Far West

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has fined three firms $242,500 for municipal rules violations. They include $150,000 against Raymond James Financial Services for supervisory failures related to so-called 529 college savings plans it sold to clients.

For the second straight quarter a Federal Reserve Board survey suggested that the ultraconservative credit standards and loan terms put in place immediately after the crisis are beginning to thaw — though banks are still very tentative.

The Securities and Exchange Commission late Friday approved a controversial set of rule changes floated by the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board that will dictate the priority of retail and other customer orders in primary offerings, as well as dealers' related record-keeping responsibilities.

WASHINGTON — Martin Kanefsky is the second broker of muni investment agreements that the Justice Department has taken action against, after CDR Financial Products, which the government indicted in October on nine criminal counts over alleged bid-rigging of muni investment and derivatives contracts.

Many states will have to revisit their fiscal 2011 budgets and may have to rearrange their spending plans due to gaps between what they expected and what they actually receive from a six-month extension of extra federal Medicaid funding.

ALAMEDA, Calif. — Issuers in the Far West sold $43.36 billion of municipal bonds in 672 transactions during the first six months of 2010, according to Thomson Reuters, down from $47.12 billion in 600 transactions in the first half of 2009.

ALAMEDA, Calif. — National Public Finance Guarantee Corp. this week asked the judge handling the Vallejo bankruptcy case to order the resumption of state intercept payments that back one of the California city’s debt issues.

WASHINGTON — Two medical groups have asked the Internal Revenue Service to allow hospitals to be flexible when conducting the community health needs assessments required under the health care reform law.

WASHINGTON — Fitch Ratings this week released expanded global criteria that its analysts will use to evaluate debt secured by tolled facilities such as roads, bridges, and tunnels.

WASHINGTON — Dealers are urging regulators not to impose fees on them to help fund the Governmental Accounting Standards Board until after a congressional watchdog agency completes a study of the standards setter.