Texas

A unanimous vote is unlikely as trustees of Houston Independent School District's vote on putting a $1.9 billion general obligation bond referendum to voters in November

Houston will spend $395,000 to audit city employee pension plans to get information that Mayor Annise Parker said is needed to protect taxpayers and public employees.

With the threat of a lawsuit rising and a Monday deadline looming, the Dallas suburb of Irving, Tex., on Thursday sought a way to resolve a bond financing dilemma for a $252 million entertainment center. The triple-A-rated city expected two years ago to be able to issue up to $170 million of debt to finance the project. Since then, the city council majority in favor of the project, including the mayor, has been turned out of office. The city recently received confirmation that revenue bonds issued for the project would be rated below investment grade.

The size of Dallas' November general obligation bond referendum will be $42 million more than expected due to increases in the city's property tax base.

With its ability to issue debt limited by discovery of a phony audit used in an earlier bond official statement, the New Mexico Finance Authority is proceeding with an investigation to clear up the debacle.

The Corpus Christ City Council gave tentative approval Tuesday to a $90.4 million general obligation bond package that will go to voters Nov. 6. The total includes $55 million of street projects.

Three months after winning overwhelming passage of a $596 million bond issue, San Antonio is issuing the first debt from that authorization as part of a $200 million negotiated deal this week.

Property values in Dallas County, Texas posted the first increase since 2008 last week as the Dallas County Central Appraisal District certified total values of $157.7 billion, up 1.4% or $2.2 billion from 2011.

Voters in Tyler Independent School District, Texas, could go to the polls in November to decide on a general obligation bond package.

The Corpus Christi City Council is considering a recommendation for a $55 million general obligation bond referendum in November that would focus on upgrades and maintenance of city streets.

June's sales tax revenues totaled $1.98 billion, up 15.2% from June 2011, Texas Comptroller Susan Combs said last week.

State officials will use $25 million of bonds authorized by Texas voters in 2007 to repair the Battleship Texas rather than dry-berth the World War I-vintage ship.

Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport plans to issue $381 million of new money for its $2 billion terminal remodeling program as the airport's largest tenant, American Airlines, considers possible mergers under bankruptcy protection.

Texas revenues are expected to run $5 billion higher than previously projected over the next two years, Comptroller Susan Combs reported.

Two toll-road operators in the Houston area whose systems interlink will issue $379 million as the systems continue to expand in the suburbs of Texas' largest city.

Current revenues will curtail road building in Texas within a few years, according to testimony last week before a House Appropriations subcommittee.

Baylor College of Medicine, the largest private medical school in the Southwest, plans to issue $320 million of bonds next month to refinance fixed and variable rate debt and stabilize its financial structure, officials said.

Houston Mayor Annise Parker unveiled a $410 million general obligation proposal that could go on the Nov. 6 ballot. Parker said the city has capacity to issue up to $430 million of new debt without increasing the property tax rate.

The city of Austin is refunding commercial paper, long-term debt and terminating a swap through a $335.9 million negotiated deal through Goldman Sachs & Co. Wednesday.

Texas House Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio, called on lawmakers to end the practice of moving dedicated revenue into the general fund to balance the state's two-year budget. The current budget includes $4.9 billion of the transfers, which are not spent but enable Comptroller Susan Combs to certify that the fiscal 2012-2013 budget balanced revenues with expenditures.