Far West

WASHINGTON — A bond provision in a recently unveiled climate change bill appears to be broader than intended and would allow electric cooperatives and potentially the federal government to serve as conduit borrowers on tax-exempt and Build America Bond deals.

WASHINGTON — State and local officials yesterday urged members of a House Ways and Means Committee panel to create and capitalize a national infrastructure bank, but neither they nor the lawmakers could agree on how to finance or structure the bank.

Two senators last night unveiled a bill that would make the $30 million small-issuer limit for bank-qualified bonds permanent and index it to ­inflation.

WASHINGTON — Energy and climate change legislation unveiled yesterday in the Senate would create a $3 billion tax-credit bond program for vehicles powered by natural gas, allow private-activity bond financing for advanced nuclear power facilities, expand a nuclear loan guarantee program, and provide $2 billion of competitive grants for transportation projects.

WASHINGTON — The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority has temporarily suspended a $650 million deal for its Metrorail extension project, citing market volatility. However, the delay will not affect construction, authority officials said.

GE Funding Capital Market Services Inc., a subsidiary of General Electric Capital Corp., does not agree with the Securities and Exchange Commission’s plans to file charges against it in connection with an industry-wide investigation of guaranteed investment contracts and derivatives, but is discussing the matter, including a “potential resolution,” with SEC staff.

WASHINGTON — The Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service are seeking public input on which projects should be included on the 2010-2011 priority guidance list.

WASHINGTON — Congressional appropriators will be hard-pressed to provide more funding for high-speed rail for fiscal 2011 unless there is clear evidence that the $10.5 billion lawmakers approved for the sector has been used by state and local governments, a congressional staffer said yesterday at a rail industry meeting here.

Bonds backed by federally guaranteed student loans are subject to greater short-term basis risk because of a mismatch in the way the interest rate on the bonds is calculated compared to the way the Department of Education sets interest on the underlying loans that flow into bond trusts, according to a report released by Fitch Ratings yesterday.

The Hood River Valley Parks and Recreation District in Oregon has disclosed that it is entering into the Internal Revenue Service’s voluntary closing agreement program to protect the tax-exempt status of $2.5 million of general obligation bonds it sold in 1998.