Illinois

The lowered outlook is a sign of negative momentum for the district, which could affect how its paper prices in the primary and secondary markets.

Fitch Ratings revised Illinois' outlook to positive, pointing to the state's recent trend toward "normalized operating performance" and diverse economy.

S&P upgraded Illinois' general obligation bonds to A from A-minus, citing a track record of capable fiscal management. This follows a Moody's upgrade a week earlier.

Rating analysts are tracking the potential departure of the DuPage Water Commission, the largest wholesale customer of Chicago's water enterprise.

With a general obligation bond deal in the works, Illinois can tout Moody's upgrade to A1 of the state's issuer, GO and Build Illinois sales tax bond ratings.

Chicago will make the second half of its advance pension payment this year, Mayor Brandon Johnson told the Chicago Investors Conference.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson appointed Ashlee Gabrysch, formerly senior director at Fitch Ratings, to serve as chief financial officer.

Budget Director Annette Guzman left her role Monday, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson said, in the latest high-profile finance departure from his administration.

The Chicago Board of Education passed an amended fiscal year 2027 budget Thursday that assumes $150 million in additional funding from the state.

Acting Chief Financial Officer Steven Mahr and Deputy CFO Noor Shaikh left Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson's administration as internal battles became public.

The budget timeline emerged as a flashpoint when the Chicago Board of Education held hearings last week in the run-up to a consequential vote Thursday.

Roycemore School defaulted this month on unrated revenue bonds issued through conduit Evanston, Illinois. The private school will close its doors in 2026-27.

Cook County, Illinois, will return to market next week with $119.5 million of Series 2026 fixed rate, tax-exempt sales tax revenue bonds.

Chicago will fund new infrastructure for The 78, the mixed-use development around the new Chicago Fire soccer stadium, after the City Council advanced the deal.

Private Milliken University in Illinois is sweetening its upcoming bond deal by adding a student apartment complex to increase investor protections. 

Fitch Ratings upgraded Cook County to AA-plus from AA on Monday, citing the county's moderating long-term liability burden and sustained resource base growth.

Financial markets have embraced prediction markets as a mainstream crowdsourced provider of real-time probability signals and risk-hedging tools.

Illinois-based Bernardi Securities released an Environmental Risk Index that gauges relative environmental risk within municipal bond portfolios.

Stonepeak Partners will pay $2.5 billion to buy the remainder of the lease of Chicago's parking meters. The 2008 lease runs through 2084.

The governors of two top Midwest destinations for data centers froze tax breaks for the projects as grassroots opposition groups begin building coalitions.