Category: Bonds

Tribal governments have begun putting the $20 billion received from the American Rescue Plan’s State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds to work, investing in 344 infrastructure and affordable housing projects consisting of a mix of clean water, water and sewer, broadband infrastructure and construction and rehabilitation of affordable housing. These and many other projects are…

Puerto Rico government agencies and authorities completed their approval of extending LUMA Energy’s operation of the island’s electrical transmission and distribution system Wednesday. LUMA took over the system in June 2021 based on a short-term supplementary agreement that was supposed to be replaced by a 15-year Operating and Maintenance agreement on Thursday. However, that agreement…

Commerce Bank is planning to acquire L.J. Hart & Co. to expand its products and services and overall capabilities to clients. Pending regulatory approval, St. Louis-based Commerce Bank will acquire the Chesterfield-based municipal bond underwriting and advisory firm to become a key part of Commerce Bank’s growing institutional fixed-income business that is currently operated by…

Municipals were firmer Tuesday in a constructive secondary market while two large new-issues from the New Jersey Transportation Trust Fund Authority and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts led the primary. U.S. Treasuries were weaker, and equities ended down. Triple-A benchmark yields fell up to seven basis points on the short end, depending on the scale, while…

The Federal Highway Administration’s long-vacant top spot moved closer to being filled Tuesday after a key Senate panel endorsed former state transportation official Shailen Bhatt for the position. The FHWA administrator position has “been vacant for way too long,” said Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., chair of the Environment and Public Works Committee, during a committee…

Municipals were better to start the week in constructive secondary trading while U.S. Treasuries pared back earlier gains to close the session mixed and equities ended in the red. Triple-A yields fell three to five basis points along the curve while UST were little changed to weaker by a basis point on the short end.…

A proposed $2.1 billion development that includes an arena for the National Hockey League’s Arizona Coyotes and municipal bond financing is scheduled for a vote by the Tempe City Council Tuesday evening. If approved, the developer will need to woo residents, who will have the final say on whether it will be built. The mostly…

Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport Monday won final federal approval to launch construction on a global terminal project that is a centerpiece of the airport’s 10-year, $12.1 billion capital plan.   O’Hare is “an absolute powerhouse that in turn makes Chicago and Chicagoland a powerhouse for the American economy,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said Monday when…

Hawaii Gov. David Ige released a list of $392 million in capital improvement projects Monday that will be paid for with funding approved by lawmakers earlier this fall. The projects — that will be administered by the appropriate state departments — support priorities Ige said he has advocated for during his eight years as governor.…

Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority bondholders, insurers and the PREPA bond trustee defended their lien on authority revenues in a bankruptcy adversary proceeding. Responding to the Oversight Board’s filing in the lien adversary proceeding, bondholders said their liens extend beyond money in the Sinking Fund and Self-Insurance Fund to revenues generally including future revenues and…

Despite a negative return in the latest quarter, New York State’s retirement fund is “built to weather the ups and downs of the markets,” even with an investment environment termed “challenging,” according to New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli. The New York State Common Retirement Fund’s estimated value at the end of the second quarter…

A non-profit Texas corporation that defaulted on bonds sold to purchase two senior living facilities in Oklahoma aims to sell those assets through its recent bankruptcy filing. Leading Life Senior Living, Inc., which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Nov. 18 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Texas, sold $30.275 million of tax-exempt…

As revenue projections inch toward pre-pandemic norms, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey plans on more capital spending heading into new year, according to its recently proposed fiscal 2023 budget. “We are laser-focused on building a future that benefits all users of our facilities and supports the entire region’s economy,” Port Authority…

The U.S. higher education sector is pressured by declining enrollment and inflation-adjusted tuition revenue declines, according to Moody’s Investors Service and Fitch Ratings. In the current fiscal year median enrollment is expected to decline by 0.4% for private universities and by 1.3% for public ones compared to the preceding fiscal year, said Moody’s Senior Credit…

Municipals saw healthy secondary trading on the short-end of the yield curve Wednesday, while U.S. Treasuries saw larger gains out long and equities improved after the Federal Open Market Committee minutes showed an expectation of slowing rate hikes. The improved tone continued Wednesday, with triple-A muni yields falling up to nine basis points on the…

Increased activity at Houston airports led S&P Global Ratings to boost certain ratings by a notch as the city eyes debt issuance for the three-airport system in the first quarter of 2023. The rating agency raised the system’s subordinate-lien general airport revenue bond rating to A-plus from A with a stable outlook affecting about $2.2…

Municipals were firmer Tuesday on the short end, while U.S. Treasury yields saw larger gains five years and out. Equities closed in the black as the markets digested more Fedspeak. While Federal Reserve members have continued to emphasize the need to continue tightening, comments from San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly indicated a “pause is…

Kroll Bond Rating Agency upgraded the long-term rating on Miami-Dade County, Florida’s aviation revenue bonds to AA-minus from A-plus. The outlook remains stable. The Miami-Dade Aviation Department, a county enterprise fund, operates Miami International Airport, along with three general aviation airports and a training airport. Travelers at the departures concourse of Miami International Airport.Bloomberg News…

The U.S. Supreme Court declined to consider a teachers’ union appeal of the Puerto Rico plan of adjustment, rejecting the petition for certiorari Monday morning. The plan of adjustment, which went into effect in March, freezes future accruals under the teachers’ defined retirement benefit plan held by those in the plan prior to August 2014…

The Bond Buyer announced the recipients of its annual Deal of the Year awards, marking the 21st year it has recognized outstanding achievement in municipal finance. The Bond Buyer has named winners in 10 categories: five awards in our regional areas of coverage, along with five in additional categories. All award winners will be honored…