Washington

A slew of bond-related bills was introduced in the House and Senate in the last few days before members of Congress left town to begin their five-week recess.

The Washington State Housing Finance Commission, which helps fund affordable housing in the state by issuing tax-exempt bonds and offering tax credits, announced that it will help victims of recent wildfires to access emergency housing.

The Securities and Exchange Commission's changes to its disclosure violation self-reporting program are somewhat helpful to issuers but may create further problems in their relationships with underwriters, market participants said.

An unfavorable federal ruling on high quality liquid asset status for municipal bonds would sharply curb bank appetite for munis, said economist George Friedlander.

The Senate keeps transportation dollars flowing with for at least 10 months with last-minute approval of the House's $11 billion highway fund bailout.

Pedro Pierluisi, Puerto Rico's sole non-voting member of Congress, has introduced legislation that would allow the commonwealth's government to authorize certain government-owned corporations to enter Chapter 9 municipal bankruptcy.

As banks make more loans to lower-rated municipalities, they may have to follow Interagency Guidance on Leveraged Lending that was developed with private and corporate borrowers in mind.

The Senate adopted legislation that would provide a five-month, $8 billion bailout of the Highway Trust Fund that extends the fund's solvency through mid-December.

The Securities and Exchange Commission's Office of Municipal Securities is hiring two new attorney advisers in the latest expansion of the team tasked with providing muni market expertise to federal regulators.

Lower than anticipated tax revenues from marijuana won't impact Washington State's credit rating, according to a report from Moody's Investors Service.

The District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority will close on about $450 million of debt July 23, most of it in the form of a historic green century bond issuance that DC Water's chief financial officer is crediting with introducing new investors to the large, frequent issuer.

Dealers pay less for munis than customers, particularly when there is more time between trades, according to a long-awaited study commissioned by the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board. But market sources say the finding is not surprising and that the report is limited in its results.

Puerto Rico's non-voting representative in Congress met with credit rating agencies and investment bankers in New York last weekend, seeking to assure them of Puerto Rico's economic future.

Chances for swift passage of a billion bailout of the highway fund rise with Obama's support of the House's temporary fix.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has permanently barred a former employee of a broker-dealer and investment advisory firm from the financial markets and ordered him to pay more than $200,000 of restitution to a customer he swindled.

Janney Capital Markets is concerned that Standard & Poor's ratings for some local governments may be too high and out of step with current credit conditions.

An economic study that stresses the value of investments in transportation is part of a weeklong effort by President Obama to get a long-term highway funding bill.

Moody's Investors Service upgraded the general obligation bond rating on Bainbridge Island, Wash., based on the city's stabilizing tax base and consistent operating surpluses.

Bond lawyers and issuers are frustrated that the Securities and Exchange Commission did not specify the disclosure failures that led to its settlement with a California school district on Tuesday. They said it leaves them with no helpful guidance on what kinds of disclosures the SEC is focusing on in its Municipalities Continuing Disclosure Cooperation voluntary enforcement initiative.

The House Ways and Means Committee plans to vote on a bill Thursday that would transfer almost $11 billion to the Highway Trust Fund to keep it solvent through May 31, 2015.