Caitlin Devitt

A bill to overhaul Cook County troubled pension funds died in the Illinois House on Friday, the same day that Fitch Ratings revised its outlook on the county's forest district to negative, due chiefly to pension challenges.

Fitch Ratings warned it would cut its rating on $5.7 billion of Detroit's water and sewer debt to as low as D if the bankruptcy court approves the city's current plan of debt adjustment.

A House representative has introduced a bill to an 11-bill package tied to Detroit's bankruptcy that would allow the city's mayor to sit on a key oversight board.

Emergency Manager Kevyn Orr said Detroit would be more attractive to Wall Street than ever once the bankrupt city emerges from Chapter 9 bankruptcy later this year.

Detroit's attorneys said they are in the midst of an effort to put a price tag on the city's art collection following repeated requests from bond insurers and other financial creditors.

The Detroit Institute of Arts, which has found itself at the center of the city's high-profile bankruptcy, warned that any attempt by creditors to cash in on the city owned museum's art would spark expensive litigation and undermine Detroit's post-Chapter 9 recovery.

A last-minute measure to overhaul Cook County, Ill.'s troubled pension system sailed through the state Senate Tuesday just hours after it was introduced, and now heads to the House.

Nearly a quarter of Detroit's buildings suffer from blight, and it would take $2 billion to fix the problem across the city, according to a report released Tuesday.

Wayne County, Mich. plans to erase a major chunk of its deficit by shifting more money than expected from its delinquent property tax fund, while it faces a lawsuit challenging the county’s struggling pension fund.

Martha Kopacz, municipal finance expert witness to the Detroit bankruptcy case, asked the court Friday to force the city and Ernst & Young to turn over key documents that they have so far refused to release.

Bond insurer Syncora Guarantee’s appeal of a key Detroit bankruptcy matter was assigned to a judge Thursday.

Ohio's controversial income-tax overhaul legislation, which critics have said could hurt local governments, is on hold until after November elections.

The Michigan House Thursday overwhelmingly and speedily passed legislation aimed at resolving Detroit's bankruptcy and creating oversight for the post-bankrupt city as it exits bankruptcy.

Michigan voters in August will decide whether to eliminate the state's personal property tax, a central source of revenue for many local governments.

JP Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said Detroit's bankruptcy and proposed bondholder treatment shouldn't hurt the market for local Michigan bonds over the long run, according to the Detroit Free Press.

A Michigan House committee devoted to Detroit's bankruptcy unanimously approved legislation to authorize a $195 million state contribution to the city's pensions and outline oversight of the city post-bankruptcy for the next 20 years.

Michigan legislators neared a vote on a package of bills aimed at resolving Detroit's bankruptcy after a hearing that saw testimony from public finance veteran Richard Ravitch and Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan.

Cuyahoga County, Ohio is bringing $230 million of low double-A rated certificates of participation to market Thursday for a 32-floor Hilton hotel located adjacent to the convention center in downtown Cleveland.

Cincinnati Mayor John Cranley last week unveiled a 2015 budget that includes his plan to transfer $100 million out of the city's retiree health care benefits account into its underfunded pension account.

The fight over Detroit's proposed 10% recovery for its limited-tax general obligation bonds heated up last week as Ambac challenged the treatment as a failure to understand the basics of Chapter 9 and municipal finance.