Illinois

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.

The budget proposal Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel released this week leaves many concerns, Standard & Poor’s said in a special bulletin.

The Chicago Teachers’ Union warned that the possibility of 5,000 Chicago Public Schools teacher layoffs would create “chaos” and could drive a teachers’ strike.

Passage of Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s proposed 2016 budget that socks property owners with a record tax increase to fund escalating public safety pension contributions would positively impact the city’s credit profile, Fitch Ratings said.

The Federal Highway Administration filed a motion Tuesday dropping its appeal of an adverse lower court ruling that the government illegally approved the controversial $1.5 billion Illiana toll road project.

Mayer Brown attorney Tyrone Fahner, head of an influential Chicago business group's civic arm, had strong words for the state's three most powerful politicians this week at a high-profile annual luncheon.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel on Tuesday began the hard sell for a record property tax increase to make good on the city’s enormous police and fire pension bill.

Chicago plans as much as $3 billion of airport, wastewater revenue, and general obligation borrowing -- mostly for refunding and restructuring purposes -- that officials say can’t wait on an improved market climate for city debt.

Chicago's fiscal reckoning is at hand as Mayor Rahm Emanuel is set to unveil his 2016 budget on Tuesday with investors and analysts watching closely to see how he plans to solve the city's fiscal ills.

The Chicago Infrastructure Trust is soliciting help from the private sector as it takes the first steps toward a public-private partnership to upgrade the city and park district’s public lighting systems.

The Illinois Housing Development Authority is searching for a new executive director to replace Mary Kenney who leaves Friday to join BMO as its director of U.S. government affairs.

Illinois Metropolitan Pier & Exposition Authority officials said they are pleased with the results of its Wednesday bond pricing, even though it paid a penalty for the recent loss of its high-grade ratings.