Far West

Underwriters often push municipal issuers not to hire financial advisors and, if an issuer insists on working with one, prod them to retain broker-dealer FAs, an independent FA firm warned a Securities and Exchange Commission member earlier this month.

SAN FRANCISCO - Stockton, Calif., is facing the rising specter of a technical default on its redevelopment agency debt, as it will likely have to dip into reserves to pay debt service for $87 million of outstanding bonds.

The Los Angeles City Council is finding that compiling a list of banks to boycott isn't as simple as it sounds.

WASHINGTON - The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board has entered into a ground-breaking agreement with the Internal Revenue Service under which it will provide the IRS with municipal market data and documents to help enforce tax law requirements for muni securities.

WASHINGTON - The Senate confirmed two nominees to the Securities and Exchange Commission early Friday, ensuring the agency will not have vacancies as it grapples with rulemaking mandates imposed by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.

LOS ANGELES - The San Diego Unified School District, despite double-A ratings, has put California lawmakers on notice that if proposed trigger cuts are implemented, it could be facing insolvency in the next two years.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Friday he will schedule a vote the week of Oct. 31 on a bill that would provide $60 billion for transportation and infrastructure and authorize the establishment of a national infrastructure bank.

A disclosure regimen that gives the Securities and Exchange Commission authority to set baseline standards might work for the traditional municipal securities markets, but not its riskier outposts, an independent financial advisor warned in an article last week.

SAN FRANCISCO - With Moody's Investors Service dropping Fresno three notches to A2 from Aa2 on Thursday, the California city's membership in the "super downgrade" club has now been affirmed by all three credit rating agencies.

SAN FRANCISCO - A California health care district is swaying once again on the edge of bankruptcy after emerging from Chapter 9 protection only three years ago.