Bonds

Environmental, social, and governance-related disclosure benefits municipal issuers, according to a panel of municipal professionals. Risks issuers face currently weren’t a consideration 50 years ago, noted Richard Freund, associate director at CDP North America, at a session at The Bond Buyer’s National Outlook Conference Thursday. Risk is risk and impact is impact, said Freund. Issuers

As interest rates continue to rise, the draw of pension obligation bonds appears to be falling fast. A financial instrument that has appealed to many municipalities to remedy underfunded pension plans is once again looking like a losing borrow and bet scheme. “Typically, the biggest risk with POBs is market timing risk,” said Todd Kanaster,

The developers of the American Dream mall in East Rutherford, New Jersey, have missed another scheduled debt service payment on the bonds issued to bankroll its construction. Triple Five, owner and developer of American Dream, missed a payment due on $287 million of limited obligation grant revenue bonds issued through the Public Finance Authority in

The triple-A Texas program that guarantees public school bonds is quickly using up its already limited capacity, ending December with only a projected $26.65 million available. Amid a slew of school debt approved by voters last year, the Permanent School Fund program has experienced high demand that shrank its projected available capacity from $3.97 billion

On the heels of municipal bond issuance disappointing in 2022, nearly two-thirds of market participants in a Bond Buyer live market survey said they expect 2023 issuance to remain around last year’s levels. The muni market saw $384.086 billion of debt issued in 2022, down 21% year-over-year, as issuers were flush with cash and rising

Municipals were hit hard across the curve Friday, with the most damage felt on the short end. Triple-A benchmarks outperformed a U.S. Treasury rout on the heels of a hotter-than-expected jobs report. Triple-A benchmarks were cut six to 15 basis points at the one-year, with smaller cuts across the curve. U.S. Treasury yields rose eight

Illinois chipped away at its long-term obligations in fiscal 2022 with healthy tax revenue growth and federal funds allowing the state to halt a decade long dive deep into negative territory, according to a recently published interim audit. The state’s net position of governmental activities, which covers government services and tax collections and provides a

Municipals were firmer Thursday as municipal bond mutual fund outflows returned, while U.S. Treasuries were steady and equities ended mixed. The three-year muni-UST ratio was at 55%, the five-year at 57%, the 10-year at 63% and the 30-year at 88%, according to Refinitiv MMD’s 3 p.m. ET read. ICE Data Services had the three at

Municipals were a little firmer in some spots while Treasuries rallied across the board, with yields falling double-digits following the Federal Reserve hiking rates 25 basis points. Equities ended up. “Investors are acknowledging that the Fed is nearing the end of its rate tightening cycle which is supporting a relief rally in stocks and lower

Bolingbrook, Illinois, was downgraded seven notches by S&P Global Ratings, which cited the Chicago suburb’s unwillingness to cover shortages on unrated sales tax revenue bonds as a management and governance risk. The village of 73,000said the downgrade “sets a harmful and disruptive precedent for any credit secured by specific revenues that do not pledge the

The long-stalled New York-New Jersey Gateway project will receive just under $300 million in federal funds — the first tranche of what could be billions in federal aid — to help complete early stages of a massive project that President Joe Biden Tuesday called “a national priority.” The Gateway Program is “one of the biggest

Puerto Rico’s general fund net revenues were 28% above projections in December and 14% higher than those of December 2021. Through the first six months of the fiscal year, net revenues came in 14% ahead of projections and 3% ahead of July to December 2021, according to the Puerto Rico Department of the Treasury.  Net

Chicago’s fiscal progress on structural balance and pensions drew rating upgrades and high-grade investors to recent bond deals but easing the longer term strains of pensions will require state intervention, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said.   Whether the city’s fiscal momentum can help Lightfoot win a second term is uncertain. She faces eight rivals vying for

The northwestern Nevada city of Sparks had its issuer rating and the bond rating on special district bonds that funded the development of shopping, retail and entertainment district upgraded Friday by Moody’s Investors Service. Sparks, a city of 103,230 located in Washoe County that borders Reno, was upgraded to A1 from A2 and had a

Republicans have finalized their roster of subcommittee chairs for the powerful House Ways and Means committee, one of the municipal market’s key panels. Pennsylvania Republican Rep. Mike Kelly will lead the newly-renamed tax subcommittee, formerly known as the Select Revenue Measures subcommittee, which writes tax policy and oversees tax collections. The position puts him in

Municipals were steady, down a basis point or two in spots, ahead of a paltry new-issue calendar, courtesy of next week’s Federal Open Market Committee meeting. U.S. Treasuries were slightly weaker and equities ended in the black. The three-year muni-UST ratio was at 54%, the five-year at 57%, the 10-year at 62% and the 30-year

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the only solution to avoid a U.S. default crisis is for Congress to increase the federal debt limit, avoiding engaging with other proposed stopgap measures including short-term extensions or spending cuts. “It’s overly necessary for Congress to raise the debt limit, and I hope they do so in a timely

Merger activity among not-for-profit and for-profit hospitals dipped for a fifth consecutive year in 2022, with mega-mergers in the forefront of a sector dealing with operating challenges from inflation, a nursing shortage, and patient volume trends. Announced mergers and acquisitions dropped to 55 last year from 73 in 2021, continuing a downward course since 2017

The city of Miami and the county of Miami-Dade continue to rebound from the pandemic with unprecedented economic growth coupled with record low unemployment rates. Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava unveiled plans to create an authority to fund innovation while Miami City Mayor Francis Suarez focused on the environment and housing affordability. The Miami-Dade

Municipals were steady Thursday in the secondary market while an $830 million deal from the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority took focus in the primary. U.S. Treasuries yields rose after the fourth-quarter gross domestic product report was better than expected and equities ended up. The three-year muni-UST ratio was at 54%, the five-year at 57%,