Bonds

California voters consider environmental policy so important, according to a recent poll, that it could influence who they support for president. Most favor a $10 billion bond measure proposed to pay for flood control and climate resiliency projects, and the majority plan to cast their ballots for President Joe Biden in the deep blue state.

The Board of Directors of the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board will try to iron out some thorny issues when they meet on July 24-25, for their final quarterly gathering this fiscal year. Establishing priorities for the next fiscal year and approving the FY 2025 budget to advance its strategic plan are among the agenda items.

Lack of capacity at state transportation departments share some of the blame for infamously high infrastructure costs in the U.S. compared to other countries. On the other hand, procurement practices that increase competition among contractors help bring down costs, said Will Nober, an economics doctoral student at Columbia University, Zachary Liscow, a professor at Yale

The Dormitory Authority of the State of New York sold $1.2 billion of revenue bonds last week to good demand, with spreads coming in tighter compared to a DASNY negotiated deal that priced last year. “Overall the bond sale was a success,” said DASNY spokesperson Jeffrey Gordon. “[Last week’s sale] benefited from a calm market

Short-term munis were slightly firmer Thursday as muni mutual funds saw continued inflows and the primary market slowed. U.S. Treasuries yields rose and equities sold off. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Thursday was at 64%, the three-year at 66%, the five-year at 68%, the 10-year at 67% and the 30-year at 83%, according to Refinitiv Municipal

Financed with a mix of bonds, general revenue funds and some federal funding, Missouri this month kicked off a major expansion of Interstate 70, which runs parallel to the Missouri River and links St. Louis with Kansas City. The project, which spans 200 miles from Blue Springs to Wentzville, involves repairing the existing four lanes

Municipals were little changed Wednesday as the primary market saw another busy day, led by an upsized $2.5 billion from the New York City Transitional Finance Authority and $1.3 billion from the Regents of the University of California. U.S. Treasuries were slightly firmer and equities were mixed toward the close. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Wednesday

The threat of cybercrime perpetrated against municipalities continues to mutate into more sophisticated and life-threatening schemes.  “If I had to tell you what keeps me up at night, it’s not necessarily the garden variety ransomware,” said Omid Rahmani, an associate director for U.S. public finance at Fitch Ratings “It’s the advanced, nation-state, havoc-based attacks. These

U.S. states are expected to cut their budgets, marking a return to more modest levels of spending after years of stimulus-fueled growth and tax cuts.  Total general-fund spending is expected to fall to $1.2 trillion in fiscal 2025, according to an analysis by the The Pew Charitable Trusts. That’s a roughly 6% decline from estimates of

Municipals were firmer in secondary trading Tuesday as the primary market picked up steam, while U.S. Treasury yields fell and equities ended up. The two-year muni-to-Treasury ratio Tuesday was at 65%, the three-year at 66%, the five-year at 68%, the 10-year at 67% and the 30-year at 84%, according to Refinitiv Municipal Market Data’s 3

Municipals were little changed Monday as the chance of former President Donald Trump being reelected increased following the assassination attempt over the weekend. U.S. Treasuries were weaker and equities were up. Financial markets are trying to “absorb” the outcome of higher odds of Trump winning in November and the news of his pick of Sen.

Ohio state legislators are considering a bill that would bar the state’s pension systems, state colleges and universities and the Bureau of Workers’ Compensation from prioritizing environment, social and governance factors when making investment decisions.  Ohio’s Senate Bill 6 passed the state Senate on May 10 by a vote of 26 to 7, with senators

The looming 2028 Olympics and the specter of crime took center stage at the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s state of the agency event this week. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass handed off the gavel and her title as Metro chair to Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn during Wednesday’s event held at Union

Municipals were little changed Friday ahead of another large new-issue calendar. U.S. Treasury yields fell further and equities ended higher. A “relatively difficult start to the year” was expected, “as Treasury yields were too low, market participants were too optimistic about the number of rate cuts this year, and muni ratios were near their multi-year

In light of the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent reversal of the so-called Chevron doctrine, House Republican leaders Wednesday launched a review of the Biden administration’s environmental, social and governance agency regulations. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chair Rep. Sam Graves, R-Mo., and Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chair of the House Oversight Committee, sent letters this

The Securities and Exchange Commission has approved the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s amendments to Rule G-47 on time of trade disclosure, adding three disclosure scenarios, retiring some existing guidance and clarifying some supplemental information. The amendments were filed with the Commission in April and the amendments themselves were discussed and approved at the MSRB’s quarterly

A subsidiary of Spanish highway operator Abertis is considering borrowing $424 million to fund capital projects for four Puerto Rico toll roads.  The Public Finance Authority, a Wisconsin-based conduit issuer, approved the municipal bond sale for Puerto Rico Toll Roads LLC, at a June 26 board meeting. PFA would loan the proceeds it borrows to

The North Carolina Local Government Commission approved $226 million in water revenue bonds for three municipalities in the Research Triangle Region at its meeting Tuesday. The commission approved a $76 million bond and an $88.4 million state revolving fund loan for Sanford, a $75 million bond and a $54 million SRF loan for Fuquay-Varina, and

Officials in East St. Louis, Illinois, have sued the local police and firefighter pension boards and the state comptroller to block the use of a law allowing the comptroller to intercept state funds going to the city and redirect them to pension payments. According to the Belleville News-Democrat, the city is challenging the law’s legitimacy

Public infrastructure built with federal emergency funds must conform to stricter flood-risk standards to better protect against rising climate risk, the Biden administration said Wednesday. The standard, which was years in the making, requires buildings and other infrastructure built with Federal Emergency Management Agency funds to be elevated higher above local flood levels, or relocated