Kathie O'Donnell

Ed Fierro, a partner at Bracewell, said "making any changes to the rule is a very lengthy process."

The former Massachusetts congressman "was a true champion for the municipal bond market," GFOA's Emily Brock said.

The SEC's reversal "is a very significant change," said Paul Kisslinger, a partner at Barnes & Thornburg.

The SEC is now focused on "quality of cases versus quantity," the SEC chairman said during a discussion held as part of the 2026 FINRA Annual Conference.

"I think any effort to make reporting less frequent is a step backwards in transparency," NFMA's Mary Francoeur said.

"MSRB's strategic plan was shaped by the many conversations we've had with stakeholders from across the municipal securities market," MSRB CEO Mark Kim said.

"Regulatory change in this area is needed without further delay," SIFMA said in a letter.

By harmonizing its gift rule with FINRA's amended gift rule, the MSRB "aims for consistency in the application of MSRB and FINRA rules among dealers that are FINRA members," the MSRB's Ernesto Lanza said. 

The board also approved issuing a request for comment relating to disclosure documents for 529 plans and other municipal fund securities.

"Clearly, issuers still need access to this very important financing tool," said State of Michigan Treasurer Rachael Eubanks, who also serves as this year's president of the National Association of State Treasurers.

"Retiring these terms eliminates unnecessary ambiguities associated with their use in MSRB rules," MSRB Board Vice Chair Wendell Gaertner said.

From Jan. 1, 2020 through mid April of this year, borrowers using conduit issuers accounted 87% of payment defaults by number in the muni market, Municipal Market Analytics' Matt Fabian said.

Space Florida would own the assets and lease them to Project Jaguar, Space Florida's Ron Lau said.

"All critical infrastructure should be on heightened awareness, and that's clearly the message that we're getting from the federal government," Linn Freedman, a partner at Robinson & Cole LLP, said.

"I find this a very encouraging appointment," Peter Chan, a partner at law firm Baker McKenzie, said of Woodcock's appointment.

"I would much rather invest in the muni, both in terms of default rates and in terms of the yield that you're getting off of those," said Travis Lower.

The homeowners insurance market in the U.S. "faces mounting strain from severe climate risk," Benjamin Collier and the other authors said in their commentary.

The current lateral recruiting marketplace for public finance attorney talent is "highly competitive," according to Nixon Peabody's Julie Seymour.

The MSRB should "eliminate all location-based concepts of supervision," SIFMA's Leslie Norwood said in a March 16 comment letter.

Acting Director Sam Waldon "will be a steady hand for the division during this period, including for municipal securities-related enforcement activity," said Kathleen Marcus, a partner at Stradling.