Bonds

The U.S. Supreme Court declined to consider a teachers’ union appeal of the Puerto Rico plan of adjustment, rejecting the petition for certiorari Monday morning. The plan of adjustment, which went into effect in March, freezes future accruals under the teachers’ defined retirement benefit plan held by those in the plan prior to August 2014

Maryland’s new Democratic Gov.-elect Wes Moore will take center stage in the fate of outgoing Gov. Larry Hogan’s signature project, a $5 billion public-private partnership to build express toll lanes. The state transportation department last week gave the private consortium, Accelerate Maryland Partners, until March 21 of next year to submit its plans, a 10-month

Municipals were steady to firmer in spots Friday ahead of a holiday-shortened week and a light new-issue calendar. U.S. Treasuries closed out weaker and equities ended the week with small gains. Triple-A yields were little changed to bumped by up to four basis points, depending on the curve, while U.S. Treasuries saw yields rise by

Triple Five, owner of the American Dream mall in New Jersey, has struck a deal with a group of creditors led by JP Morgan that grants the developer a four-year extension on overdue construction debt. The agreement has the potential to ease pressure on $1.1 billion of tax-exempt bond debt taken on separately to finance

Evidence shows that the states are collecting and spending more money due to federal action and a tax collection boon, a trend that started two years ago. “Over the past two years total state spending has been heavily impacted by federal COVID-19 aid and rising state tax collections,” said Brian Sigritz, director of State Fiscal

Construction will begin early next year on a public-private partnership to build a $4.2 billion terminal at John F. Kennedy International Airport after the team locked in financing and federal environmental approvals this week. “This has been a long and difficult road,” said Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Executive Director Rick Cotton

Despite the impact from Hurricane Ian in Florida, the state’s labor force increased by 36,000 in October with Florida’s private sector adding 35,000 of those jobs. This was the 30th straight month that jobs were created in Florida, while private-sector job growth has exceeded the national pace for the past 19 months, the Department of

PFM this week hired Nathaniel Singer, whose career spans nearly four decades in the municipal derivatives and advisory space, as a senior director and financial advisor. Singer, who started Wednesday, reports to Dan Hartman, chief executive officer of PFM. Singer will collaborate with professionals and practice groups across the firm and focus on all financial

Municipals improved again Thursday pushing the 10-year triple-A yield firmly below 3% while inflows into municipal bond mutual funds returned after 14 consecutive weeks of outflows. U.S. Treasuries saw losses and equities ended down after Federal Reserve officials tempered expectations of a slowdown in rate hikes. Triple-A yields fell by three to six basis points,

New California laws designed to alleviate the state’s housing shortage, combined with structural changes to working life unleased by the pandemic, have the potential to transform land use patterns and alter the tax structures underpinning local governments. Legislation approved by state lawmakers in September incentivizes converting underutilized retail space to housing. Lawmakers passed and Gov.

Municipals rallied across the yield curve Wednesday, outperforming U.S. Treasuries and seeing the greatest gains out long after stronger retail sales data signaled the Fed’s tightening is not yet over, pushing equities into the red. Retail sales increased 1.3% in October, slightly above the consensus forecast of 1.0% and a significant improvement from the flat

The demise of the cryptocurrency exchange platform FTX hit Miami-Dade County and the Miami Heat basketball team right in the arena. In 2021, Miami-Dade County commissioners approved a 19-year, $135 million deal naming rights deal with FTX to change the name of the American Airlines Arena to FTX Arena. County commissioners at the time said the

The Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority fuel line lenders said they have a document to stop the Oversight Board from getting its proposed restructuring approved. The document, the board’s agreement with former PREPA fuel provider Vitol for its support of the restructuring, will make it very difficult for the judge to accept Vitol as a

New York City’s municipal workers have been leaving their jobs at a faster rate than they can be replaced, according to a report released by state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli. This staffing shortage could have widespread economic and social implications as it impacts on important city services and programs, the report released Monday shows. Over the

The Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission heads into the market Tuesday with a $489 million new money deal with a new AAA rating attached to the third-lien paper. The commission will take competitive bids on the offering of third-lien state road bonds. PFM Financial Advisors LLC is advising. Gilmore & Bell PC and Bushyhead LLC

Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said “we’ve still got a ways to go” before the central bank stops raising interest rates, despite good news last week on consumer prices. While officials could moderate the size of their rate hikes to 50 basis points at their next meeting or the one after that — after a

Chester, Pennsylvania, has filed for Chapter 9 bankruptcy. The petition was filed Thursday in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. In its Chapter 9 filing, the city’s receiver listed estimated liabilities of between $100 million and $500 million with assets of between $10 million and $50 million. The city has

Chicago could win an upgrade into the single-A category if its new pension funding policy remains on track, S&P Global Ratings said in shifting the city’s general obligation outlook to positive from stable. S&P revised the outlook on the city’s BBB-plus general obligation rating Thursday, the same day Kroll Bond Rating Agency lifted the outlook

Most members of the House Municipal Finance Caucus appear to have won re-election in Tuesday’s tight midterm elections, while key advocates of state and local tax reform will be exiting the stage next year. As results continued to trickle in Friday, Republicans were on track to gain a narrow majority in the House and Democrats

Amarillo, Texas, will appeal a state judge’s ruling rejecting the city’s plan to issue $260 million of tax anticipation notes for a civic center project.  Mayor Ginger Nelson said the move was needed to clarify conflicts between the ruling and current Texas law, particularly when it comes to debt issuance. The city filed a notice