Washington

WASHINGTON - The Senate Banking Committee unanimously approved two nominees to the Securities and Exchange Commission Thursday, clearing them for a confirmation vote by the full Senate.

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on Thursday voted unanimously to extend federal highway aid for four months to Jan. 31 at current spending levels.

WASHINGTON - State and local government groups have combined forces with dealers, bond lawyers and representatives from energy, education and other sectors to deliver a strong message to the joint congressional deficit-reduction committee: hands off our tax-exempt financing.

Responding to criticism from market participants, the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board retooled a controversial portion of a proposed rule on broker's brokers, and floated the revised version Thursday for another round of comments.

WASHINGTON - Fitch Ratings says the United States is downshifting just as President Obama is expected to include transportation spending as a major part of the job creation program he will present to Congress Thursday night.

The Internal Revenue Service has completed an audit of $60 million of hospital revenue bonds issued in 2002 by Lakeland, Fla., finding no change to the bonds’ tax-exempt status.

WASHINGTON - Local school districts face renewed budget pressure as states cut back spending, forcing local governments to weigh tax increases and layoffs, the Center on Budget Policy Priorities said in a recent report.

WASHINGTON - A working group of independent financial advisors is close to finalizing a preliminary outline of topics for the first-ever municipal advisor exam, which will be administered by the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board, sources said.

WASHINGTON - State tax revenues continued to rebound in the second quarter but stock market volatility combined with recession jitters in August could affect tax collections in the third quarter, the Rockefeller Institute said Thursday.

The Office of Management and Budget reported Thursday that the federal deficit is expected to be $1.32 trillion in fiscal 2011, down $329 billion from its February estimate, while it projected the unemployment rate could be 9.0% by the end of 2012, based on its mid-session review of President Obama's fiscal 2012 budget.

An industry group and a consumer group have urged the Securities and Exchange Commission to revise proposed rules governing transactions between swap dealers and customers, arguing the proposal either goes too far and would weaken key issuer protections, or does not go far enough to protect dealers.

President Obama Wednesday, eager to prevent another political showdown over expiring legislation, called on Congress to quickly renew the surface transportation law that expires at the end of September.

WASHINGTON - Broker-dealer groups blasted a Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board proposal to collect an annual $300-per-person fee from municipal advisors, saying the assessment would penalize dealers and dealer FAs who already bear the brunt of funding the board's operations.

House Republicans, eager to jump-start job-creation efforts after the debt-ceiling battle, are eyeing a top reform priority among state and local government groups as part of their plans.

WASHINGTON - With a nod to recent guidance from the tax-exempt community's accounting rulemaker, a bond attorneys' group has pulled contentious public pension-disclosure language from its most recent proposal, according to a draft of the group's pension-disclosure guidance circulated earlier this month.

The Obama administration is bringing back to Washington a key advocate for the Build America Bond program to help strategize the president's job-creation initiatives.

Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., said Thursday he will introduce legislation when Congress reconvenes to establish a Social Security tax for high-earning workers, hoping to buffer the entitlement program from benefits cuts.

WASHINGTON — Five states — California, Texas, Florida, New York and Pennsylvania — accounted for 40% of the continuing disclosures filed with the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board since July 2009, according to a report released Thursday.

The federal budget deficit can be brought down if Congress follows through with mandated spending cuts and policy changes envisioned in current law — such as the expiration of Bush-era tax cuts — the Congressional Budget Office said Wednesday.

WASHINGTON — Municipal advisors would have to determine whether transactions or products are suitable for conduit borrowers under a proposal the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission Wednesday.