Bonds

The start of a trial to determine whether bonds could be issued to finance a multi-billion-dollar light-rail project in Austin was halted Monday after Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office filed an emergency motion with a state appeals court. A Travis County District Court judge planned to commence the trial before ruling on the attorney

Brightline train’s proposed extension to Tampa won a vote of confidence Friday from a coalition of planning and transportation organizations, two months after the sale of $925 million of high-yield municipal bonds to finance the planned extension. The Suncoast Transportation Planning Alliance and Central Florida Metropolitan Planning Organization Alliance, which together represent 10 metropolitan planning

The credit quality of issuers that do not disclose climate-related vulnerabilities, or their plans to address such risks, should be examined more closely by investors and considered riskier long-term investments than their public ratings may imply. Given the “constant, widespread reporting of climate change perils, and the current abundance of free, public data,” bondholders can

Columbus, Ohio, recently embarked on a technological modernization push that employs artificial intelligence in its payroll, revenue and accounting and operations systems. Columbus Auditor Megan Kilgore said her office now uses AI for everything from reconciling differences between sets of data to visualizing city finances for the mayor or City Council members with almost real-time

The Arizona Legislature wrapped up its session Saturday, passing legislation to mitigate the impact of a $329 million property tax refund to be paid by Maricopa County governments and school districts, as well as a fiscal 2025 budget that tackles a two-year deficit. The refunds resulted from a stipulated judgment issued in February for class-action

Municipals were steady to slightly weaker in spots as U.S. Treasury yields rose and equities ended up. Despite some slight weakness Monday, munis continued “their impressive start to June,” with yields falling 10 to 13 basis points last week, Birch Creek strategists said. Munis have rallied roughly 24 to 29 basis points month-to-date, a “complete

Los Angeles is the latest issuer to come to market riding a Fitch Ratings upgrade from its revised local government criteria as the city prepares to sell social bonds competitively to support its efforts to eradicate homelessness. Fitch upgraded the city’s issuer default rating to AA-plus from AA and assigned a AAA rating to the

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board announced Monday the addition of the Tradeweb AAA Municipal Curve to its Electronic Municipal Market Access website, the latest step in the board’s years-long effort to centralize more such data on EMMA. MSRB’s John Bagley hailed the new addition to EMMA. The curve is now another of several available on

Municipals were firmer Wednesday amid another heavy new-issue calendar, led by several large deals that saw yields lowered upon repricing. U.S. Treasuries yields fell further and equities ended up. Issuance remains robust Wednesday with an estimated $5.9 billion, said J.P. Morgan strategists, led by Peter DeGroot. The negotiated calendar was led by $830 million from

The nation’s public transit providers scored a revised Moody’s Ratings’ sector outlook to stable from negative Tuesday as operators adjust to post-pandemic norms and scramble to line up new funding sources. By March 2024, public transit ridership in the U.S. had rebounded to 79% of pre-pandemic levels, surpassing office occupancy rates and suggesting transit agencies

The Federal Highway Administration is under immense pressure to respond to the backlog of requests it has on its emergency relief fund in addition to its specific action on rebuilding the Francis Scott Key Bridge and implementing the goal of 500,000 electric vehicle charging stations across the country by the end of the decade. That

Kansas legislative leaders, who are seeking to coax the Kansas City Chiefs to leave neighboring Missouri, formally invited the National Football League team to join their effort to build a stadium with the help of bonds. In a letter to Chiefs Chairman and CEO Clark Hunt that the Republican lawmakers released publicly Tuesday, they invited

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul is considering delaying the congestion pricing plan to charge motorists driving into midtown Manhattan and potentially replacing it with a tax on New York City businesses, according to a person familiar with the situation who requested anonymity because the proposal hasn’t been made public. The tolling plan, set to begin

With the municipal market’s prized tax exemption possibly in play next year as Congress tackles tax policy, the National Football League is getting into the game by lobbying to protect the financing tool for the controversial and niche stadium market. The use of tax-exempt bonds to build sports stadiums, which have been subject to several

St. John’s Lutheran Church sits three blocks from the Capitol in Madison, Wisconsin, in the heart of the up-and-coming East Washington corridor, where development is booming. Many of the developments cater to a well-heeled clientele, such as the Moxy Madison, a boutique Marriott hotel where weekend rates start at $341 a night. Or Archipelago Village,

A surprise primary result means Puerto Rico will have a new governor next year. Puerto Rico Resident Commissioner Jenniffer González Colón upset Gov. Pedro Pierluisi in the race for the New Progressive Party nomination for governor. The New Progressive Party supports statehood for Puerto Rico. As resident commissioner González Colón represents, without being able to

Municipals were firmer Tuesday amid a busy primary market with several large deals, as U.S. Treasury yields fell and equities ended up. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Monday was at 68%, the three-year at 69%, the five-year at 71%, the 10-year at 70% and the 30-year at 86%, according to Refinitiv Municipal Market Data’s 3 p.m.

The Internal Revenue Service has settled with the Port of Port Arthur Navigation District of Jefferson County, Texas regarding the tax-exempt status of a 2017 $55 million bond issuance.   The issuer disclosed the recent settlement on EMMA Monday, concluding the matter after it was first disclosed months ago. “As a result, there is no change

Municipals saw losses Thursday following U.S. Treasuries to higher yields, while equities sold off after GDP growth slowed in the first quarter. While growth slowed, inflation was hotter, said ING Chief International Economist James Knightley, as the core PCE deflator rose 3.7% on an annualized basis, three-tenths of a point higher than expected. “Unsurprisingly Treasury yields

Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly on Wednesday vetoed tax cut legislation that she called “too expensive” and offered lawmakers a less-costly alternative. The Democratic governor, who in January vetoed a previous tax reduction bill passed by the Republican-controlled legislation, said the latest measure “jeopardizes our state’s future fiscal stability.”    House Bill 2036, which cleared the House