Bonds

The Ohio state Senate on Wednesday passed a bill that included $1.27 billion in bonds for state government agency facilities, K-12 classrooms, local subdivisions’ capital improvement projects and conservation projects. The bill, HB 27, was originally intended only to give students more information about college fees and loan repayment. And Senate Democrats voiced reservations about

After years of soliciting market feedback, new Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board Rule G-46 on the duties of solicitor municipal advisors is in effect as of March 1, setting the stage for closer scrutiny from both municipal advisors and the Securities and Exchange Commission. Solicitor municipal advisors are a much smaller crowd than traditional municipal advisors

Municipal bond mutual funds saw small inflows, the secondary market showed constructive trading with firmer prints in spots and the asset class is likely to see slightly positive returns for the month. Equities ended in the black, with the Nasdaq leading the rally. Triple-A yields were bumped a basis point or two, depending on the

Indiana saw a tax revenue windfall in January, with general fund revenues coming in 15.8% above last January’s number and 9.3% above December’s projections. But the office of Chief Economist Hari Razafindramanana cautioned that individual income tax collections surpassed estimates only because of “unusual timing factors that are currently expected to normalize… over the coming

Puerto Rico leaders and analysts highlighted fiscal risks facing Puerto Rico’s central government, including a change in how multinationals are taxed, that could, if unresolved, jeopardize future bond payments. At the Puerto Rico Oversight Board meeting Wednesday, board Executive Director Robert Mujica Jr. said the government faced major risks in the coming fiscal years, including

Norton Rose Fulbright hired public finance lawyers Alison Radecki as a partner and Helen Pennock as a senior counsel. Both will work in the firm’s New York City office and formerly worked at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe. They are licensed to practice in New York. Radecki has more than two decades of experience helping issuers

Municipals were steady in secondary trading Tuesday as several large deals in the primary market took focus, including the retail pricing for the $1.5 billion-plus deal of general obligation bonds from New York City. U.S. Treasury yields rose 10 years and out and equities were mixed near the end of the trading session. Other large

When Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza this month launched a new online portal to track state spending on asylum seekers, state residents gained a window onto a major piece of the local government spending pie, with the city of Chicago and Cook County also spending millions on the migrant crisis. As of Feb. 27, the new

Municipals were steady to start the week as investors await the larger new-issue slate, outperforming U.S. Treasuries, while equities were mixed near the close. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Monday was at 58%, the three-year at 57%, the five-year at 56%, the 10-year at 57% and the 30-year at 81%, according to Refinitiv Municipal Market Data’s

Clarity from a recent court ruling along with the level of current interest rates will likely lead to a dramatic increase in Build America Bonds being called by issuers this year, market participants say. While only a small amount of BABs have been called using an “extraordinary redemption provision” since sequestration of BABs subsidies began

Miami International Airport received $27 million from the federal government for infrastructure projects designed to improve the passenger experience at one of the nation’s busiest airports. The funding was announced at a Thursday ceremony at MIA: Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava welcomed Polly Trottenberg, U.S. Department of Transportation Deputy Secretary, and Shannetta Griffin, the

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is partnering with other federal regulators to lessen fears regarding the implementation of the Financial Data Transparency Act. The goal of this new law, which was passed in 2022, is to provide more transparency to the financial markets by introducing machine-readable formats into the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s EMMA

Louisiana is set to float $1.34 billion of private activity bonds in April as part of its largest public-private partnership to date, which will replace an aging bridge over Interstate 10 near St. Charles. The Louisiana Public Facilities Authority released details of the financing after the State Bond Commission last week signed off on the

Not-for-profit healthcare finances should improve this year, rating agencies said, and many healthcare issuers plan to test the bond market. The sector reached a “turning point” in calendar year 2023, Fitch Ratings said in a report released Wednesday. The latest perspective offers a shift from challenges and expectations analysts predicted as recently as January. Analysts

The story stays the same and that is munis remain rich but an uptick in supply will bring some pressure to the asset class. The steadiness of the muni market, despite the swings in USTs, shows both the trepidation of investor commitment at these levels and the underlying strength of the credit quality of the

Alabama airports would be able to enter into public-private partnerships under a bill that advanced through the state House this week. House Bill 87 passed the House Tuesday less than three weeks since it was introduced by Republican state Rep. Chip Brown. It is now pending at the Senate Transportation and Energy Committee. “Alabama is

S&P Global Ratings has revised the outlook on Chicago’s general obligation bonds to stable from positive, the rating agency announced Thursday. S&P affirmed its BBB-plus rating on the bonds. The downward revision reflects budgetary pressures that have not been counterbalanced by new revenue growth, S&P said. Specifically, S&P cited rising public safety labor costs, recent

States, municipalities and public entities in the Southeast sold fewer municipal bonds last year than they did in 2022 as the uncertainty about the direction of interest rates took its toll on new issuance during the first half of the year. Full-year volume dropped 6.8% in 2023 to $65.8 billion from the $70.5 billion sold

U.S. District Judge Laura Taylor Swain rejected Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority bond parties’ motion for immediate consideration of their request for a receiver. Bond parties last week requested a hearing within 30 days to lift the bankruptcy’s stay on remedies, like their appointment of a receiver for PREPA. Swain said she would consider the

The Midwest region saw larger municipal bond deals yet fewer issues in 2023 compared to the previous year. Robust deal amounts in nearly half the region’s states offset declines in the remaining states in both overall volume and number of issues. Tax-exempt new money deals surged as Illinois overshadowed its neighbors in both deal size