Bonds

While the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority assured a congressional committee Thursday it is prepared for the next hurricane, the utility hasn’t fully rebuilt its hurricane- and earthquake-damaged grid, it has large debts and an underfunded pension system. PREPA CEO Jose Ortiz presented a mixed picture to members of the House Natural Resources Committee, acknowledging

A 16-year-old New Jersey Supreme Court case has reemerged to play a central role in Republican efforts to try and halt New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy’s $9.9 billion borrowing plan. A lawsuit filed by the New Jersey Republican State Committee last week argued that the debt legislation Murphy signed violates the state constitution and conflicts

“No matter what state, no matter what municipality you are in, there’s going to be some effect from all this.”said Johnny Hutchinson, a partner at Squire Patton Boggs in Houston and Chair of NABL’s Tax Law Committee. State and local governments would be better able to manage their cash flow during the financial stress of

With COVID-19 cases surging in parts of the country, and no end in sight, it is almost certain there will be another round of stimulus, with many speculating what it will look like. Lee Ferridge, head of macro strategy for State Street Global Markets, and Noel Dixon, global macro strategist for State Street, say it

Municipal yields held steady as the market awaits large Texas and California deals. The new-issue calendar features billion dollar deals from the Southwest and West regions of the country. The cities of Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas’ (A1/A/A+/AA) are coming to market for the second week in a row, this time with a taxable sale.

Municipals were mostly stronger on Thursday as the Dallas-Fort Worth airport issue and Doris Duke social bond deals hit the market, rounding out the week’s last large offerings. For the 11th straight week, investors remained remarkably bullish in mutual funds, with Refinitiv Lipper reporting inflows of $2.1 billion into bond funds for the week ended

In its second major refunding deal in 10 days, Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport again achieved net present value savings of 27% on tax-exempt bonds, officials said. “We were very pleased with this pricing,” airport chief financial officer Christopher Poinsatte said of Thursday’s current refunding of $482.8 million of revenue bonds. “We knew our initial price

Republican Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah said he will vote against Judy Shelton, one of two Trump administration nominees to the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors. ”I’m not going to be endorsing,” Romney told reporters Thursday. “I will be voting against it.” Shelton, an informal adviser to President Trump’s campaign in 2016, is nominated along

Better than anticipated tax revenues for June put California in better financial shape than anticipated a few months back, but a rocky road still lies ahead. With the fuzzy numbers California used to pass a budget about to get clearer, state leaders will now have a better picture of just how much havoc the coronavirus

With prospects waning for federal aid, New York State faces more pressure to increase taxes to fill the deep budget hole caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Gov. Andrew Cuomo has held off on any big fiscal decisions since signing a $177 billion budget in April. Without federal aid, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo faces unattractive

Ohio legislation that provided a ratepayer bailout for two nuclear power plants owned by then-bankrupt FirstEnergy Solutions is at the center of a $60 million pay-to-play scheme that led to the arrest of Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder on federal corruption charges this week. The legislation, signed by Gov. Mike DeWine in July 2019, bolstered

A South Carolina circuit judge has closed the book on a lengthy class-action lawsuit against the utility owned by the state and an investor-owned power company over their failed nuclear reactor project. On Tuesday, Acting Circuit Court Judge Jean Hoefer Toal issued the final judgment in the class-action case led by Jessica S. Cook, ending

Preston Hollow Capital LLC this week intensified its pursuit of action against Nuveen Investments over what one judge has called the municipal titan’s “successful” attempt to damage its smaller rival’s direct lending business. The Dallas-based lender that entered the high-yield space in 2014 filed an antitrust lawsuit Monday in the U.S. District Court for the

Municipals were steady Tuesday, with yields on the AAA muni scales a bit stronger on shorter maturities as traders and other market participants monitor the ongoing virus-related uncertainties. Muni bonds were little changed on Tuesday with a small uptick in volume, ICE Data Services said, adding that “taxable yields are about two basis points lower

Texas faces a shortfall of $4.8 billion at the end of fiscal year 2021, Comptroller Glenn Hegar reported Monday. The revised the Certification Revenue Estimate represents a nearly $7.5 billion swing from the previous estimate of $2.89 billion positive year-end balance. Hegar attributed the dramatic reversal to COVID-19 pandemic and recent volatility in oil prices.

