Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania’s last-minute plan to help its capital city meet a $3.3 million general obligation payment to bondholders last week is a “credit positive,” but Harrisburg needs “external support” to achieve long-term fiscal stability, according to Moody’s Investors Service.

As litigation began Monday against the city of Harrisburg and the Harrisburg Authority, other Pennsylvania municipal governments are facing similar fiscal woes — rising labor costs and sluggish revenue streams.

The Pittsburgh and ­Allegheny County Sports and Exhibition Authority Tuesday will sell $150 million of tax-exempt revenue bonds to refinance debt and generate savings.

Harrisburg and Pennsylvania officials are working on securing a potential bank loan so the city can meet a $3.3 million debt-service payment due Sept. 15 and avoid a default.

Moody’s Investors Service late Tuesday upgraded to A1 from A2 the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, affecting $327 million of debt. The outlook is stable.

Harrisburg’s debt woes are exacerbated by the political impasse between Mayor Linda Thompson and the City Council, which could hinder its ability to utilize the capital market in the future, according to a Moody’s Investors Service analysis of Pennsylvania’s capital city.

Fitch Ratings last week upgraded the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority to AA from A-plus, affecting $327 million of outstanding debt.

Dauphin County Wednesday authorized TD Bank to pursue legal action against Harrisburg, as Pennsylvania’s capital city said it will not meet payments due Dec. 15 on $35 million of incinerator bonds.

Both Democratic and Republican lawmakers in Pennsylvania agree that the state needs a long-term transportation funding strategy, but have yet to find consensus on how the state should pay for roads, bridges, and public transit.

Rebecca Rhynhart will leave her current position as Philadelphia’s treasurer and replace former budget director Stephen Agostini beginning Nov. 1.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is auditing financial and management operations at the Philadelphia Housing Authority in the wake of allegations it asked vendors to donate to certain charities and events benefitting its executive director, Carl Greene.

The Harrisburg City Council Tuesday night tabled two nominees to the Harrisburg Authority’s board, continuing a political standoff with the mayor that has left the board without a quorum and bondholders with an uncertain future.

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission are in disagreement over payments the turnpike makes to PennDOT under Act 44.

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service has told the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency that if it wants to settle a bond-related tax dispute, the settlement will have to cover all $700 million of its outstanding student loan debt.

Pennsylvania Gov. Edward Rendell Monday proposed implementing a profits tax on oil companies and raising motor vehicle fees to generate more than $1 billion per year to help finance road, bridge, and mass transit needs throughout the state.

A poll this week of 504 Pennsylvania residents shows that 95% of participants believe that the quality of the state's transportation is extremely, very, or somewhat important to the state's economy. Overall, 69% of those polled said that the state should increase its spending on roads, bridges, and highways, Republican pollster Frank Luntz said during a press conference with Gov. Edward Rendell Thursday on the survey.

The Delaware River Port Authority is embarking on a series of reforms intended to professionalize the bi-state agency, which has been the subject of allegations of fiscal mismanagement, and avoid similar problems in the future.

Scott Balice Strategies LLC will advise Harrisburg, Pa., on the refinancing of $282 million of Harrisburg Authority incinerator debt as the agency continues to operate without a board.

The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission is gearing up to sell about $600 million of revenue debt on Wednesday, including taxable Build America Bonds, to help finance infrastructure needs on the state’s 535-mile toll road.

The Harrisburg Authority will pay its entire $2.2 million, Sept. 1 payment to holders of incinerator bonds with debt reserve funds, as an incomplete board threatens the Pennsylvania agency’s ability to move ahead with needed business actions.