Bonds

The North Carolina Local Government Commission on Tuesday approved the Mecklenburg County and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools request for a $2.5 billion bond package. It was the largest amount of tax-exempt financing ever OK’d by the commission. Separately, State Treasurer Dale Folwell noted that the state is on the way to reaching its goal of paying down

An active primary market was the focus Wednesday with the New York City TFA pricing for institutions with small changes to yields from its Tuesday retail offering, Massachusetts upsizing its GO refunding deal and Wisconsin selling green bonds in the competitive market. Triple-A muni yield curves were mostly little changed to a basis point of

The focus shifted fully into the primary market Tuesday as the secondary took a backseat to large new-issues pricing in both negotiated and competitive markets while U.S. Treasuries halted its two-day sell off to see gains on the day. Equities ended mixed. Munis were little changed Tuesday, as UST yields fell six to nine basis

A struggling Iowa hospital’s sale to its primary competitor through a bankruptcy proceeding has closed. In a case filing by Iowa City-based Mercy Hospital, the notice of sale closing made official the hospital’s sale to the University of Iowa through the Chapter 11 bankruptcy process. Mercy filed for bankruptcy in August, thwarting a push by

Corpus Christi is moving forward with Texas’ first seawater desalination treatment plant for municipal use with the aim of providing the Gulf Coast city a drought-proof water supply. In a 6-2 vote last week, the city council approved several measures including the issuance of $221 million of utility system senior lien revenue improvement bonds to

Guam’s latest proposed budget was hailed by analysts who said its approach should be copied by other U.S. territories. Gov. Lourdes Leon Guerrero proposed a 5.9% bigger general fund budget for fiscal 2025 days after Moody’s Investors Service raised the territory’s general obligation bonds to investment grade (Baa3) from speculative grade (Ba1); the first time

Repair needs for the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority MTA will cost at least $43 billion over the next several years, according to a new report issued by state comptroller Thomas DiNapoli. DiNapoli said the estimates by his office of the 2025 to 2029 period don’t include any new priorities to address accessibility, resiliency or

Municipals saw losses Friday but outperformed by mostly sitting out a larger sell-off in U.S. Treasuries after jobs data showed higher-than-expected gains, forcing another recalibration for participants on rate cut timing. The January employment report came in stronger than expected, with wages rising at the highest rate since March 2022, leading analysts to suggest Federal

A small-town southwest Missouri hospital is scrambling to restructure after its bond trustee declared it to be in default. In a special meeting Friday, the board of Nevada Regional Medical Center agreed to hire Stroudwater Associates’ Jason McCormick as its chief restructuring officer. The hospital had been searching for someone to fill that role after

Los Angeles International Airport had the private-activity bonds supporting its people mover train downgraded to junk with Fitch Ratings citing continuous and ongoing delays and a strained relationship between the developer and the airport. The $1.2 billion in PABs issued through the California Municipal Finance Authority for the project were downgraded to BB-plus from BBB-minus

The Education Finance Council is turning up the pressure on the Internal Revenue Service for clarifications on bond rules that have gone unanswered for four years.  The trade group, which represents state-based and nonprofit higher education finance organizations, is asking the agency via a letter to clarify requirements listed in Section 144(b) of the Internal

The Biden administration will not be appealing to the Supreme Court an Eleventh Circuit ruling in favor of states, who’ve challenged the American Rescue Plan Offset Provision that bars states from using federal aid dollars to fund tax cuts, in what may be an end to those state challenges. That decision was communicated in a

Municipals rallied Thursday as the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority doubled the size of its deal to $1.6 billion while muni mutual funds saw inflows hit nearly $1.5 billion. U.S. Treasury yields fell and equities improved. Muni yields were bumped two to 12 basis points, depending on the curve, while UST yields fell six to

On Wednesday the House passed new legislation that seeks adjustments to Low-Income Housing Tax Credits issued by the Treasury that lowers the volume requirements of state-issued private activity bonds.  The Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act passed via a 357 -70 vote featuring strong bipartisan support. It stands on two legs of expanding

Municipals saw the largest one-day improvements since November Wednesday, as U.S. Treasury yields fell and equities sold off after the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee kept rates unchanged and signaled the Fed may not be rushing to cut rates until inflation is further tamed. In his press conference, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said cuts are

Another bankruptcy involving bonds issued through the Arizona Industrial Development Authority was filed Tuesday along with a pre-packaged exit plan that would result in bondholder ownership of a reorganized company. Restoration Forest Products Group, which brought the Chapter 11 case in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware, sold $112.8 million of taxable Series A senior and

Municipals were slightly firmer Tuesday as new-issues from the New York Thruway Authority and the Massachusetts Development Finance Agency’s Children’s Hospital were well-received. U.S. Treasuries were mixed as were equities ahead of the Fed rates decision Wednesday. Triple-A yields were bumped one to four basis points, depending on the curve, while UST saw yields fall

The University of Washington’s outlook was revised to negative from stable by Moody’s Investors Service and its Aaa issuer rating affirmed ahead of its plans to issue tax-exempt revenue bonds next week. The negative outlook “was driven by the university’s thinning operating performance that reflects both expense pressures in the university’s own operations as well

Municipals were little changed to start the week, while U.S. Treasuries were firmer and equities were up late in the trading session. The muni market enters 2024 with “stable credit fundamentals, supportive demand/supply dynamics, and low [muni-UST] ratios and compressed credit spreads,” said Adam Stern, co-head of research at Breckinridge. On the technical front, he

The biggest municipal bond deal of the week is coming to market on Tuesday even as a state lawmaker is proposing to abolish the very authority that is issuing the debt. The New York State Thruway Authority this week is bringing $1.027 billion of Series P general revenue bonds in a transaction led by J.P.