Far West

House transportation leaders yesterday said they will push for as much as $69 billion of infrastructure grants to states to be included in any job-creation bill that is put forward and approve an extension of the current law.

The House Financial Services Committee yesterday approved the final two pieces of a package of legislation to reshape the financial regulatory system, paving the way for the full House to debate and vote on the measures as one omnibus bill next week.

Rep. Xavier Becerra, D-Calif., has introduced a bill that would create another type of tax-credit bond — clean renewable water supply bonds — and authorize the issuance of up to $6.2 billion of them through 2018.

A coalition of transportation, environmental, and housing groups is asking House and Senate leaders to limit infrastructure programs in any forthcoming jobs bill to just one year and to direct spending toward the rehabilitation and operation of existing infrastructure instead of new construction projects.

A federal appeals court last week rejected an appeal filed by William A. ­DiBella, former majority leader of the Connecticut Senate, and his consulting firm, North Cove Ventures LLC, to overturn a 2007 jury verdict and judgement against them for their involvement in a fraudulent pay-to-play scheme in connection with the state’s pension fund.

WASHINGTON — High-speed rail is the “newest gravy train” in Washington, D.C., with more than 50 public and private groups having registered in the last quarter to lobby for billions of dollars of federal aid — a threefold increase from a year ago, the Center for Public Integrity found in a recent investigation.

The Securities and Exchange Commission last week released final rule changes designed to impose additional disclosure and conflict of interest requirements on rating agencies registered as nationally recognized statistical rating organizations. At the same time, it issued proposed new rules that would impose additional reporting requirements on the NRSROs.

WASHINGTON — The Treasury Department Wednesday highlighted guidance on tax-credit stripping, Build America Bonds, and other programs stemming from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act as high priorities in its 2009-2010 priority guidance plan.

WASHINGTON — The District of Columbia could garner its lowest new-money, fixed interest rates ever when it couples income tax-secured revenue bonds with its first taxable Build America Bonds in an expected $661 million negotiated deal scheduled for early December.

WASHINGTON — Alliance, Ohio, disclosed last week that the Internal Revenue Service has concluded an audit of $50 million of hospital revenue bonds it issued in 2003 with no change to the tax-exempt status.