Florida

Gov. Rick Scott signed the $82.3 billion budget for 2017 law late Thursday night, vetoing $256 million in line-item expenses sought by the Legislature.

The collapse of the Port St. Lucie, Fla.-based Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute prompted Moody's Investors Service to review the city’s bond ratings for possible downgrade.

House Bill 347 received final passage Thursday in the Florida senate allowing certain entities to issue securitized bonds to finance water and sewer projects.

For the first time in five years, Florida lawmakers have included bond financing for school projects in their proposed $82.35 billion budget for fiscal 2017.

Local and state government leaders are tapping sales taxes for new revenue to help close budget gaps, pay for infrastructure, fund pension liabilities, and finance basics such as teachers’ raises.

The trustee for Port St. Lucie, Fla.’s $64 million of bonds to finance the defunct Vaccine & Gene Therapy Institute questioned whether the city will honor its guarantee to pay debt service, although the city attorney said it will make good on the promise.

An investment banker hired as an expert witness in lawsuits challenging All Aboard Florida’s passenger train service said tax-exempt financing is critical to funding the $3.5 billion project, although the private company says that’s not true.

Florida lawmakers are close to an agreement that would establish a new bond financing program that allows certain municipal utilities to securitize customer charges.

The North Broward Hospital District in Florida saw Moody’s Investors Service drop its bond ratings three notches to Baa2 amid a severe decline in revenue and new probes into its operations.

In the Southeast, pent-up need for capital and low interest rates translated into a five-year high for bond issuance in 2015.

The Securities and Exchange Commission told Miami, Miami-Dade County, and the Marlins that no enforcement action will be recommended after a four-year-long inquiry into the financing of the team's $615.7 million stadium.

State governors and other public officials who warned that new Environmental Protection Agency regulations could cause significant economic harm to their states and localities are hailing the Supreme Court’s decision to place a stay on the EPA’s plan.

Florida’s State Board of Administration Finance Corp. will issue $1.2 billion of taxable bonds for the state’s Cat Fund, pitching investors opportunity to pick up yield.

The Florida Senate and House released fiscal 2017 budgets Friday that are higher than Gov. Rick Scott’s record spending plan; debate remains on Scott’s $1 billion tax cut proposal.

Florida lawmakers are pressing for legislation that could dramatically alter the state’s public school landscape, saying parents want more charter schools and smaller school districts.

All Aboard Florida said it will sell $1.75 billion of tax-exempt private activity bonds for its $3.5 billion passenger train project as market conditions improve.

The Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund’s long-time chief Jack Nicholson plans to oversee the issuance of $1.2 billion of taxable bonds in February before retiring.

The Internal Revenue Service appears is stepping up its audit of $80 million of Arborwood Community Development District's 2006 bonds and appears to be focusing in part on the Florida CDD's board and land that may have been purchased at too high of a price.

The St. Petersburg, Fla., City Council voted Thursday to allow the Tampa Bay Rays to search for a new Major League Baseball stadium site in the region.

Florida's legislative session began Tuesday, with Gov. Rick Scott focused on tax cuts and lawmakers weighing two major proposals that would affect public utility bonds.