A decline in travel caused by the coronavirus pandemic sparked a second downgrade in six weeks to Port Authority of New York and New Jersey-issued bonds sold for financing an expansion project at John. F. Kennedy International Airport. Fitch lowered the Port Authority’s senior secured series 6 and 8 special project bonds issued of behalf

State tax law changes that improve Chicago’s prospects for developing its first casino will help efforts to cover rising pension contributions but the project falls short of solving the city’s budgetary and pension woes, according to Moody’s Investors Service. “The legislation marks an important step toward a new revenue source to help the city fund

The shroud of uncertainty surrounding further COVID-19 federal rescue aid has many public transit agencies and transportation advocates thinking worst-case scenario. “Everything has to be on the table if we don’t get additional funding,” said Patrick Foye, chairman of New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority. “Sadly, that includes the possibility of service reductions, which is absolutely

A COVID-19-driven decline in lottery revenue led Oregon to postpone a $302 million bond sale. The state needs to wait to sell lottery revenue bonds, according to Oregon Treasurer Tobias Read. Due to the pandemic, “Projected 2019-21 lottery revenues are down approximately $364 million, or about 24% compared to the March 2020 forecast, and will

The two remaining active monoline municipal bond insurers are experiencing a boom in business stemming from investors’ credit concerns and Assured Guaranty just got another nod from a rating agency showcasing its resiliency. S&P Global Ratings issued its annual report on Assured Guaranty, affirming its AA rating along with a stable outlook. . “In addition

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan is billing a revised $250 million blight bond proposal as a means to fund demolition and renovations while creating jobs to keep the city’s post-bankruptcy progress on track amid the coronavirus pandemic. The council may consider putting the plan — called “Proposal N for Neighborhood Improvement” — on the November ballot

A suburban Chicago hotel and conference center that restructured its bonds through bankruptcy in 2018 defaulted on debt service owed this month. The breathing room the Lombard Public Facilities Corp. won in the Chapter 11 restructuring was nowhere near enough to outrun the coronavirus pandemic, which shuttered the Westin Lombard Yorktown Center. The restructuring a

A $9.9 billion emergency bonding bill approved by the Democrat-controlled New Jersey legislature Thursday will likely face a legal battle, due to conflicts in the state constitution, before Gov. Phil Murphy can map out the state’s borrowing strategy. “There are provisions in the constitution that are in conflict,” said Marc Pfeiffer, assistant director of Rutgers

Municipals resumed their rally on Thursday, with yields falling on the AAA scales by as much as four basis points. The last of the week’s hefty supply surged into the market and into the eager arms of buyers. In the week ended July 15, muni tax-exempt mutual funds saw $857.321 million of inflows, according to

While economic activity gained in nearly all districts, it hasn’t come close to pre-pandemic levels, according to the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book, released Wednesday. “Outlooks remained highly uncertain, as contacts grappled with how long the COVID-19 pandemic would continue and the magnitude of its economic implications,” according to the release. Employment improved in nearly all

Attractive low yields enticed issuers into the market on Wednesday as retail investor confidence remained elevated. Municipal bond funds saw inflows of $1.8 billion, according to the Investment Company Institute, the 10th straight week that investors ploughed cash into mutual funds. Municipals were steady Wednesday as several billion dollar deals hit the screens. “The level

San Francisco officials are seeking voter approval of $487.5 million general obligation bonds to address the city’s COVID-19-related economic downturn and longer-term health-, housing- and poverty-related challenges. The city’s board of supervisors on Tuesday unanimously approved sending the “Health and Recovery” bond ballot to voters to decide in November. Mayor London Breed introduced the proposal

The Governing Board of the Virgin Islands Public Finance Authority met Tuesday via videoconference and voted unanimously to execute the term sheets with Banco Popular and First Bank for $60 million in loans to fund government operations. “The revenue anticipation notes will be split with $30 million being loaned by Banco Popular and First Bank

Municipals strengthened on Tuesday as the first of the large new-issue slate began to come to market and investors are banking on the long game that issuers will weather the COVID-19 storms. The diversity of issuers coming to market this week will test how much appetite investors have with looming credit concerns for sellers of

While the Federal Reserve has busied itself trying to keep the markets stable, its job when the crisis is over will be to keep monetary policy accommodative, according to Fed Gov. Lael Brainard. “A thick fog of uncertainty still surrounds us, and downside risks predominate,” she said during a National Association for Business Economics webinar,