Shelly Sigo

BRADENTON, Fla. — Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum Wednesday announced a $25 million settlement with JPMorgan to resolve allegations that the investment bank sold unregistered securities to the local government investment pool.

BRADENTON, Fla. — A New York Supreme Court judge late Tuesday rejected JPMorgan’s motion to dismiss two lawsuits brought earlier this year by Syncora Guarantee Inc. and Assured Guaranty.

Tax-exempt toll revenue bonds and public-private partnerships may be used to finance the $4.1 billion Louisville-Southern Indiana Ohio River Bridges Project.

For the second year in a row, Moody's Investors Service has downgraded DeKalb County, Ga.'s general obligation rating because of pressured financial operations and the near-term challenge of restoring the general fund balance to levels consistent with a higher rating level.

BRADENTON, Fla. — After struggling against Alabama Democrats much of his eight years in office, outgoing Republican Gov. Bob Riley finally won passage of bills strengthening ethics and curbing corruption among politicians in the state.

BRADENTON, Fla. — Tennessee has instituted some of the strictest guidelines ever imposed for issuing municipal debt by establishing a model requiring that all ­issuers adopt debt-management policies by Jan. 1, 2012.

Tennessee Governor-elect Bill Haslam has selected Mark Emkes as commissioner of the Department of Finance and Administration, which oversees the state budget and health care program.

Standard & Poor's revised its outlook to positive from stable on Orange County's AA general obligation credit rating Tuesday based on continuing improvement in the county's financial position.

Moody's Investors Service downgraded Coral Gables' issuer rating to Aa1 from Aaa on Tuesday due to the city's historically narrow financial reserve position. Its total general fund balance as a percentage of operating revenues historically has been around 8% and "well below" the median for a Aaa-rated credit, said Moody's analyst John Nichols.

The Alabama Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that Jefferson County can continue to collect an occupational and business license tax while appealing a lower court decision that it's unconstitutional.

Florida economists are now predicting a bigger budget shortfall than they projected just three months ago in a change that could translate into less bonding power for the state in fiscal 2012.

The Tennessee State Funding Board is expected to approve a new model debt policy Wednesday establishing minimum requirements for all issuers selling debt, including state and local borrowers.

BRADENTON, Fla. — Cullman ­Regional Medical Center in Alabama, has had its ratings dropped to below investment grade by Fitch Ratings and Moody’s Investors Service about a year after refinancing all its bonds.

Hoping to tap the same investor momentum seen in a recent oversubscribed offering, Atlanta has accelerated plans to market a $505 million refunding for Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport that was expected to sell next year.

The nonprofit Atlanta BeltLine Partnership has created an organization called the Atlanta Land Trust Collaborative to protect neighborhoods at risk of displacement as the city's massive BeltLine project proceeds. The ALTC will be led by executive director Anthony Pickett, the partnership announced Monday.

An Alabama circuit court judge last week ruled unconstitutional an occupational and business license tax that provides a major source of income for Jefferson County's general fund budget. Commissioners are appealing the decision, the Birmingham News reported.

Outgoing Alabama Gov. Bob Riley has called a special session of the Legislature to deal with ethics reform that he has sought, but failed to pass, during his eight years in office when Democrats were in the majority.

BRADENTON, Fla. — The Georgia Department of Transportation has issued a request for proposals for a master developer to undertake a complex multi-modal passenger terminal in downtown Atlanta that will help shape future city ­development.

BRADENTON, Fla. — The Santa Rosa Bay Bridge Authority in north Florida has received a letter from the Securities and Exchange Commission inquiring about “disclosure issues,” the board’s attorney, Roy Andrews, said during a special meeting late Wednesday.

Tennessee’s revenue collections for October rose 4.95% to $732.8 million from the same month last year.