Far West

The MSRB has proposed to discontinue the practice of temporarily masking the exact par value of large muni bond trades disseminated on a near real-time basis over the online EMMA system.

The Internal Revenue Service and the Treasury Department are seeking public comments on the arbitrage restrictions that pertain to tax-exempt bonds.

State aid and property taxes are dropping simultaneously for the first time since 1980, while demand for government services continue to rise, according to a report published by the Pew Center on the States Friday.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi’s proposal to extend the Bush-era tax cuts for households with incomes earning up to $1 million annually would have a marginal impact on municipal bond demand, market experts said.

SAN FRANCISCO — Standard & Poor’s said it has dropped the underlying rating on two Stockton water revenue bonds by three notches to BB-plus amid a looming default as the California city considers bankruptcy.

The MSRB has issued a concept release seeking public feedback about whether to require underwriters and municipal advisors to disclose third-party payments on the online EMMA system.

As California lawmakers dither over legislation to clean up the messy and sudden dissolution of the state's redevelopment agencies, cities are turning to the courts for clarity.

WASHINGTON — Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels made the rounds in the nation’s capitol Thursday, urging lawmakers to pass a transportation bill friendly to public-private partnerships and telling reporters that he fears there might not be a bill at all.

Action by the Idaho Legislature during the 2012 session made 48 auditing and tax collector positions permanent and made state tax laws more stringent, a local newspaper reported.

Los Angeles County plans to market $1.1 billion of tax and revenue anticipation notes on July 2.