ORLANDO — The National Federation of Municipal Analysts presented annual awards during its conference here on Wednesday, honoring four individuals and an organization for contributions to the municipal bond industry.
Jeffrey Burger, a senior portfolio manager at Standish Mellon Asset Management, presided over the ceremony which, the NFMA has held every year since 1984.
James Spiotto, managing director of Chapman Strategic Advisors LLC, won an award for industry contribution. Spiotto has been a prominent voice on the subject of municipal bankruptcy and has appeared around the country to speak about the implications of bankruptcy and defaults for the muni industry.
"Simply put, there is no stronger Chapter 9 legal counsel than Jim Spiotto and, importantly, no one more generous and willing to share his knowledge and experience than Jim," Burger said. "Jim has been instrumental in helping the municipal analyst community to navigate the complexities of Chapter 9 through his years of research and analysis on the subject. His work has been ground-breaking. Additionally, his analysis of state-by-state bondholder legal protections has become an invaluable resource for the industry."
Richard Raphael a managing director at Fitch Ratings, received the career achievement award. Raphael is a charter member of the NFMA who Burger called an "analyst's analyst."
Assured Guaranty managing director Mary Francoeur and Standish Mellon senior analyst Mark Stockwell both received meritorious service awards. Both have, and continue to, serve in leadership positions with the NFMA. Francoeur holds the chairmanship of the annual conference, disclosure, communications and sponsorship committees. Stockwell is currently serving as disclosure chair and is a former NFMA chairman.
"Mary is extremely dedicated to the NFMA and cares so much about our organization, Burger said. "She is a person that can be called upon and relied upon to do whatever is needed for the NFMA and is always willing to be first to step up."
"If we were to simply look at Mark's contributions to the NFMA during his service as an officer, that would be sufficient to warrant recognition, however it is what Mark accomplished prior to his time as an NFMA officer and what he continues to do on behalf of the NFMA that makes him even all the more worthy of this honor," said Burger.
The National Association of State Auditors, Comptrollers and Treasurers received an award the previous day for excellence in disclosure. The award recognizes NASACT's work in promoting interim disclosure reporting by the states and the development of its "Voluntary Interim Financial Reporting: Best Practices for State Governments," which it released last fall, the NFMA said in a statement.
