Far West

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood is encouraging states and cities to submit letters of interest for an available $1.7 billion under the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act loan program, which LaHood said could ultimately help leverage $50 billion in transportation investment.

The city council of El Monte, Calif. voted Tuesday to declare a fiscal emergency and place a tax on sugary drinks on the November ballot in an effort to shore up its finances.

Moody's Investors Service Monday downgraded $4.9 million of Compton, Calif. sewer revenue bonds five notches to Ba1 from A2 due to the city's severe cash crisis.

Moody's Investors Service Wednesday affirmed its A1 rating on $90 billion of California general obligation bonds.

Fitch Ratings completed its review last week of 62 ratings of tax allocation bonds issued by 36 former California redevelopment agencies, culminating in downgrades for 12 of the credits.

The California secondary market remains mostly steady to strong as high-profile local municipal bankruptices unfold, but it has not been without some minor turbulence, according to municipal experts.

Amtrak's roughly $7 billion master plan for a complete overhaul of Washington D.C.'s Union Station will likely involve a large collaborative effort mixing public and private funding sources, according to a company spokesman and industry experts.

Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board officials said Tuesday the board is looking into the Libor scandal to see how it may impact the municipal bond industry.

Sussex County board member Eric Fly voiced his concern over the process and the plan itself, "The whole process is backwards. VDOT isn't going to give the public any time to voice their opinion prior to submitting their final application to the Federal Highway Administration. They clearly know that the public is against the idea and are therefore trying to jam it through before any public comment.

Private-activity bond issuance declined in 2011, mirroring the overall municipal bond market as state and local governments stepped up muni issuance during the last half of 2010 to take advantage of favorable stimulus law provisions before they expired, according to an annual survey and market participants.