Illinois

CHICAGO – With no long-term resolution in sight over the state’s budget crisis, Illinois lawmakers adjourned on Friday after giving public universities new borrowing authority and approving a debt restructuring for the agency that manages Chicago’s convention center.

CHICAGO — The Illinois Finance Authority board advanced plans this week for more than $550 million in health care-related deals, including the Clare at Water Tower’s tender and exchange offer that is part of a debt restructuring aimed at giving the struggling retirement development more time to succeed.

CHICAGO — A special pension commission named by Chicago Mayor Richard Daley has recommended increased contributions and policy changes to address the city’s pension funding crisis, but several panel members panned the proposals as falling far short of the more dramatic action needed to avert looming shortfalls.

CHICAGO — The bill for fixing Chicago’s underfunded pension funds would cost taxpayers at least $660 million annually and without action the funds will face shortfalls within the decade, according to a report released Friday by a special pension commission appointed by Mayor Richard Daley.

CHICAGO — Legislation aimed at shoring up Illinois school districts’ ability to tap working-cash bond proceeds for some construction projects or to cope with delayed state school aid payments without the fear of costly challenges to the long-standing practice is headed to Gov. Pat Quinn’s desk.

CHICAGO — Backed by organized labor leaders, a Democratic lawmaker yesterday pressed his colleagues to support a plan that would permit electronic gaming at Illinois’ six horse-racing tracks to ensure funding remains stable for the state’s $31 billion capital program.

CHICAGO — While Illinois is still behind in aid payments to its public universities, the rating risk posed by the state’s liquidity problems eased a bit yesterday when Moody’s Investors Service confirmed the ratings of seven of eight public schools and took them off negative watch.

CHICAGO — The Illinois Senate is expected to vote this week on legislation that would clarify school districts’ rights to tap working-cash bond proceeds for some construction projects or to cope with late state school aid payments, reducing the risks of costly challenges to the long-standing practice under the tax law.

CHICAGO — Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn’s proposed $52 billion fiscal 2011 budget relies too heavily on borrowing, leaves too many bills unpaid, and will only aggravate the state’s fiscal crisis, a Chicago-based government watchdog organization said yesterday in announcing its opposition to the spending plan.

CHICAGO — The Chicago Transit Authority early next month will restructure about $100 million of its federal capital grant-backed bonds. The agency will avoid principal payments this year and next in order to accelerate capital spending and provide an operating cushion in case fiscal pressures mount.

CHICAGO — An interim board overseeing Chicago’s convention center authority yesterday recommended Illinois lawmakers overhaul the agency to help bring down convention and trade show costs and ease mounting financial pressures through a debt restructuring plan.

Chicago Mayor Richard Daley is seeking City Council approval to sell up to $175 million of general obligation bonds in June to provide funding for the Chicago Public Schools for construction projects.

CHICAGO — Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn yesterday signed legislation that cuts retirement benefits for future employees to help rein in the state’s growing unfunded pension liabilities, a measure he hopes lays the groundwork for legislative approval of a controversial income tax increase.

CHICAGO — Cook County, Ill., has announced the finance teams tapped to bring to market $412 million of new money as well as a chunk of refunding bonds that likely will mark the last issue under Board President Todd Stroger’s watch.

CHICAGO — The Art Institute of Chicago received final approval from the Illinois Finance Authority board yesterday for a debt refunding this spring of up to $245 million that will allow the prestigious museum to shed its floating-rate risks.

CHICAGO — While the market’s attention is focused on Chicago’s sale of more than $1 billion of new-money and refunding debt for O’Hare International Airport this week, the city is also preparing to refund and reoffer pieces of its Midway Airport debt it had hoped to retire with its now-stalled plan to privatize the facility.

Illinois faces increasing pressure on liquidity as a short-term borrowing is coming due, putting the state on pace to close out the fiscal year on June 30 with a $5.5 billion backlog of bills, Comptroller Daniel Hynes warned in a recent report.

CHICAGO — Federal officials yesterday announced $410 million in new funding to help support Chicago’s $8 billion runway expansion project at O’Hare International Airport, an award that comes one week ahead of the city’s sale of more than $1.1 billion of new-money and refunding O’Hare debt.

CHICAGO — As Illinois prepares to offer investors $1.3 billion of general obligation bonds, the pressure on its credit ratings escalated this week with one agency downgrading the state and two warning that further action looms if lawmakers again turn to one-time measures to balance the budget.

CHICAGO — Moody’s Investors Service yesterday downgraded O’Hare International Airport’s passenger facility charge-backed bonds to A2 from A1 ahead of Chicago’s sale in mid-April of roughly $1.3 billion of new-money and refunding airport-related bonds.