Far West

Bell, the working class Los Angeles-area city that achieved national notoriety in 2010 for the outrageous salaries of city leaders, recently scored high marks for transparency.

Four firms agreed to pay $105,000 in fines for violations of pricing, political contribution, supervisory and other rules of the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board.

California Treasurer Bill Lockyer sent a letter Monday to state Attorney General Kamala Harris asking if it is legal for bond underwriters to provide election services to school districts.

California's revenues in February came in $322 million below projections in Gov. Jerry Brown¹s budget after rising around $5 billion a month earlier, according to the Department of Finance.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has asked a federal court in Birmingham, Ala., to set a trial date for two former JPMorgan bankers facing charges related to bankrupt Jefferson County's defaulted sewer deals.

The Joint Committee on Taxation issued a report Friday that summarizes the federal code tax provisions that affect state and local governments, including those for tax-exempt, traditional tax-credit tax, and direct-pay bonds.

Smaller banks and securities firms are urging the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board not to shorten its current 15-minute trade reporting deadline or make changes to current trade reporting procedures.

While Central Falls, RI, and Pittsburgh see light at the end of their tunnels, other tales of municipal distress from Harrisburg to California are much messier.

The Internal Revenue Service's tax-exempt bond office has issued a report that examines the potential problems that can occur during the three main phases of a bond transaction and suggests how issuers can avoid them. But some lawyers attending the National Association of Bond Lawyers' 13th annual Tax and Securities Law Institute questioned whether the IRS should be writing a report that is oriented toward providing best practices rather than the tax law.

Though sequestration prevented two federal regulators from sharing their perspectives, other panelists speaking to bond lawyers in San Francisco predicted more enforcement and whistleblower activity.