplating the issuance of $1.5 billion or more of its Series

Municipals saw the largest one-day improvements since November Wednesday, as U.S. Treasury yields fell and equities sold off after the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee kept rates unchanged and signaled the Fed may not be rushing to cut rates until inflation is further tamed. In his press conference, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said cuts are

When Fitch Ratings this month downgraded Marshfield Clinic Health System, a nonprofit group of 11 hospitals based in central Wisconsin, to BBB from BBB-plus, it cited operating losses due in part to wage pressures from reliance on contract nurses and temporary physicians.  The downgrade applied both to Marshfield’s issuer rating and the revenue bonds issued

Municipals were slightly firmer Tuesday as new-issues from the New York Thruway Authority and the Massachusetts Development Finance Agency’s Children’s Hospital were well-received. U.S. Treasuries were mixed as were equities ahead of the Fed rates decision Wednesday. Triple-A yields were bumped one to four basis points, depending on the curve, while UST saw yields fall

An Arizona state senator is once again attempting to pass a law banning governmental contracts with companies, including banks that underwrite municipal bonds, that “discriminate” against the firearm industry.  For the 2024 legislative session, Republican Frank Carroll introduced legislation that would take the question to voters, bypassing Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs, who vetoed his bill

Municipals were little changed to start the week, while U.S. Treasuries were firmer and equities were up late in the trading session. The muni market enters 2024 with “stable credit fundamentals, supportive demand/supply dynamics, and low [muni-UST] ratios and compressed credit spreads,” said Adam Stern, co-head of research at Breckinridge. On the technical front, he

The use of premium bonds has ignited a dispute between Vermont’s most populous city and the state auditor. The state auditor found that the city of Burlington issued more debt than it was approved for under the state’s tax increment financing law and made more than a million dollars of accounting errors. The city’s Downtown

Market participants are upbeat with predictions about an economy showing few signs of recession, a record-breaking stock market and a Federal Reserve that is expected to start ratcheting down interest rates.  Fresh economic data showing gross domestic product growing by an annual rate of 3.3% has bond issuers and ratings agency forecasters feeling bullish about

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board has approved amendments to Rule G-27 on dealer supervision that are designed to help dealers better adapt to changes brought on by remote work. That was approved during the MSRB’s quarterly board meeting, where the board welcomed Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Gary Gensler in attendance for his yearly visit,

The list of investment banks no longer eligible to underwrite municipal bonds in Texas due to their lack of compliance with state laws aimed at protecting the fossil fuel and firearm industries grew on Friday with the addition of Barclays.  Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office announced that “until further notice, we will not approve

After two consecutive years of investors pulling money from muni mutual funds, January has gotten off to a better start as the market has seen the return on inflows.  “The driver of the improvement in net fund flows is not necessarily new buyers coming into the market; it’s the conclusion of tax loss swap selling

Municipals were lightly traded and little changed Friday ahead of a smaller new-issue calendar amid the Federal Open Market Committee meeting while U.S. Treasuries were weaker. Equities were mixed to close the session. Rates have continued creeping higher and muni yields have been following, as the “positive effect of the year-end technicals has finally started

Accounting errors are a key factor driving Alaska’s Juneau School District into a shortfall amounting to more than 10% of its operating budget. But other underlying causes of the deficit are ones faced by other school districts in the state. Flat state funding and the end of pandemic-era federal relief funds combined with an aging

Municipals saw a more constructive secondary trading session Thursday and mutual funds reported the third consecutive week of inflows while U.S. Treasuries improved. Stocks continued to break records after another report of hotter economic data, which is leading more participants to pare back rate cut timing expectations. LSEG Lipper reported Thursday that investors added $210.6

The public power sector’s outlook was revised to negative from stable by S&P Global Ratings due to factors including inflation and government mandate pressures. Inflation diminished customers’ ability to afford electricity rates, said David Bodek, S&P sector leader. Retail electricity prices in recent years have outpaced inflation as utilities also face increased cost, Bodek said

Municipals were little changed Wednesday amid another busy primary session as U.S. Treasury yields rose throughout most of the curve and equities ended up. Despite municipal performance being in the red to start to 2023, municipal mutual funds continue to see inflows. The Investment Company Institute Wednesday reported more inflows into municipal bond mutual funds

The Illinois Supreme Court on Friday ended a three-year legal battle over the constitutionality of the pension consolidation passed by the General Assembly and signed into law by Gov. JB Pritzker in 2019. The law, Public Act 101-0610, which took effect Jan. 1, 2020, pooled most of Illinois’ local police and firefighter pension fund assets

Municipals were weaker in spots amid an active primary market that saw a billion-dollar-plus retail order from the Regents of the University of California price and Washington sell just shy of $1 billion general obligation bonds in the competitive market. U.S. Treasury yields rose and equities were mixed near the close. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio