Far West

Gulf and Midwestern states hit by disasters in recent years received a holiday gift from the Internal Revenue Service on Friday.

A small public utilities district in California is trying to prevent its doors from closing after voters exercised their authority to lower their water rates below what district officials say is needed to sustain operations.

The Washington Department of Transportation is set to begin tolling on the State Route 520 floating bridge on Dec. 29.

Moody’s Investors Service downgraded the special obligation revenue bonds of an Overton, Nev., power district from A1 to A2 following a rate covenant default caused by weak financial conditions, according to a rating report.

Standard & Poor’s upgraded Ontario, Calif.’s 2004 series of water system certificates of participation to AA from AA-minus.

Santa Ana, Calif., was able to ratify agreements with its police and service employee unions this week, halving its projected $30 million budget deficit for next year and quelling talk of a potential bankruptcy, according to published reports.

Orange County, Calif., is losing a financial expert just a month after the Board of Supervisors boldly told the state it plans to keep $73.5 million in local property taxes typically earmarked for schools to make up for what it saw as the state’s illegal taking of $49.5 million in vehicle license fees.

Contra Costa County’s pension system is suing the county over wage and benefits cuts for the system’s managers.

California completed a restructuring of its commercial paper program that resulted in a downgrade to one subseries of notes.

Thirty-four congressmen urged Securities and Exchange Commission chairman Mary Schapiro to exempt broker-dealers and other regulated entities from its proposed municipal advisor definition, warning in a letter Monday that the failure to do so would impose unnecessary regulation and harm issuers by reducing competition.