Bonds

Municipals sat tight again Wednesday as broader markets digested the Federal Open Market Committee leaving interest rates unchanged and noting the tapering process may begin sooner. The news was largely expected and U.S. Treasuries ended the day a touch firmer while equities made up for lost ground though pared back earlier gains. “The biggest news

While Puerto Rico Gov. Pedro Pierluisi signed into law minimum wage increases for the island, they will not address long-term economic growth issues, economists said. Pierluisi on Tuesday signed the law, which will raise the minimum to $8.50 per hour on Jan. 1 from $7.25 per hour. The wage will increase to $9.50 per hour

S&P Global Ratings has singled out states’ underfunding of retiree medical benefits as a key credit risk for states. States continued to sharply underfund their OPEB plans and unfunded liabilities ticked upward in fiscal 2020, S&P analysts reported in their annual survey published Monday. During the economic expansion preceding the pandemic, few states pursued and

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot plans to use $1.3 billion of the city’s $1.9 billion in federal coronavirus aid for budget relief through 2023 with the remainder, and $660 million of borrowing, funneled toward social, economic and infrastructure recovery initiatives. Lightfoot presented her plan for American Rescue Plan Act funds alongside her proposed 2022 budget that

Municipals largely ignored the rally in U.S. Treasuries and a massive selloff in equities as participants await another large new-issue week. Without the primary in play and a mostly muted secondary, triple-A benchmark yield curves were little changed, coming nowhere near the moves in Treasuries as the 10- and 30-year UST fell five and six

The Oklahoma Department of Education is facing the first audit in its history after a funding scandal involving the state’s largest charter school operator. Gov. Kevin Stitt last week ordered the audit of the entire department after a previous audit of the Epic Charter Schools cited misuse of funds, including the application of state funds

Tax law changes and bond provisions included in the $3.5 trillion reconciliation package being debated in Washington likely will shift the demand components for and the makeup of the muni market in dramatic ways in the coming decade. The market is closely watching Washington to see whether the proposed tax law changes — higher rates

Rebounding casino and new online gambling tax revenues will give Detroit’s general fund a boost this year and in the coming ones as it tackles looming pension contribution pressures. The city’s estimating conference revised general fund projections for the fiscal 2022 which began July 1 to $1.1 billion from $995 million thanks mostly to $66

The Puerto Rico Oversight Board reiterated its position on pension cuts in the Plan of Adjustment Friday, the biggest source of tension it has with the local government, but was unclear on how willing it was to accommodate the government’s demands. Puerto Rico Gov. Pedro Pierluisi and many of the legislators have called for zero

Municipals were a touch softer Friday as U.S. Treasuries rose and equities sold off as global concerns over China and COVID were heightened and participants prepared for the FOMC meeting and potential for tapering next week. Triple-A benchmark yields rose a basis point beginning in 2028 while UST were off another three to four on

The Louisiana State Bond Commission this week approved the sale of $50 million in revenue bonds to help the Calcasieu Parish School Board resume work on those schools damaged last year by two hurricanes. Construction has been halted because of delays in reimbursement from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. “A year after two devastating hurricanes,

RBC Capital Markets LLC and two of its municipal market officials have agreed to pay more than $800,000 to settle Securities and Exchange Commission charges that they improperly allocated new issue bonds, the latest development in a three-year SEC investigation into muni bond flipping. The SEC announced the action Friday, and all three defendants neither

Puerto Rico’s local government revoked a law the Oversight Board has been considering using to issue restructured bonds without the local government’s support. Puerto Rico Gov. Pedro Pierluisi signed Project 959 on Thursday, revoking the 1942 law, which had been used over the years to justify bond refundings. The board has argued it could legally

A battle between the haves and the have-mores may split up a well-off California school district. The 70-year-old district that serves Santa Monica and Malibu is contemplating breaking up along city borders. Or more precisely, the even-richer city of Malibu wants to split its schools from those in its more urban neighbor. If they continue

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot tapped San Antonio, Texas, school superintendent Pedro Martinez — a former Chicago Public Schools fiscal chief — to lead the district as fiscal and governance change looms. Lightfoot introduced Martinez as the new chief executive officer at a news conference Wednesday. Martinez is the first Latino to hold the CEO position

A new North Carolina law allows a state commission to disband severely stressed cities or towns that have become a financial threat to local taxpayers. The “tool kit” legislation expands and strengthens the actions that can be taken by the state Local Government Commission. The law sets up a legal process for the voluntary or

The municipal primary was the focus Tuesday with large deals repricing to lower yields while the secondary market took a backseat with benchmark curves little changed even as U.S. Treasuries rallied and stocks sold off. Triple-A benchmarks saw a basis point bump in spots while U.S. Treasury yields fell five basis points on the 10-

Broker-dealers told the Securities and Exchange Commission this week they support a proposal to reduce the volume of disclosures they would need to make to customers on an annual basis, though they also suggested some tweaks to the concept. The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association and Bond Dealers of America submitted comment letters to

Municipals were little changed ahead of a $10 billion-plus new-issue week as California offered $2 billion of general obligation bonds to retail investors and the market considered the municipal bond provisions offered from Washington. Triple-A benchmarks reported steady levels while U.S. Treasuries improved and equities also improved. “The municipal market is relatively unchanged and not

Texas Republican leaders have taken their battle with the federal government to a level not seen since desegregation. On virtually every front — healthcare, voting rights, women’s rights, gay and trans-gendered rights, crime, immigration, education — elected state leaders have assumed an adversarial position as reflected in laws, lawsuits and public declarations. Leading the opposition