Bonds

Hawaii’s first-of-its-kind per-mile fee for vehicles marks the latest and most extensive effort yet among states seeking to offset the fading fuel tax. Signed into law by Gov. Josh Green last July, the law requires EVs to pay a per-mile charge or an annual fee by 2025 and will require all vehicles to pay a

Illinois’ Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability on Thursday released its Special Pension Briefing on the state-funded retirement systems’ fiscal 2023 actuarial reports. The report said the five pension systems’ unfunded liability climbed to a market value of $142.2 billion at the end of fiscal 2023 on June 30 from $139.8 billion in 2022, with

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro announced a new economic development plan that he says will guide the priorities when he releases his budget this week. The 10-year program is Pennsylvania’s first economic development plan in nearly two decades and targets areas including site readiness, workforce development and housing and community development. “For too long, Pennsylvania’s neighboring

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

Proposed changes to California’s mental health system and a $6.4 billion bond measure proposed in Proposition 1 continue to garner more support as the March 5 election draws near. The proposition, which will be the only one on the March ballot, would use funds from California’s so-called millionaire’s tax to create more slots for people

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

Florida lawmakers are asking Congress to expand the use of tax-exempt private activity bonds to include commercial spaceports. “The push for Congress to grant spaceport bonds tax-exempt status has been a conversation for many years,” said a spokesperson for Space Florida, the state’s aerospace finance and development authority, which oversees the development of the Florida’s

President Joe Biden will visit Wisconsin Thursday to announce nearly $5 billion in grants to kickstart transportation projects across the country. The largest grant, of $1 billion, will go to replace the aging Blatnik bridge between Wisconsin and Minnesota, where Biden will make the announcement. President Joe Biden is set to visit Wisconsin Thursday to

The Oklahoma Senate will not take up an income tax cut during a special legislative session next week as it waits for more information about the state’s financial position. The Republican-controlled chamber will commence and immediately adjourn the session that starts Monday just like it did for an October special session on tax cuts Gov.

Dealer groups representing firms of all sizes are urging the Securities and Exchange Commission to adopt the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s 2024 rate card for fear that reverting back to 2023 levels would cause significant disruption. That’s according to a joint letter signed by the Bond Dealers of America and the Securities Industry and Financial

Arizona should be able to tackle a growing shortfall given the state’s improved reserves, low debt burden, and budget flexibility, Moody’s Investors Service said this week.  The state’s general fund faces projected shortfalls of $835 million in fiscal 2024 and nearly $879 million in fiscal 2025, according to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee’s latest projections,

Louisiana’s largest and most complex public-private partnership that will replace an aging bridge over Interstate 10 appears back on track after the state’s new administration hammered out a revised agreement with the concessionaire to assuage political opposition. The modified agreement lowers tolls and includes a 15% equity contribution for local infrastructure, new Gov. Jeff Landry

A Congress that just narrowly avoided a government shutdown is getting a fresh wish list from a wide cross section of organizations of issuers, including calls for preserving the tax exemption on municipal bonds.   The letter originates from the Public Finance Network, which encompasses twenty-four issuer organizations including the Government Finance Officers Association, the National

The Illinois Supreme Court Friday upheld pension consolidation legislation championed by Gov. JB Pritzker that was challenged in court by more than a dozen suburban and downstate police and firefighter pension funds.  The case, Arlington Heights Police Pension Fund et al. v. JB Pritzker et al., had pitted the governor and General Assembly against a

Two public finance professionals helped craft legislation that added whole categories of residential care facilities to the list of borrowers eligible to issue debt through the California Health Facilities Financing Authority. Assembly Bill 839, authored by Assemblymember Dawn Addis, D-Morro Bay, and signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in October, allows nonprofits that operate independent living,

Georgia Gov. Brian P. Kemp’s proposed amended fiscal 2024 and fiscal 2025 budget includes spending some of the surplus revenue the state has taken in on capital projects rather than issuing bonds this year. The state is estimated to have about $11 billion in surplus cash in its coffers, according to the state Department of

Republican lawmakers in Arizona pushed back on aspects of Gov. Katie Hobbs’ proposed fiscal 2025 budget, particularly its targeting of rising costs for the state’s universal school voucher program. The spending plan, which was unveiled by the Democratic governor Friday and had its first airing Tuesday before the Republican-controlled legislature’s Joint Appropriations Committee, aims to

The state of Wisconsin is embarking on a flurry of debt-related activity as the year begins, with a cash defeasance and three refunding deals that may include tenders on the table in the first quarter. The defeasance was made possible by the state’s 2023-25 biennial budget, which included $400 million to pay down outstanding general

The Federal Reserve should be able to “methodically and carefully” lower its interest rate target this year, if inflation continues to moderate, Federal Reserve Gov. Christopher Waller said Tuesday. “When the time is right to begin lowering rates, I believe it can and should be lowered methodically and carefully,” Waller said in a Brookings event.

California’s budget shortfall is $30 billion less than the $68 billion deficit forecast by the legislative analyst’s office in November, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday as he unveiled his proposed $291.5 billion budget for fiscal year 2024-25. Even his estimated $37.9 billion deficit will still require some tough choices as Newsom and lawmakers work on