Far West

  • WASHINGTON — New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, joined by Neil Barofsky, the special inspector general of the Troubled Asset Relief Program, has filed charges against Bank of America, its former chief executive officer Kenneth Lewis, and its former chief financial officer Joseph Price for allegedly duping shareholders and the federal government to facilitate a merger with Merrill Lynch.

    February 4
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  • The federal government expects to recoup through taxes most of the subsidies it pays on Build America Bonds, according to the federal budget released this week.

    February 4
  • WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats yesterday said they plan on Monday to take up the first of a series of jobs bills, which will include expansion of the Build America Bonds and TIGER grant programs, an extension of the transportation law, and transportation and water infrastructure funding.

    February 4
  • SAN FRANCISCO — Despite this week’s downgrade of the rail corridor that connects them to the nation, the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles are beginning to show signs of growth again, adding to evidence that the Great Recession is easing, analysts, economist and port officials say.

    February 4
  • Hawaii

    SAN FRANCISCO — Citing economic strains that have battered the state’s budget, Moody’s Investors Service Thursday assigned a negative outlook to Hawaii’s Aa2 general obligation bond rating.

    February 4
  • Washington

    WASHINGTON — Carla A. Young, a former Internal Revenue Service lawyer who worked on municipal bonds, has joined the law firm of Greenberg Traurig LLP as a shareholder in its Washington, D.C., and Tysons Corner, Va., offices, the firm announced yesterday.

    February 3
  • Washington

    WASHINGTON — The Securities and Exchange Commission yesterday announced that William Hicks, who worked on a key muni case, has been named associate regional director of enforcement for the Atlanta regional office and that Rhea Kemble Dignam has been named director of the office.

    February 3
  • Tax

    Senate Democrats plan to unveil a “jobs agenda” as early as this morning that would extend surface transportation programs for a year, expand the Build America Bonds program, and augment the popular TIGER discretionary transportation grant program.

    February 3
  • Issuer groups pushing for the Senate Banking Committee to add language in financial regulatory reform legislation mandating that municipal securities be rated on the same scale as other kinds of debt are getting a boost from an unlikely source: the Service Employees International Union, one of the largest labor unions in the country.

    February 3
  • SAN FRANCISCO — Moody’s Investors Service downgraded the Alameda Corridor Transportation Authority’s senior and subordinate debt yesterday, citing declines in trade volumes at the Los Angeles-Long Beach port complex.

    February 3
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