Washington

Broker-dealer firms can do more to manage conflicts of interest in their businesses, including by taking steps to deal more transparently with retail investors, according to a report published by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.

Regulators warned brokers at a Bond Dealers of America conference not to play loose with municipal securities rules, and asked them to report competitors they suspect.

Leaders of financial groups and Treasury Secretary Jack Lew warned Thursday that brinkmanship over the debt limit is already hurting the financial markets and that a default would have catastrophic impacts domestically and globally, making it harder to deal with long-term U.S. debt issues.

Municipalities continue to suffer from the lingering effects of the economic downturn, though local and regional economies are improving and tax bases are gaining strength, the National League of Cities says in a new report.

The National Association of State Treasurers elected officers for 2014 and adopted several bond-related resolutions, during an annual business meeting at its conference here on Monday.

District of Columbia Mayor Vincent Gray is demanding a meeting with President Obama, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, citing a potential loss of municipal services and funding from the federal government shutdown that began Oct. 1.

Dealer groups are urging the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board to use restraint in developing a best execution rule for the municipal market, warning that a "trade-by-trade" mandate is not feasible and pushing for their own alternative standard.

St. Louis-based broker-dealer L.J. Hart & Co. was censured and paid a $200,000 fine to settle FINRA charges that it improperly gave more than $183,000 in sports tickets to issuer clients

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board has withdrawn its proposal to loosen the standard of independence for public board members, citing "unexpected opposition."

A short-term federal government shutdown will have minimal impact on issuers, though some areas with a significant federal presence like Washington D.C. may see some lost economic activity, ratings agencies said.

A default would be unprecedented and would have the potential to be catastrophic, the Treasury Department warns in a paper issued Thursday.

The Internal Revenue Service has either resolved tax issues or closed audits with no changes to bonds in New Jersey, Louisiana, and Nassau County, N.Y., according to event notices filed on the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board's EMMA system.

The board of Mercer Island School District in the Seattle area approved a $100 million bond election for school construction and expansion.

The American College of Bond Counsel re-elected its officers at a meeting in Chicago.

Broker-dealers are concerned about the exemptions provided for underwriters in the Securities and Exchange Commission's municipal advisor registration rule, saying it hampers their ability to "pitch ideas" to issuers.

California will try to revive residential Property Assessed Clean Energy by setting up a reserve fund that would reimburse Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for any losses incurred from PACE liens.

The National Association of Bond Lawyers is working on projects aimed at shedding more light on the varying strength of general obligation bond pledges, as well post-issuance tax and disclosure compliance, NABL president-elect Allen Robertson said in a recent interview.

Elaine Greenberg, former chief of the Securities and Exchange Commission's municipal securities and public pensions enforcement unit, has joined the Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP's office here, the firm announced Monday.

The Nebraska Public Power District has agreed to pay $350,000 to the Internal Revenue Service to settle a tax law dispute regarding $50.36 million of Build America Bonds it issued in 2009.