Illinois

CHICAGO — Cook County, Ill., is expected to refund $121 million of general obligation bonds next week in what will likely be the last financing under outgoing board President Todd Stroger.

CHICAGO — The Illinois Finance ­Authority board advanced plans for Navistar International Corp. to borrow $145 million using recovery zone facility bonds for its new DuPage County corporate headquarters, though the financing hinges on the successful pooling of local ­government bond allocations from the stimulus program.

CHICAGO — The Chicago City Council Wednesday approved up to $1 billion of new-money and refunding debt that will help the city keep its $8 billion O’Hare International Airport expansion project on track as negotiations with the airlines over upcoming projects continue.

CHICAGO – Chicago Mayor Richard Daley said Tuesday he would not seek a seventh term next year in a stunning announcement for the city’s political and business worlds that stands to shakeup its longstanding relationships in the public finance community.

CHICAGO — The Chicago City Council’s Finance Committee Tuesday advanced the sale of up to $1 billion of new-money and refunding O’Hare International Airport revenue bonds and debt backed by passenger facility charges to raise funds for the second phase of an $8 billion expansion that has yet to win airline approval.

CHICAGO — The revamped $1.2 billion clean coal FutureGen project advanced this week after a coalition of coal and power companies announced its commitment to the revised plan to build a pipeline and underground storage facility in Illinois to house emissions from an existing coal plant.

CHICAGO — Chicago Mayor Richard Daley on Friday announced his intention to appoint Loop Capital Markets LLC’s chief executive officer James Reynolds Jr. to serve as chairman of the Chicago Housing Authority’s board.

CHICAGO — Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich faces a second federal trial on corruption charges early next year and will stand as the sole defendant following the prosecution’s announcement Thursday that it would drop charges against his brother, Robert Blagojevich.

CHICAGO — The Chicago Board of Education late Wednesday adopted an amended $6.5 billion fiscal 2011 budget after the district’s administration scraped plans to fully wipe out reserves to help eliminate a $370 million deficit by instead restructuring some debt.

CHICAGO — The Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority of Illinois has picked Goldman, Sachs & Co. and Morgan Stanley as the joint book-running senior managers on its first financing under legislation that allows it to restructure a $2.1 billion debt portfolio.

U.S. District Judge James B. Zagel told attorneys in the corruption trial of former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich to be back in court Aug. 26 to set a date for a new trial.

The Municipal Bond Club of Chicago and Fitch Ratings are hosting a 10-week overview of the muni market starting Sept. 16.

The City Colleges of Chicago has proposed a $457.5 million operating budget for fiscal 2011 and a $139 million capital budget to finance infrastructure and technology improvements.

Federal prosecutors late Tuesday afternoon said they would likely retry former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich after a jury was able to reach a unanimous verdict on only one of 24 counts brought against him.

CHICAGO — Underwriters, financial advisers, and lawyers interested in working on Illinois’ proposed sale of up to $1.75 billion of tobacco bonds to provide budgetary relief have until Aug. 27 to submit proposals to the state.

CHICAGO — The cash-strapped Chicago Public Schools will receive about $100 million from Illinois’ share of education funding in the new $26 billion federal jobs law, local and federal officials said Wednesday.

CHICAGO — Midwestern bond issuance leaped by 32.5% to $39.8 billion for the first six months of the year, due primarily to Illinois’ borrowing spree to finance its $31 billion capital program and its use of debt for budgetary relief.

CHICAGO — The Illinois Finance Authority board on Tuesday advanced plans for a series of financings, including the first in the state in seven years to take advantage of the FHA 242 Hospital Mortgage Insurance Program. Another could be the first to tap the state’s Midwestern disaster area bond allocation.

CHICAGO — The Chicago Public Schools on Monday proposed a $6.4 billion budget for the next year that includes $600 million of bonds and would drain the district’s $190 million fund balance to help erase $370 million of red ink.

CHICAGO — Moody’s Investors Service presented Chicago with a second dose of negative rating news Friday when it downgraded the city’s general obligation credit one level to Aa3 due to concerns about its 2011 budget deficit and evaporating financial reserves.