Florida

Voters approved the issuance of $365 million of ad valorem tax bonds June 4 by the Reedy Creek Improvement District, a Florida public corporation that serves Walt Disney World.

The Internal Revenue Service's ruling against the Village Center Community Development District in Florida may not be as wide-ranging as originally thought because of the unique set of facts that were found to be abusive by the IRS, market participants said Thursday.

In a precedent-setting decision that could have major ramifications for issuers, the Internal Revenue Service has ruled a Florida Community Development District is not a political subdivision that can issue tax-exempt bonds.

The Miami-Dade County commission gave final approval for an overall $4.24 billion bond program to finance the cost of water and sewer improvements.

With two rating upgrades, Orange County, Fla., will sell $40.2 million of public service tax refunding revenue bonds competitively on Tuesday.

Miami Beach is participating in the two-year RE.invest Initiative funded by the Rockefeller Foundation to help the city rethink the way it designs, plans, implements, and finances infrastructure.

Florida municipalities experienced a "slight improvement" in their overall financial state, and could budget reserves for emergencies now, the Florida League of Cities said.

The Internal Revenue Service is auditing $11.04 million of educational facilities revenue bonds that Sarasota County, Fla. issued in 2010, the proceeds of which were lent to the nonprofit Sarasota School of Arts and Sciences, Inc. to finance charter school facilities.

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.

Miami-Dade County's proposed $12.6 billion water and sewer system capital plan is already attracting firms interested in public-private partnerships, Mayor Carlos Gimenez said.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott vetoed $368 million in special projects from the fiscal 2014 budget he received from the Legislature. The final $74.1 billion spending plan is the state's largest.

With market conditions continuing to improve, the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund should have no problem issuing bonds to pay claims over the next 12 months.

Miami-Dade County is worried about its swaps going south if Congress tinkers with the tax exemption on municipal bonds. The county had swaps covering $953 million of bonds as of September 2012.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced Friday that recent federal legislation will allow the FAA to prevent the closure of 149 federal contract air traffic control towers though fiscal 2013.

Three National Football League teams in the Southeast recently ended hard-fought battles for public funds to build or improve their stadiums. Only two succeeded. The struggle was not unusual, experts say.

Florida Legislators passed a $74.5 billion budget on Friday but the House turned down the Miami Dolphins' funding request toward $400 million in stadium improvements.

A bill reducing the exposure and potentially reducing future bond issuance by Florida's Citizens Property Insurance Corp. is headed to Gov. Rick Scott's desk.

The Internal Revenue Service has told a Florida Congressman that the agency will not be providing guidance on political subdivisions that would affect community development districts in the state.

Financially strapped Miami has notified bondholders that the Catholic Archdiocese has filed a lawsuit against the city seeking $89 million dollars in damages, plus interest, attorneys' fees, and expenses.

In this final week of legislative session, Florida lawmakers may give final approval to a bill that would authorize Neighborhood Improvement Districts to issue bonds backed by special assessments.