Washington

The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged a Philadelphia-area private equity firm with violating pay-to-play rules by receiving advisory fees from the city and state pension funds following campaign contributions an associate made to state and local officials. It is the first case brought by the SEC under its pay-to-play rules for investment advisers.

Watchdog group advises lawmakers to avoid bookkeeping gimmicks in resolving the multi-billion shortfall in the Highway Trust Fund.

The state of Washington is planning to sell $1.2 billion of general obligation bonds next week to fund various projects, including school construction and state programs for the Columbia River Basin.

Moody's Investors Service has lowered its ratings on $8.5 billion of state and transit agency stand-alone grant anticipation revenue vehicle bonds supported by dwindling revenues from the Highway Trust Fund.

The House Appropriations Committee has unveiled a fiscal year 2015 bill that would fund the Securities and Exchange Commission at $1.4 billion - $50 million above the fiscal year 2014 level and $300 million below President Obama's budget request.

Rating agencies and others said that draft standards, which among other things urge states and local governments to disclose their net or total other post-employment benefit liabilities on the face of their financial statements, would be helpful and provide more transparency.

Foreign equity investment interest in U.S. public-private partnerships at all-time level, a House P3 panel was told.

Seattle is planning to sell $146 million of revenue bonds on Tuesday to fund improvements to its wastewater system and refund outstanding bonds.

The director of the Internal Revenue Service's tax-exempt bond office will discuss new initiatives and updates at an audio webcast next week.

Recently released Treasury Department regulations that revise the standards practitioners follow when giving tax advice make the standards more flexible and less burdensome, bond lawyers said.

The Bond Dealers of America is urging the Securities and Exchange Commission to limit the scope of its continuing disclosure violation self-reporting program and the participation deadline by more than three months.

State general fund spending is increasing, although it continues to lag behind historical averages and revenue growth remains small in some states, according to a new report from the National Association of State Budget Officers.

Fenn Putman, former chair of the Public Securities Association and vice chair of the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board, passed away on Sunday, June 8, at age 80.

Ernesto “Ernie” Lanza is leaving his position as deputy executive director at the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board to join the Washington office of Greenberg Traurig.

House GOP leaders push ahead with a plan to fund highway projects for a year with savings realized by limited Saturday mail deliveries.

City attorneys should be aware of possible conflicts between the issuer they represent and its employees, financial advisors and counsel about whether to self-report that bond documents failed to disclose violations of a continuing disclosure agreement, regulators and lawyers warned Thursday.

Two U.S. senators have introduced a bill that give more rights to municipal employees in Chapter 9 bankruptcy proceedings, but experts warn the measure could lead to more litigation and raise Constitutional issues.

Carla A. Young, a former shareholder at Greenberg Traurig and Internal Revenue Service official, has joined Nixon Peabody as a tax partner in its public finance group.

Two more Ohio school districts have disclosed they are authorized to redeem BABs they issued in 2010 because of reduced subsidy payments due to sequestration.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board plans to soon unveil a new price discovery tool on EMMA that will allow investors to compare the prices and yields of municipal securities that share the same characteristics.