Yvette Shields

Miller Canfield Plc has added three bond attorneys.

Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster is appealing a state court ruling that blocks a portion of a 2015 law aimed at reining in local governments’ reliance on municipal court fines to fund operations.

Standard & Poor’s downgraded Presence Health two notches to BBB-minus and put the rating on CreditWatch with negative implications.

Chicago will return to the bargaining table with its unions to take a second stab at reforms aimed at passing state constitutional muster, said Mayor Rahm Emanuel.

Chicago can’t afford much of a delay in outlining a “clear plan” to stabilize its municipal and laborers’ pension funds after the Illinois Supreme Court ruling nixed its 2014 reforms, Moody’s Investors Service said Tuesday.

The impact a Chapter 9 bankruptcy would have on Chicago Public Schools and its investors is cloudy, market participants say.

Fitch Ratings slapped Chicago with a two-notch downgrade to BBB-minus, citing last week’s state Supreme Court ruling that tossed out city pension reforms.

Chicago must go back to the drawing board after the Illinois Supreme Court voided legislation that overhauled two city pension funds with the aim of keeping them solvent.

Standard & Poor’s put five of the seven Illinois public universities it rates on CreditWatch, citing the Illinois budget impasse.

The risky underpinnings of Chicago’s efforts to solve its $20 billion pension mess are taking center stage this week.

A higher-than-expected 2015 operating loss at Illinois-based Presence Health is expected to trigger a technical default that would allow bondholders and banks to accelerate some debt repayments.

DePaul University in Chicago will sell $70 million Tuesday primarily to finance a new music school building.

Approval of tax measures on local ballots in Illinois’ primary election represents a credit positive for the five local governments that won over voters, Moody’s Investors Service said.

The ratings of 19 Illinois community colleges and their $855 million of debt are under threat of a downgrade as Gov. Bruce Rauner’s budget feud the General Assembly’s Democratic majority drags on.

Moody’s Investors Service affirmed Chicago’s junk-bond-level general obligation rating, while also affirming low-investment-grade revenue bond ratings and maintaining negative outlooks.

More Illinois school districts are operating in the red, according to new data from the Illinois Board of Education.

The Chicago City Council signed off on Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s request to issue up to $200 million of water revenue bonds to cover swap termination payments.

Ferguson and the U.S. Justice Department will soon seek court approval on a consent agreement that outlines municipal court and policing reforms.

Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton wants to spend $700 million of the state’s $900 million surplus on various initiatives and tax relief while leaving $200 million on the books should state revenues falter.

Voters in the St. Louis region face a series of ballot measures April 5 that stand to profoundly impact their local government’s fiscal fortunes.