Illinois

Despite last week’s downgrades, Illinois’ general obligation paper fares better than New Jersey for relative credit risk, Municipal Market Analytics said in a commentary comparing the two lowest-rated states.

Six of Illinois’ eight public universities took a fresh credit blow from Moody’s Investors Service with downgrades stemming from exposure to the state’s fiscal strains and its budget crisis.

The Chicago Park District’s AA-plus Standard & Poor's rating won’t change solely because of a new legal challenge launched against its pension reforms.

Illinois took its second credit blow this week when Moody’s Investors Service dropped the state’s general obligation debt into the triple-B category Thursday as the state’s prospects for tackling its budget and pension mess dim amid the four-month-old budget stalemate.

Moody's Investors Service said it has downgraded the state of Illinois' $26.8 billion of general obligation bonds to Baa1 from A3, while also lowering ratings on the state's sales-tax (Build Illinois) bonds to Baa1 from A3, and on the state's subject to appropriation bonds (issued by the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority and for the state's Civic Center program) to Baa2 from Baa1.

With the Illinois state budget impasse blocking only a limited number of revenue sources, most local governments in the state should be able to get by without an immediate ratings impact bond structures that include covered abatements and adequate liquidity and reserves.

Investors should brace for further deterioration of Illinois’ already battered bond ratings after this week’s Fitch Ratings downgrade.

Fitch Ratings downgraded Illinois one notch to BBB-plus.

Illinois’ deferral of its November pension contribution over a cash flow crunch is a negative credit factor, said Moody’s Investors Service.

The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago’s strong financials and independent governance are key strengths that have staved off the credit hits suffered by Chicago and other local governments, says Moody’s Investors Service.

Investors squeezed a more modest penalty out of Chicago on a recent $419 million wastewater revenue bond deal than they have demanded on its general obligation paper, market participants said.

Arguing a recent 1 cent sales tax hike isn’t enough to solve Cook County, Ill.’s budget and pension strains, board President Toni Preckwinkle’s proposed 2016 budget relies on a mix of spending cuts and new tax revenue to close a $199 million gap.

Raymond James has hired Jack Dudick in the firm’s Healthcare Finance group in Chicago.

Illinois is so short on cash that it won’t make its $560 million monthly pension fund payment next month and could also skip its December payment, state Comptroller Leslie Geissler Munger announced Wednesday.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s proposed 2016 budget and record property tax hike plan won the Chicago Civic Federation’s endorsement, with a warning that more pain may be needed to fully stabilize the city’s fiscal condition.

Chicago heads into the market Wednesday with $440 million of second lien wastewater revenue debt that moves the city closer to putting behind it the $2.2 billion liquidity headache triggered by rating downgrades.

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.