Richard Williamson

Declaring that "our economic engine continues to gain steam," Texas Gov. Greg Abbott called for a new structure to lower the state's debt while increasing spending on transportation by $4 billion per year and cutting taxes.

After years of discussion about how to keep the National Western Stock Show complex in Denver, the city is mapping out an $856.4 million plan to redevelop the area north of downtown.

The growing Dallas suburb of Frisco would vote on $268 million of bonds under a proposal that has been sent to the city council for approval.

La Marque Independent School District's $23 million of debt is on Standard & Poor's watch list for a downgrade after Texas Education Commissioner Michael Williams ordered the district closed.

After 14 years of appointments by ex-Gov. Rick Perry, the Texas Transportation Commission will see its first board members named by Perry's successor Gov. Greg Abbott.

Affluent Scottsdale, Ariz., will offer investors $160 million of top-rated general obligation refunding bonds and $117 million of excise-tax revenue bonds that are doubly tax-exempt in the Grand Canyon State.

The Kansas House Transportation and Public Safety Budget Committee has removed Gov. Sam Brownback's budget-balancing proposal to transfer $280 million from the Kansas Department of Transportation to the general fund.

As falling oil prices threaten the economy of Texas' so-called "chemical coast," Port Arthur Independent School District will take advantage of the state's triple-A guarantee with $80 million of bonds. The district will also issue $20 million of refunding bonds not backed by the PSF.

Election-year politics and lower oil prices threaten Houston's boomtown image as the city prepares to issue $128 million of hotel occupancy tax and special revenue refunding bonds.

Texas sales tax revenues recorded in January rose 11.2% year over year to $2.56 billion amid falling oil prices, Comptroller Glenn Hegar said. The January totals were the third highest on record.

While Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick says the state must appropriate $12 million to patrol the border of Mexico for five months, House Speaker Joe Straus appears less enthusiastic about the costly proposal.

The cost of complying with the Securities and Exchange Commission's MCDC initiative has been "staggering," an industry representative told the The Bond Buyer's Texas Public Finance Conference.

A strong investment portfolio means that the Texas Permanent University Fund will continue to grow even after oil prices lost half their value in 2014, according to Moody's Investors Service.

For Texas political leaders, the state's southern border represents a combustible mix of political and economic issues in 2015. For the bond industry, the border is a blend of opportunity and economic limitations.

With drought still troubling some Texas urban areas, utilities are confronting the problem with innovative technologies, according to a special report from Fitch Ratings.

Houston and Harris County's economic surge from the energy sector is slowing and could go into decline, according to Moody's Investors Service analysts led by Adebola Kushimo.

After two years of growth accelerated by $100-per-barrel oil, Texas will get a chance to show its underlying economic strength as energy prices weaken, state leaders and bond industry executives plan to tell The Bond Buyer's Texas Public Finance Conference.

Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback cut $44.5 million for K-12 public schools and higher education as the state Legislature approved cash transfers to close a $344 million budget deficit.

After record savings on a $1.68 billion refunding deal, the Central Texas Turnpike System has earned a one-notch upgrade to A-minus, Fitch Ratings analyst Casey Cathcart said.

Two leaders of the Texas Senate support a bill that would finance transportation construction with a portion of the tax on automotive sales.