Bonds

Bancroft Capital is beefing up its Dallas-based municipal bond team with the hiring of two individuals with extensive market experience. The certified service-disabled veteran-owned small business, which specializes in institutional brokerage and capital markets services, announced the addition of Alix Cethoute as director of municipal underwriting and Jack Logan as director of municipal sales. Alix

The outlook on Hawaii’s Aa2 rating was lowered to stable from positive by Moody’s Investors Service ahead of an $800 million taxable general obligation bond deal. The outlook revision “reflects our expectation that given its significant tourism industry, lagging demographic trends, and already high cost of living, Hawaii is vulnerable to high inflation and potentially

Bankruptcy Judge Laura Taylor Swain approved the Plan of Adjustment for the Puerto Rico Highway and Transportation Authority, reducing its debts by 80% and saving it more than $3 billion in debt service payments.   Swain approved the HTA debt plan on Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico. Swain overruled any prior

Disclosure fraud, which represented almost all of the Public Finance Abuse Unit’s enforcement actions this year, ranks as the highest concern for municipal market participants. That’s according to an audience poll at the National Association of Bond Lawyers’ Workshop on Thursday, which collected 72% of the audience vote, followed by municipal advisors with 17% of

Municipals were firmer in secondary trading Wednesday as the largest deal of the week, a $700 million offering from the New Jersey Turnpike Authority, took focus in the primary. U.S. Treasuries made gains and equities ended mixed after the Federal Open Market Committee minutes signaled continued tightening. “The Fed Minutes showed tightening will continue even

Municipal bond veteran Bruce Sorensen has moved to Florida where he will continue to work for Robert W. Baird & Co. and focus on charter school finance. Sorensen joins Baird’s Sarasota office, moving from Minneapolis, and continue to focus his work on charter school municipal finance, the firm said Monday. Sorensen joined Baird in 2019

The Washington and Oregon governors and the premier of Canada’s British Columbia province have signed a pact joining with California Gov. Gavin Newsom in setting environmental mandates that encourage electric vehicle use, and pledging dollars to investing in EV infrastructure. Newsom, Oregon Gov. Kate Brown, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee and British Columbia Premier John Horgan

Cook County, Illinois’ proposed $8.75 billion fiscal 2023 budget relies on rising sales taxes, a healthy fund balance, and federal COVID-19 pandemic relief to stay on fiscal track while funding social initiatives and ongoing supplemental pension contributions. The proposed spending plan, up 7.8% from fiscal 2022, includes a $1.97 billion general fund, a $237 million

In the age of great resignation, demographic shifts, population loss, and retiring workforce, how is the muni industry planning to face the talent challenge and continue growth? Our panelists will examine some of the strategies they employ to attract and retain talent as well as how they continue to focus their efforts on having diverse

Municipals were a touch weaker out long to close out the week while U.S. Treasuries posted losses and equities sold off after hotter-than-expected jobs data. Municipal to UST ratios again fell on the day’s moves. The three-year on Thursday was at 69%, the five-year was at 73%, the 10-year at 82% and the 30-year at

The city of Trenton has found itself in hot water with the state of New Jersey once again. Following a brush with default in August that prompted a state response, a group of local legislators announced on Monday that New Jersey’s Department of Environmental Protection planned for a limited but “imminent” intervention of its troubled

The panelists will share the status update on the preparations underway and the impact on local governments and infrastructure in the City and surrounding area. Takeaways include:   Regional infrastructure projects that will come online by 2028 Risk management considerations Infrastructure in place for the Olympics, and venues under construction Other projects expected to enhance

As we approach a year since the infrastructure law passed, the discussion will center around the plans put in place to use the monies as well as what challenges and opportunities lie ahead. The discussion points will include: The rollout of IIJA   How easy/difficult has it been to receive the money from the government

A school district in the Portland, Oregon, suburbs was downgraded two notches by Moody’s Investors Service. The issuer and general obligation unlimited tax bond ratings of the Sherwood School District, formally Washington, Clackamas and Yamhill Counties School District 88J, were cut to A3 from A1, with a negative outlook assigned. The downgrade affects $302.5 million

Chief Economist Dr. Lindsey Piegza will look at the current state of the economy amid the ongoing pandemic and what it means going forward for overall growth, interest rates and monetary policy. She will cover macro-economic trends in consumer spending and investment, in addition to new monetary and fiscal policy initiatives and the potential economic

The fate of a planned 16-million-square-foot Georgia factory for electric vehicle manufacturer Rivian is in question after a judge denied validation of $15 billion in PILOT bonds planned to back its construction. The Georgia Economic Development Commission, along with the Joint Development Authority for Jasper, Morgan, Newton, and Walton counties and Rivian, negotiated an agreement

Municipal yields fell Tuesday by as much as 10 basis points out long while U.S. Treasuries were little changed and equities rallied. Triple-A yields fell four to 10 basis points across the curve amid robust secondary trading with high-grade names showing clear moves to lower yields. New York City priced $1.35 billion of exempt and

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s $45.5 million budget for FY 2023, its first balanced budget in many years, includes $22.8 million for market transparency and technology, $5 million for market structure and data and $4.3 million for market regulation following the board’s implementation of its new fee model. The board had been operating at a

The first green municipal bond was issued nearly a decade ago, but the public finance industry — and California in particular — have been working to take it to the next level. California’s Green Bond Market Development Committee plans to produce recommendations next year on both best practices for issuing green bonds and a method

Baby bond programs aren’t a panacea for generational inequality, but remain a promising tool to chip away at such problems, experts said at an event this week in New York. Tuesday’s event at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, “Exploring Baby Bonds as a Tool to Improve Economic Security,” was organized in conjunction with