Minnesota

CHICAGO — The St. Paul Port Authority and lawyers for a group of investors who hold some of its 876 Fund economic development bonds will return to court Nov. 1 as litigation over the fate of $51 million of defaulted outstanding debt moves towards a trial date.

CHICAGO — A Minnesota judge this week kept alive a lawsuit filed by retirees against the state’s public pension funds that challenges legislation enacted earlier this year curbing benefit increases for current retirees.

CHICAGO — The Regents of the University of Minnesota on Wednesday will sell $146 million of bonds in two issues to fund biomedical science research facilities. The deal will offer a mix of tax-exempt revenue debt supported by a state appropriation and taxable Build America Bonds backed by the school’s credit.

CHICAGO — The St. Paul Port Authority and lawyers for a group of 876 fund bondholders squared off in Ramsey County district court Monday over whether the agency has misused revenue generated from assets pledged to bondholders.

CHICAGO — The St. Paul Port Authority and lawyers for a group of 876 Fund bondholders will appear at a court hearing Monday on their dispute over the fate of $51 million of outstanding bonds backed by the struggling economic development fund.

CHICAGO — Top-rated Hennepin County, Minn., will competitively sell $128 million of general obligation debt today in a deal that will tap both the Build America Bond and recovery zone economic development bond programs.

CHICAGO — Minnesota has selected RBC Capital Markets — the winning bidder on a $635 million new-money sale last week — to lead its upcoming sale of at least $650 million of general obligation refunding bonds.

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 — Top-rated Minnesota plans to enter the market twice this summer, beginning early next month with the competitive sale of $865 million of new-money general obligation bonds and then in September with the negotiated sale of between $500 million and $1 billion of refunding GOs.

CHICAGO — The Minneapolis-St. Paul Metropolitan Airports Commission will enter the market later this month with a nearly $150 million mostly new-money sale of senior-lien revenue bonds as it seeks to take advantage of the federal alternative minimum tax holiday.

CHICAGO — Minnesota-based law firm Briggs and Morgan PA, one of the state’s top bond counsels, has hired attorney Catherine ­Courtney.

CHICAGO — The Minnesota Nurses Association and 14 hospitals in the Twin Cities area reached an agreement late last week on a new contract, averting a threatened strike by 12,000 nurses that was set to start this week.

CHICAGO — As nonprofit hospitals in the Twin Cities brace for a threatened nurses’ strike, Moody’s Investors Service warned yesterday that a prolonged walkout could pressure some hospital ratings if already-thin operating margins are hurt by increased costs for temporary nurses and a drop in patient revenue.

CHICAGO — The St. Paul Port Authority will start anew in its efforts to resolve its faltering 876 Bond Fund in a way that benefits all bondholders. This follows a court decision earlier this month that formally killed its plan to liquidate the fund and distribute proceeds to investors holding the remaining $51 million of debt.

CHICAGO — Triple-A rated Minneapolis today will competitively sell $130 million of general obligation bonds to raise funds for routine capital projects and to refund debt for about 12% of net present-value savings.

CHICAGO — After working through the night to resolve differences, the Minnesota Legislature yesterday approved a budget agreement that cuts spending, including aid to local governments, and pushes off $1.8 billion owed to schools into the next budget cycle to address a $3 billion shortfall.

CHICAGO — Unwilling to accept a proposed income tax increase for the state’s top earners, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty moved quickly Tuesday to veto the budget-balancing plan rushed through the Legislature one day earlier by Democratic leaders.

CHICAGO — The Democratic leaders of the Minnesota Legislature advanced a plan yesterday that relies on a mix of cuts, delaying school aid payments, and more tax revenue from the state’s top earners to erase a looming $3 billion deficit.

The International Falls Economic Development Authority tomorrow will offer $11.5 million of taxable lease revenue bonds backed by a general obligation pledge of the federal government to finance construction of a new National Park Service headquarters.

CHICAGO — The Minnesota Supreme Court ruled yesterday that Gov. Tim Pawlenty exceeded his executive powers in using his unallotment authority to slash the fiscal 2010-11 budget sent to him by lawmakers last year, a finding that raises questions over the legality of $2.7 billion in spending cuts made by the governor.