Far West

The 6.0-magnitude earthquake that struck California's Napa Valley Aug. 24 will not impact any municipal credits that Moody's Investors Service rates.

A seven-member panel studying high-speed rail service in north Texas plans to seek federal funding to begin development of a line between Austin and Fort Worth.

KeyBanc Capital Markets has hired Zachary Kau to work as a managing director in the San Francisco office heading its healthcare finance business in the Public Finance Group.

A bipartisan House duo is threatening the Securities and Exchange Commission, warning it must further ease the Municipalities Continuing Disclosure Cooperation initiative for dealers before the Sept. 10 deadline for participation or they will step in with legislative action.

Unrated Irvine, Calif., dirt bonds were oversubscribed by five to eight times when they priced in early August amid overall yield compression.

Mark Kaufman, known for his work in the Harrisburg restructuring, has relocated from McKenna Long & Aldridge's Atlanta office to San Francisco, where he will lead the firm's municipal restructuring practice.

While Napa Valley's water and sewer utilities took a hit from the recent earthquake that struck the area, damages are management and do not have any immediate impact on credit ratings, according to Standard & Poor's.

Los Angeles Unified School District officials issued a statement Tuesday saying the district still plans to put an electronic tablet in the hands of every student after scrapping its original contract for iPads and software after questions were raised about the procurement.

The Port of Los Angeles, an infrequent issuer, plans to price a $339 million combined new money-refunding with AMT and non-AMT the week of Sept. 1.

The Kroll Bond Ratings Agency assigned its AA rating to Los Angeles' general obligation bonds Tuesday, its first rating of the city.