Bonds

Miami-Dade County, Florida, Mayor Daniella Levine Cava has dropped plans for a proposed a $2.5 billion municipal bond referendum in November that would have funded infrastructure projects. Instead, the mayor said Thursday she will work to propose an even larger bonding plan that will include money for transit projects. Proceeds from the “305 Future Ready”

The Department of Transportation and Baltimore County have reached an agreement to divert a previously awarded DOT grant to help nearby ports accommodate more cargo following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge. That comes along with the announcement Thursday that DOT’s Federal Transit Administration will allocate $20.5 billion to state and local government

In a ceremony watched by thousands of issuers, the White House Thursday unveiled an overhaul of how it sends billions of federal funds to cities, states and nonprofits in an effort to cut red tape, expand the pool of grant recipients and simplify reporting and compliance. “The changes being finalized and announced today are historic

The first quarter of the year saw the highest number of new municipal bond impairments since the Great Recession, according to Municipal Market Analytics, Inc. There were 47 new impairments eclipsing the previous post-Great Recession peak of 44 in 2019, the firm said in its Default Trends report released Wednesday. The first quarter’s impairments “continue

Fitch Ratings’ new U.S. local government rating criteria is expected to lead to changes to about 550 ratings in the next six months. Fitch adopted the new criteria — which will affect cities, counties, school districts, and special districts — after working on the revision since the fall. The criteria will also be used to

The Environmental Protection Agency Thursday announced $20 billion of grants to spur clean energy projects primarily in underserved areas, marking the largest federal investment to date in climate-related projects. The money, divided among eight applicants, marks the official launch of the $27 billion Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund created by President Joe Biden’s 2022 Inflation Reduction

Munis saw a weaker tone Wednesday as muni yields were cut up to five basis points, depending on the scale, marking a second day of selling pressure, as few deals priced in the primary. U.S. Treasuries were slightly firmer across most of the curve and equities were mixed. “Much like other periods in recent years

The North Carolina Local Government Commission approved more than $1 billion in financing requests from state agencies and local governments at its latest meeting. The largest request on Tuesday’s agenda was from the North Carolina Housing Finance Agency, which was given approval to issue $750 million of revenue bonds to be used to increase the

The bankruptcy of Iowa City’s Mercy Hospital is closer to an end with the resolution last week of a dispute between the committee of unsecured creditors, which had filed a complaint on March 25, and trustee Computershare Trust and bondholder representative Preston Hollow Community Capital.  The plan support agreement reached raised the estimated dollar amount

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has fined and suspended Christopher Perillo, a former municipal securities representative for Academy Securities, for accessing study materials while taking the Series 52 exam.  Perillo agreed to pay $5,000 and be suspended from the industry, without either admitting or denying FINRA’s findings that he violated Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board Rule

Munis were little changed Monday as U.S. Treasuries sold off and equities ended mixed. Following the conclusion of the first quarter, munis are seeing losses for the year with the asset class returning negative 0.39% for the year and March returns were at 0.00%, noted Jason Wong, vice president of municipals at AmeriVet Securities. The

The U.S. Department of Energy announced a $1.5 billion loan to re-start a closed Michigan nuclear reactor, which if finalized would mark the nation’s first recommissioned plant as part of the Bidens administration’s goal of reaching 100% clean energy electricity by 2035 and net-zero emissions by 2050. The loan, which received conditional approval from the

The Purdue University Trustees priced $72.43 million of student fee bonds Tuesday, joining other issuers in refunding some of the university’s outstanding Build America Bonds. Lead managers Jefferies and Ramirez & Co. priced the deal Wednesday, with Wells Fargo Securities serving as co-manager. The municipal advisor is Blue Rose Capital Advisors. Bond counsel is Ice

Municipals were steady to weaker in spots Thursday ahead of a smaller new-issue calendar while municipal bond mutual funds saw more inflows. U.S. Treasury yields rose 10 years and in and equities ended mixed. LSEG Lipper reported fund inflows of $447 million for the week ending Wednesday following $63.8 million of inflows the prior week.

Hawaii Gov. Josh Green claims the state is making headway toward reducing recovery costs by getting people displaced by fires out of hotels and into permanent housing. Green has faced criticism from lawmakers for not having a cogent housing plan or coherent budget for the costs associated with the August 8 Lahaina wildfires. Lawmakers are

A proposed $2 billion public private partnership that would have moved two major league sports teams out of Washington D.C. and into a bond-financed, built-from-scratch arena in Northern Virginia is officially off, following an announcement that the District has come to terms on a deal to keep the teams in their current home. On Wednesday,

A Colorado bonding authority is taking a step toward purchasing a hotel tied to author Stephen King’s The Shining after an Arizona nonprofit dropped its bond-financed plan to buy and renovate the property.  The Colorado Educational and Cultural Facilities Authority (CECFA), which would have been the conduit issuer for up to $475 million of cultural

New Yorkers are feeling less satisfied and more uneasy today than they were only six years ago, according to a survey done by the Citizens Budget Commission. The results of the CBC’s 2023 Resident Survey released March 19 reveals that Big Apple residents rate their quality of life much lower than they did in a

The New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board voted 11-1 to adopt its congestion pricing toll structure, the first of its kind in the nation and a key source of funding for the MTA’s upcoming capital projects. The vote will allow congestion pricing to be implemented as planned in mid-June. However, the congestion pricing plan is

With tax season in full swing, the muni market is underperforming and facing selling pressure as investors move out of short-term paper to pay tax blls. However, these dynamics have not made the asset class an undesirable option for investors and most expect demand to remain strong. Munis are returning negative 0.06% month-to-date, while USTs