Yvette Shields

Moody's Investors Service downgraded Hennepin County, Minn.'s first lien sales tax revenue bond credit to Aa1 from Aaa in connection with the agency's new rating methodology for debt backed by special tax revenues.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel has submitted his nominations for the new Chicago Infrastructure Trust to the City Council.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Cook County Board of Commissioners President Toni Preckwinkle announced that $33 million in savings were achieved in the first year of collaboration on some services and initiatives.

Top-rated Missouri - a rare borrower - will take competitive bids this summer on two refunding deals that will achieve significant present-value savings and provide $44 million in fiscal 2013 budget relief.

The financially-strapped Chicago Public Schools system released a $5.2 billion proposed budget for fiscal 2013 that closes a $665 million gap with a property tax hike, operating cuts, and by digging deeply into reserves and draining its unreserved fund balance.

The Lombard, Ill. Public Facilities Corp. drew $1.8 million from reserves to cover debt-service owed this month on $190 million of hotel and conference center debt.

Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn signs a $33.7 billion general fund budget for new fiscal year that includes $2.7 billion Medicaid restructuring, makes $1.3 billion dent in overdue bills, and cuts discretionary spending. Quinn is pushing lawmakers to act on pension reforms to stabilize state fiscal house.

Illinois plans to sell $1.5 billion of highly-rated unemployment bonds in Mid-July to repay federal government while Gov. Pat Quinn intends to sign a new $33.7 billion budget on Saturday as state closes out fiscal 2012 owing as much $9 billion in unpaid obligations.

Illinois State Toll Highway Authority board approved a pool of four financial advisory firms as it gears up to begin borrowing for a $12 billion capital program.

Chicago-based veteran bond attorney William Corbin returns to roots at Chapman and Cutler from Perkins Coie

Moody's calls Illinois legislation setting charity care guidelines for not-for-profit hospitals positive for the sector's credit health

Moody's Investors Service has revised its outlook on Meriter Hospital's A1 rating to negative from stable ahead of a private placement of debt.

Moody's Investors Service has lowered the Duluth, Minn., Independent School District No. 709's underlying general obligation rating to Baa1 from A1 ahead of its upcoming new-money debt issuance. The agency also assigned a negative outlook to the credit.

Members of East St. Louis' elected school board last week mounted a legal challenge to Illinois' decision to take over the troubled district and disband the local board, according to published reports.

Officials from the Chicago Transit Authority Monday said a $20 million federal TIGER grant would allow the agency to move forward with upgrades to a busy transit terminal.

The scale of the pension crisis for Chicago area governments and state has been underscored by recent ratings actions and various local and national watchdog reports warning of the crippling effect on governments' ability to fund basic services and stave off credit deterioration.

The new Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority, which will own and operate the new partially bond-financed Vikings stadium, held its first meeting on Friday and picked Ted Mondale as its chief executive officer.

Illinois' net assets deteriorated in fiscal 2011 by $6.3 billion, bringing its deficit in the financial reporting category to $43.8 billion.

Fairview Health Services got hit with a downgrade from Moody’s Investors Service and a warning of further negative action due to fiscal 2011 operating losses and potential fallout from the state attorney general’s probe into its bill collection practices.

Gov. Pat Quinn this week signed legislation that establishes the position of state actuary to provide oversight of Illinois’ five pension funds.