Far West

Airports, ports, and unregulated power companies are at risk due to the impending fiscal cliff, while toll roads and public power utilities are insulated from the worst danger, according to a Moody's Investors Service report released Wednesday.

An Internal Revenue Service official has told Rep. Dennis Kucinich that Treasury Department officials cannot talk with him about the Build America Bonds used to finance the coal-fired Prairie State Energy Campus power plant in Illinois, which has experienced cost overruns and operational problems.

The State Bond Commission considers a plan Thursday by Louisiana Stadium and Exposition District for a $430 million refunding in 2013.

In yet another fiery exchange over efforts to avert the fiscal cliff, a top White House administration official said Wednesday President Obama will veto House Speaker John Boehner's backup plan.

Holders of bankrupt American Airlines' New York City airport debt are weighing a settlement offer that would pave the way for the carrier to assume its lease at John F. Kennedy International Airport.

The Internal Revenue Service has notified New Orleans officials that it has closed an audit of more than $70 million of public improvement bonds issued by the city in 2007 with no change to their tax-exempt status.

The Idaho Bond Bank Authority achieved $9.6 million in savings on two bond deals totaling $85.3 million in new money and refundings for 11 cities across the state.

White House officials rejected House Republicans' Plan B fallback proposal to extend tax rate cuts for those making under $1 million, warning it does not go far enough and will not pass muster in the Senate.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has fined three firms $76,500 for violating rules of the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board.

House Republicans will move forward with a "Plan B" fiscal cliff package that will not include a cap on the value of tax-exemption or other tax expenditures, expecting to vote on it as early as Thursday.