Washington DC

The board will, among other things, review comments on a proposed order that would allow municipal advisors to participate in some private placement activities.

The median time it takes for municipal bond borrowers to complete their annual audits was 156 days for fiscal 2018: equal to the slowest time in the past 11 years.

Indian River County won’t pursue the federal litigation further, but it will proceed with a lawsuit in state court over the use of its railroad crossings.

The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association survey indicates low interest rates will keep the environment for issuing debt favorable.

The first hard evidence of how this is affecting ratings in the public finance sector came from a downgrade two months ago involving Princeton Community Hospital in West Virginia.

The announcement Monday involved last March’s ruling by the First Circuit Court of Appeals on the Puerto Rico Highways and Transportation Authority’s special revenue bonds.

Jail bonds are being targeted for audits by the IRS this year with respect to whether federal government use of locally built facilities or management contracts with localities causes excessive private business use.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board's assets dropped by $8.5 million.

At issue is the so-called "public disclosure bar," which prevents a whistleblower from pursuing a lawsuit based on publicly available information.

An SEC advisory committee recommended allowing investment advisers affiliated with broker-dealers to offer and sell negotiated new issue muni bonds during the order period that the dealer also participates in.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority released its annual Risk Monitoring and Examinations Priorities letter Thursday.

Dealer groups want the SEC to examine broker-dealers and municipal advisors equally.

The Financial Accounting Foundation abandoned its tradition of selecting a state auditor to chair the Governmental Accounting Standards Board.

Some smaller firms are deciding to qualify more than half of their municipal advisor principals as a sort of backup plan.

The challenge this year will be biggest in the three states that were found by the Council of Development Finance Agencies to be closest to using their 2018 limits — California, New York and Massachusetts.

Deborah Goldberg succeeds Utah State Treasurer David Damschen as president of the National Association of State Treasurers.

The Securities and Exchange Commission plans to focus on protecting Main Street investors in municipal bonds.

The investigation appears to be linked to the supervision of Deborah Kelley, a broker who was convicted and sanctioned for bribing a state pension fund officer.

GASB’s final guidance on the Replacement of Interbank Offered Rates is expected to be issued in March, giving state and municipal governments plenty of time to make adjustments before Libor is phased out by the end of 2021.

As surface transportation funding is set to expire later in 2020, a new reauthorization could help push muni bond initiatives next year.