Bonds

Federal Reserve officials quietly tightened internal restrictions on employees’ political activities after several reserve banks ran afoul of Congress over real or perceived engagement on issues within the domain of elected officials. The code of conduct, as updated in late 2022, now explicitly prohibits the kind of activity engaged in by Minneapolis Fed President Neel

Puerto Rico’s general fund net revenues were 28% above projections in December and 14% higher than those of December 2021. Through the first six months of the fiscal year, net revenues came in 14% ahead of projections and 3% ahead of July to December 2021, according to the Puerto Rico Department of the Treasury.  Net

Chicago’s fiscal progress on structural balance and pensions drew rating upgrades and high-grade investors to recent bond deals but easing the longer term strains of pensions will require state intervention, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said.   Whether the city’s fiscal momentum can help Lightfoot win a second term is uncertain. She faces eight rivals vying for

In the midst of a supply and demand quandary — with the Federal Open Market Committee announcement looming on Wednesday — the municipal market began the week with a lackluster feel. That tone combined with the weakness in Treasuries on Monday — as investors were likely unwinding their longer-term trades and sitting on the sidelines

The northwestern Nevada city of Sparks had its issuer rating and the bond rating on special district bonds that funded the development of shopping, retail and entertainment district upgraded Friday by Moody’s Investors Service. Sparks, a city of 103,230 located in Washoe County that borders Reno, was upgraded to A1 from A2 and had a

Merger activity among not-for-profit and for-profit hospitals dipped for a fifth consecutive year in 2022, with mega-mergers in the forefront of a sector dealing with operating challenges from inflation, a nursing shortage, and patient volume trends. Announced mergers and acquisitions dropped to 55 last year from 73 in 2021, continuing a downward course since 2017

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the only solution to avoid a U.S. default crisis is for Congress to increase the federal debt limit, avoiding engaging with other proposed stopgap measures including short-term extensions or spending cuts. “It’s overly necessary for Congress to raise the debt limit, and I hope they do so in a timely

Municipals were steady, down a basis point or two in spots, ahead of a paltry new-issue calendar, courtesy of next week’s Federal Open Market Committee meeting. U.S. Treasuries were slightly weaker and equities ended in the black. The three-year muni-UST ratio was at 54%, the five-year at 57%, the 10-year at 62% and the 30-year

Republicans have finalized their roster of subcommittee chairs for the powerful House Ways and Means committee, one of the municipal market’s key panels. Pennsylvania Republican Rep. Mike Kelly will lead the newly-renamed tax subcommittee, formerly known as the Select Revenue Measures subcommittee, which writes tax policy and oversees tax collections. The position puts him in

The city of Miami and the county of Miami-Dade continue to rebound from the pandemic with unprecedented economic growth coupled with record low unemployment rates. Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava unveiled plans to create an authority to fund innovation while Miami City Mayor Francis Suarez focused on the environment and housing affordability. The Miami-Dade

Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital was awarded $135 million in grant funding by the California Health Facilities Financing Authority that it will use to expand pediatric programs in several counties. The grants are funded by issuing bonds through the Children’s Bond Act of 2018, a voter-approved bond measure that authorized the state to issue $1.5

Municipals were steady Thursday in the secondary market while an $830 million deal from the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority took focus in the primary. U.S. Treasuries yields rose after the fourth-quarter gross domestic product report was better than expected and equities ended up. The three-year muni-UST ratio was at 54%, the five-year at 57%,

Local governments have a new legal advocate in cases heard by the U.S. Supreme Court. The Government Finance Officers Association has joined with the National League of Cities, National Association of Counties and the International Municipal Lawyers Association to form the Local Government Legal Center, which will promote local government priorities before the nation’s top

York County, South Carolina, priced $24.6 million of revenue bonds Wednesday to recoup costs incurred by the county to take over of a private water utility operation. The proceeds will cover a portion of the $36 million price tag York County paid to take over private firm Blue Granite Water’s water utility operations in the

The struggle to provide affordable housing and its effect on the bond market is raising a mixture of hope and concerns from experts, especially in certain sub-sectors. “We have seen pressure in the stand-alone rental sector,” said Marian Zucker, sector lead on the S&P Global Ratings U.S. public finance team. “During the pandemic, age-restricted properties

Roger Millar, AASHTO’s new president and chief of Washington’s Department of Transportation, joins Caitlin Devitt to talk about the rollout of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, how a tight labor market and inflation are impacting capital plans, what a divided Congress means for transportation and an update on the Pacific Northwest’s high speed rail project. (24

A new Biden administration definition of federal waters threatens to delay transportation infrastructure projects across the country, a top construction lobbyist and other industry groups warned after filing a lawsuit seeking to overturn the rule. The Environmental Protection Agency on Jan. 18 published a revised rule that redefines so-called waters of the United States, or

Connecticut’s surplus projection for the current fiscal year received a $324.7 million boost. The Connecticut Office for Policy and Budget Management’s recently announced forecast for fiscal 2023, which runs through June, projects general fund revenue of $23.2 billion. Compared to December’s projections, revenues are up $265.3 million and expenses are down $59.4 million. That $324.7

For the first time in more than a decade, Texas public school districts are heading to the municipal market to sell bonds without a cost-saving state credit enhancement. Due to shrinking available capacity in the Permanent School Fund’s bond guarantee program, districts are being denied a triple-A-rated boost for their bonds, forcing them to issue

The Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority approved a contract Thursday with a consortium to run its electric generating facilities, despite observers raising some concerns about one member of the group. The consortium, Genera PR, would include New Fortress Energy, the El Nuevo Día and El Vocero web sites reported. New Fortress is a liquified natural