California

Saying she wants to "light a fire" under attorneys in the case, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Meredith Jury scheduled a summary judgment hearing on San Bernardino, Calif.'s eligibility for bankruptcy.

Moody's Investors Service said in a report Wednesday that it has withdrawn ratings on $1.2 billion of debt issued by 22 former California redevelopment agencies due to a lack of information.

Critical funding measures on the ballot in the struggling California cities of Fresno and Hercules hung in the balance Tuesday before voters – one appears to have passed, another's fate is too close to call.

California Treasurer Bill Lockyer, who oversees some of the largest muncipal bond sales in the country, said he will retire from elected office at the end of his term in 2015.

Moody's Investors Service said a court ruling that allows California to cut its Medi-Cal program is a negative for the credit ratings of hospitals, and positive for the state's fiscal flexibility.

The California Health Facilities Financing Authority, a conduit issuer, last week approved an $850 million bond issuance for St. Joseph Health System, according to a spokesman.

Reneé Webster-Hawkins was selected to be the new executive director of the California Pollution Control Financing Authority, said California Treasurer Bill Lockyer.

The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands is considering selling bonds backed by islands as collateral, and legalizing gambling in an effort to tackle its pension problem.

Chris Lytle was named the new executive director of the Port of Oakland last week, according to a release from the port's board of commissioners.

The Los Angeles City Council approved a plan to merge two Los Angeles departments.

Moody's Investors Service upgraded to Baa1 from Ba1 the rating to the Successor Agency of the Redevelopment Agency of the City of Santa Monica Calif.'s earthquake tax allocation bonds impacting $39.8 million in outstanding long-term debt.

Gov. Jerry Brown's administration has ordered an independent review of the California Department of Transportation amid controversy over the new span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge.

Standard & Poor's said in a report Wednesday that California's revised budget would allow for more financial flexibility for schools, generally a "positive credit factor."

Fitch Ratings structured finance analysts warned that current housing prices in certain California markets are unsustainable.

California Controller John Chiang issues scathing report on Bell, Calif. but city officials say they are close to clearing up their audits and a $39 million bond default involving Dexia.

Moody's Investors Service has stamped a triple-A rating on Palo Alto's $20 million general obligation sale set for later this month.

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Agency will be seeking approval from its board in June on borrowing totaling $10.2 billion through 2026 to complete the rail transit network.

The Rockefeller Foundation selected eight cities to participate in the RE.Invest Initiative, a national effort to support sustainable infrastructure that includes financial advice on P3 options.

The California Controller's office determined in a review that the successor agency to Riverside's redevelopment agency is not only in current possession of $30.5 million in real property that it is no longer legally entitled to hold, but that it inappropriately transferred another $64.25 million in real property to the city.

Moody's Investors Service said a recent less-conservative analysis of California revenues increases the likelihood the Legislature will pass a budget with higher revenues and higher spending.