Far West

WASHINGTON - The Internal Revenue Service finalized its regulations for tax-exempt financing of solid-waste disposal facilities, adopting most of the recommendations proposed by attorneys last year, market participants said Thursday.

SAN FRANCISCO - Municipal bond volume in the Far West in the first half of 2011 fell by more than half from the same period a year earlier, driven by zero deals from the state of California, normally the largest issuer in the country.

WASHINGTON - State and local groups are sizing up the new congressional deficit reduction committee, determined to preserve tax-exemption for municipal bonds but acknowledging that federal funds for some of their programs will likely be cut.

Washington is bracing for a slowdown after July-August revenues came in 1.3% lower than June’s forecast, the Economic and Revenue Forecast Council said.

Los Angeles County supervisors Tuesday ordered an investigation into the finances of the troubled city of Vernon.

California’s Department of Finance said general fund July revenue came in $541 million below the forecast in the recently adopted budget. The figure fell more than 9% short of the fiscal 2012 budget forecast of $5.86 billion, confirming a similar reading released last week by Controller John Chiang.

California plans to sell $5.4 billion of revenue anticipation notes the week of Sept. 12 to pay off the bridge loan secured at the end of July to avoid market chaos, according to the state treasurer’s office. Wells Fargo Securities and Barclays Capital are joint senior managers.

LOS ANGELES - Los Angeles County Museum of Art officials say changes to Moody's Investors Service methodology have more to do with a recent downgrade than anything the museum did.

SAN FRANCISCO - Los Angeles has dropped Standard & Poor's from rating its $7 billion investment portfolio after the agency downgraded it along with the United States last week.

WASHINGTON - Lurking in the legislative weeds on Capitol Hill is another threat to states' and localities' ability to fund bond-financed and other transportation projects.