Texas

Surplus toll road revenues will fund preliminary engineering studies on a potential rapid rail segment in north central Texas.

Texas voters will consider more than $8.7 billion of local bond proposals Nov. 3 while weighing another $2.5 billion for transportation funding statewide, according to final tally of ballot items.

Already outpacing all other issuers in the Southwest this year, the Texas Transportation Commission is going to market with $1 billion of triple-A-rated bonds.

The oil and gas industry is pressing Congress to permit exports of crude as prices remain at the lowest since the 2008 global financial crisis. The campaign comes as Houston and other energy dependent credits face growing pain from the falling prices, according to Fitch Ratings.

Fast-growing Montomery County north of Houston will vote again on $280 million of road bonds that were defeated in 2014, county commissioners decided.

Michael Bartolotta, formerly of First Southwest, has left that firm to join Citi in Houston.

Under a new law going into effect Sept. 1, Texas governments can no longer issuer certificates of obligation for a project if voters have rejected a bond proposal within the previous three years.

Favorable demographic trends and increases in funding will give Texas colleges and universities an advantage over systems in other states, according to a report from Moody’s.

Bracewell & Giuliani partner Shamoil T. Shipchandler will head the Fort Worth regional office of the Securities and Exchange Commission beginning in October, the agency said.

Issuers in the Southwest sold $42.8 billion of municipal bonds in the first half of 2015, according to data from Thomson Reuters, a 39% year-over-year increase

The University of North Texas has received a clean audit after paying back $4.7 million of state funds that were improperly used for the university’s operations, according to a disclosure notice. The audit clears the way for UNT to return to the bond market.

Texas sales tax revenues rebounded in July after taking the first dip in 62 months in June, state Comptroller Glenn Hegar reported.

Earthquakes across the nation’s energy-producing regions could have widespread impact on credits and the economies of the regions, according to a report by Standard & Poor’s.

Fast-growing Texas county forms special planning commission in an effort to block the route of a proposed high-speed rail line.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton will face criminal charges for directing clients to a friend's securities advisory firm without registering as a financial advisor. He is the first Texas attorney general to face indictment in more than 30 years.

Dallas sees strong demand for $109 million of bonds for a badly needed parking garage as the city deals with an airline battle for gates at the remodeled airport.

After months of review, the Texas Water Development Board approved $3.9 billion in financial assistance from the State Water Implementation Fund for Texas, a voter-approved program known as SWIFT.

Worsening investment performance threatens the long-term viability of the Dallas Police and Fire pension fund and could harm the city's credit, according to Moody's Investors Service.

The University of Texas System saw strong demand for $218 million of Permanent University Fund bonds priced through a nine-member syndicate led by JP Morgan.

San Antonio will close out July with $450 million of general obligation debt, bringing the month's total to nearly $1 billion.