Illinois

Fitch Ratings revised its outlook on Elmhurst Memorial Healthcare’s BBB rating to positive from stable in recognition of its post-merger growth.

Buoyed by court victories challenging city and state pension reform legislation, labor is now taking aim at 2014 legislation that overhauled the Chicago Park District’s pension benefits and contributions.

Former Chicago Public Schools leader Barbara Byrd-Bennett entered a guilty plea Tuesday to one corruption count leveled against her by federal authorities for allegedly steering contracts to her former employer for promised kickbacks.

The former chief of Chicago Public Schools was indicated Thursday on charges tied to no-bid contracts worth $23 million.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel warned Thursday that Congress and the Executive Branch should not hurt two federal loan programs for infrastructure: the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act and the Railroad Rehabilitation & Improvement Financing programs.

Kroll has weighed in on Chicago’s 2016 budget, praising the spending plan for a key property tax increase but warning of unresolved challenges and one-shot revenue boosts.

Chicago’s motor fuel tax bonds became the latest victim of Illinois’ budget stalemate Wednesday when S&P dropped the debt six notches, to BBB-plus.

Chicago-based investment firm David A. Noyes & Company has hired former Indiana public finance director Mark Moore as part of an expansion of the firm’s Indiana investment banking team.

Chicago is promoting O’Hare International Airport’s recent growth spurt, improved credit, and conservative debt portfolio as it preps a $2 billion issue that will mark the city’s largest deal ever.

Bond insurer ACA Financial Guaranty Corp. will lay out a restructuring plan next week for holders of $160 million of defaulted debt issued by the Chicago suburb of Lombard for its still struggling hotel and conference center.

Standard & Poor’s upgraded Illinois-based Anderson Hospital two notches citing multi-year operating improvements.

Chapman and Cutler LLP said it was mourning the loss of retired partner Ronald E. Rokosz, described as a “tour de force” who was instrumental in the development of credit enhancement, liquidity facilities and other bank products used in the public finance sector.

The Illinois budget stalemate has left Chicago on the hook to cover monthly payments to the trustee on its motor fuel tax bonds because state transfers are trapped without a fiscal 2016 budget.

In Chicago’s second dose of good airport credit news, Standard & Poor's on Tuesday raised O’Hare International Airport’s ratings by one level as the city heads into the market next week with $2 billion of mostly refunding debt.

Chicago's steep borrowing costs should come down if the City Council adopts Mayor Rahm Emanuel's proposed 2016 budget and property tax hikes, the city's chief financial officer, Carole Brown, told council members.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel brought the case for a budget proposal that hikes property taxes to fund police and firefighter pensions before the municipal bond market on Monday. Speaking in Manhattan to the Municipal Forum of New York, Emanuel said that the only alternative to his budget is to make massive cuts in the city’s workforce and services.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel skirted around questions over whether he’s pinning too much hope on the state for key provisions that soften the blow of his record property tax hike to cover escalating public safety costs.

Chicago received a rare bit of good credit news Friday as Fitch Ratings elevated its outlook on O’Hare International Airport’s general credit to positive ahead of a $2 billion sale.

Standard & Poor’s has downgraded DuPage County, Ill.’s water and sewer bonds due to what the ratings agency says are volatile debt-service coverage levels.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and his finance team can expect tough questions from the muni buyside Friday at the city’s closed-door annual investor conference.