Yvette Shields

Standard & Poor's has put the ratings of two double-A level not-for-profit health systems in Illinois, Advocate and NorthShore, on Credit Watch with positive credit implications following their announcement to join forces.

The Minneapolis-St. Paul Metropolitan Airports Commission heads into the market Wednesday with a $275 million subordinate general airport revenue refunding with no near-term new-money borrowing in sight.

The underfunding of public pensions by Chicago and Illinois puts much bigger burdens on their balance sheets than what national counterparts face, Moody's Investors Service says.

IIlinois' pension funds failed in three of the previous 10 years to earn sufficient returns to make the arbitrage play on work in the state's favor on its $10 billion general obligation pension bond issue from 2003.

Wisconsin's revenue collections fell about 2% or $281 million short of previous estimates, state officials reported late last month.

Standard & Poor's lowered by two levels its rating on LaSalle, Illinois’ general obligation rating to reflect it revised rating criteria and its negative fund balance.

A Missouri state audit found the Grandview School District in Missouri misused some proceeds from some of its $22 million worth of borrowing in recent years.

McGuire Woods LLP has hired Kay McNab, a municipal finance and bank lending legal specialist, to bolster its Midwestern public finance and banking businesses.

Chicago is readying about $700 million of water and wastewater revenue bonds for sale, pressing with investors the credits' mostly double-A level ratings that's distinct from its battered general obligation standing.

Bruce Cole, the head of Mamtek US, the firm that triggered a $39 million municipal bond default on debt sold for a Missouri sucralose plant, will go to prison as part of a plea deal.

Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon wants an economic injury disaster declaration for Ferguson to secure low-interest loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration to aid businesses hurt by the large protests that followed a fatal police shooting of an unarmed teen.

The trustee on $8.5 million of revenue bonds issued to finance a wastewater treatment facility to support a now bankrupt meat processing company in a Chicago suburb has struck a deal to sell the bond-financed assets at a steep discount to the company that's taken over the bankrupt firm.

The Michigan Finance Authority said it received orders from 30 firms on its $108 million state aid revenue note sale on behalf of Detroit Public Schools that saw a sharp drop from last year in interest rate penalties imposed on the struggling district.

The judge overseeing Detroit's bankruptcy chastised bond insurer Syncora Guarantee Inc. for attacking federal mediators as biased and ordered the insurer to defend why it shouldn't face sanctions.

Moody's Investors Service slapped Burbank, Illinois with a downgrade and assigned a negative outlook to its A1 rating due to ongoing operating deficits and mounting pension woes.

Two Illinois based not-for-profit healthcare systems -- Northwestern Memorial Healthcare and Cadence Health – said they plan to complete their merger on Sept. 1.

Detroit has finalized an agreement with Barclays Capital Inc. for up to $275 million in financing to exit Chapter 9 bankruptcy as the city gears up for a trial next week on its confirmation plan.

Facing pressure to approve a new tribal casino in southeastern Wisconsin, Gov. Scott Walker said his administration is proceeding cautiously in its ongoing review over concerns that the state could lose $100 million in payments from nearby tribal casinos.

Detroit said it stands behind the proposed $815 million 'grand bargain" as the best solution to aid pensioners and protect the city art museum's collection, rejecting an offer from Art Capital Group for a $4 billion loan with the art collection serving as collateral.

The judge in charge of mediation in the Detroit bankruptcy case ordered a new round of talks between the city and holders and insurers of $1.4 billion of pension certificates of participation.