Bonds

A bill that includes additional bonding authority for a University of Utah Health medical campus project hit with ballooning costs passed the legislature Wednesday.  A provision in Senate Bill 241 would increase the amount of revenue bonds for the West Valley Health and Community Center to $800 million from $400 million. The University of Utah

A wave of tax cuts that states passed amid COVID-related surpluses may prove a financial problem for the medium and long term, analysts said Thursday. “The examination of states’ post-pandemic fiscal trajectories reveals a concerning trend: revenue growth has decelerated in many states and the implementation of permanent tax cuts could leave some with depleted

The Biden administration is expected to announce a $1.5 billion federal loan to repower a shuttered Michigan nuclear plant, marking a first for the U.S. as the administration’s seeks to move the country toward 100% carbon-free power in the coming decades. The Palisades power plant in southwest Michigan, owned now by Holtec International, was decommissioned

Norton Rose Fulbright hired public finance lawyers Alison Radecki as a partner and Helen Pennock as a senior counsel. Both will work in the firm’s New York City office and formerly worked at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe. They are licensed to practice in New York. Radecki has more than two decades of experience helping issuers

Broker dealers are divided over whether small firms should be dealt more relaxed regulation and compliance standards, or be subject to uniform standards that treat large Wall Street banks and single person firms the same in the eyes of the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board. The dueling sentiments came through in response to the MSRB’s request

Oklahoma will stop collecting state sales tax on groceries under a bill signed into law Tuesday by Gov. Kevin Stitt, who said he is still seeking a reduction in personal income taxes. The elimination of the 4.5% sales tax, which will cost the state around $400 million annually, was overwhelmingly passed by lawmakers. “By cutting

Alabama airports would be able to enter into public-private partnerships under a bill that advanced through the state House this week. House Bill 87 passed the House Tuesday less than three weeks since it was introduced by Republican state Rep. Chip Brown. It is now pending at the Senate Transportation and Energy Committee. “Alabama is

Louisiana is set to float $1.34 billion of private activity bonds in April as part of its largest public-private partnership to date, which will replace an aging bridge over Interstate 10 near St. Charles. The Louisiana Public Facilities Authority released details of the financing after the State Bond Commission last week signed off on the

As the infrastructure law nears the halfway point of its life, the rollout of its expanded Buy America provision, a key part of President Joe Biden’s bid to strengthen American manufacturing, has been confusing and failed to address gaps in the domestic supply chain. That was the message from state transportation departments and construction experts

Austin, Texas, officials are heading to court to seek validation for a controversial issuance of bonds to help fund a multi-billion-dollar light-rail project. The Austin City Council on Thursday authorized the move, as well as amendments to an agreement with the Austin Transit Partnership (ATP), a corporation created by the city and its Capital Metro

The Kentucky Office of the State Budget Director reported January’s general fund receipts increased to $1.3 billion, up 4.4% from the same time last year. Last month’s sales tax receipts hit a record high at $586.2 million. Large increases also occurred due to a new section of the individual income tax, the pass-through entity tax,

Massachusetts Governor Maura T. Healey’s $56.1 billion budget proposal for fiscal 2025 calls for increased funding to the state’s Commonwealth Transportation Fund that will enable it to borrow an additional $1.1 billion over the next five years. The fiscal 2025 budget proposal, which represents a 2.9% increase over the current year’s spending, would dedicate $250

The Alameda Transportation Authority sold over $216 million in revenue refunding bonds to restructure ACTA’s debt through a combined tender offer and debt restructuring plan. The bond sale allowed ACTA to reshape its profile to avoid projected debt service shortfalls and match anticipated revenue growth. The rail corridor consists of a 20-mile multi-track rail system

Oklahoma’s credit quality is looking up, rating agencies say, with Fitch Ratings joining Moody’s Investors Service and S&P Global Ratings in revising the state’s rating outlook to positive from stable. Fitch, which rates Oklahoma AA, said Friday the revision reflects sustained improvements in expenditure flexibility and overall fiscal management, “particularly its adherence to conservative budgeting

A four-day atmospheric river-fueled storm that walloped California caused estimated damages of up to $11 billion and put the state’s aging infrastructure to the test. The preliminary damage estimate of up to $11 billion by AccuWeather accounts for damage to homes, businesses, infrastructure, facilities, roadways and vehicles, as well as over 900,000 reported power outages

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

Municipal bonds are part of an Illinois city’s plan to help the local casino build a bigger venue at a new location. In its current form, Aurora’s Hollywood Casino occupies a barge tethered near downtown on the Fox River. The city wants to build a brand new casino resort about five miles away, near an

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