Far West

In a letter to a small Colorado daily newspaper, the developer of a Sparks, Nev., shopping center in technical default on its bonds tried to explain financial issues surrounding the Nevada project while pitching Eagle, Colo., residents on a retail project he is planning there.

The Nevada Treasurer’s Office completed a $70 million highway revenue refunding bond sale that will result in savings of about $6 million in its existing debt service payments, deputy chief debt manager Lori Chatwood said in a news release.

Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell vetoed $66 million from the budget passed by the Legislature in April, much less than in the past two years, according to local reports.

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service is auditing $12.73 million of certificates of participation that were issued by Cañon City, Colo., in 2008 to provide financing for improvements to its water treatment facility.

The National Association of Bond Lawyers released a document containing guidance and suggestions to help issuers provide appropriate disclosures about their public pension systems in bond documents.

As California grapples with an estimated $16 billion budget gap, analysts warned lawmakers to shun one-time gimmicks to try fix the shortfall.

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service's tax-exempt bond office plans to send a letter to several hundred bond issuers that have suffered covenant or payment defaults in recent years, alerting them that certain actions they take could inadvertently trigger a reissuance of the bonds.

Senate Finance Committee chairman Max Baucus urged Congress, as part of tax reform, to put Indian tribal governments on par with states and localities for tax-exempt financing.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said that he expects the deficit reduction and tax reform debates will end with results that resemble the recommendations made by the Bowles-Simpson report.

WASHINGTON — The Securities and Exchange Commission had no basis to approve the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board's interpretative notice to Rule G-17, which spells out underwriters' fair dealing obligations to state and local municipal bond issuers, the SEC's two Republican members charged in a six-page dissent of the decision.