Far West

SAN FRANCISCO — Citi said in a report released Monday that long-dated capital appreciation bonds issued by California school districts offer an opportunity for investors despite concerns about education funding. The zero-coupon bonds are cheap when compared to current coupon securities, the firm said.

A coalition of House Democrats is calling for Build America Bonds, a national infrastructure bank, and high-speed rail as part of a plan to improve transportation and stimulate job growth.

WASHINGTON Three former officials from CDR Financial Products Inc. are urging a federal judge to dismiss the Justice Department’s charges against them, arguing prosecutors should not proceed to trial on a fraud theory the Supreme Court rejected last year.

The top Democrat on the House tax-writing committee defended itemized tax deductions Friday that would be repealed under some tax reform proposals, but did not take a position on whether to maintain the federal tax exemption for interest earnings from state and local bonds.

SAN FRANCISCO — Washington State lawmakers have passed a budget that closed an almost $5 billion hole for the upcoming two fiscal years and includes a compromise on reducing the debt limit.

WASHINGTON — State revenues are expected to rise in fiscal years 2011 and 2012, but a record jump in Medicaid costs, combined with voters’ reluctance to take on new debt, could keep states from issuing bonds for infrastructure and other investment projects, officials and market participants said Thursday.

SAN FRANCISCO — Stockton may not exactly be the next Vallejo, but similarities between the two California cities have started people talking.

WASHINGTON — The chairman of the Governmental Accounting Standards Board plunged into the debate over municipal market disclosure Thursday, urging state and local governments to generate more timely financial reports.

WASHINGTON — U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has scheduled a second meeting with local officials in Virginia for Friday as he tries to break an impasse over the cost of the second phase of the Washington, D.C., Metrorail extension to Dulles International Airport.

Moody’s Investors Service placed $6.7 billion of Aaa-rated municipal debt backed by the federal Bonneville Power Administration under review for possible downgrade Wednesday.