Washington

SAN FRANCISCO — Washington Treasurer James McIntire announced a "Buy Washington Bonds" program Friday that will result in the state's first negotiated tax-exempt bond sale in decades.

WASHINGTON — The Governmental Accounting Standards Board unveiled a pension accounting and reporting proposal Friday that would fundamentally alter how cash-strapped states and localities report pension liabilities and pose challenges for them.

WASHINGTON — The House Transportation Committee chairman said Thursday he wants bond provisions in a bill he plans to introduce that would fund highway and transit programs for six years.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission voted unanimously Thursday to approve a final rule that would significantly expand its powers to police fraud and manipulation in the swaps market.

WASHINGTON - JPMorgan Chase & Co. has agreed to pay $228 million to settle criminal and civil charges stemming from former employees' fraudulent bid-rigging of at least 141 municipal bond-related reinvestment contracts involving state and local issuers and conduit borrowers in at least 31 states over eight years.

Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire announced she has formed a task force this week to develop a 10-year investing and funding plan for the state's transportation system.

Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Dan Coats, R-Ind., are urging President Obama and congressional leaders to agree to include in their debt-reduction plan an agreement to enact comprehensive tax-reform legislation before the end of the year.

Leaders of the House and Senate transportation committees are preparing two significantly different bills to reauthorize highway and transit programs after the current law expires on Sept. 30.

Efforts to extend and expand stimulus law provisions for qualified zone academy bonds and qualified school construction bonds would get a boost under a bill recently introduced by Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y.

Jessica Giroux, formerly with the office of New York state Sen. James Alesi, has joined the Bond Dealers of America as a vice president.

Unregistered municipal advisers will be referred to regulators for investigation and possible disciplinary action, the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board warned Tuesday.

WASHINGTON - Conduit issuers and borrowers are stepping up their efforts to counter calls in Washington for the elimination of tax-exemption for municipal bonds.

WASHINGTON - The Securities and Exchange Commission may appeal a recent federal court decision tossing out an auction-rate securities case the agency brought against Memphis-based Morgan Keegan & Co.

SAN FRANCISCO — Washington plans to reimpose tolls on the busy Seattle-area State Route 520 floating bridge to back almost $2 billion of bonds that will be issued to finance its replacement.

WASHINGTON - Market participants and industry groups forged a tentative consensus around pension-disclosure guidance floated last month by the National Association of Bond Lawyers, with analysts and issuers overcoming initial reluctance to embrace the plan.

WASHINGTON - The Securities and Exchange Commission voted unanimously Wednesday to propose new rules governing transactions between swap dealers and customers, including state and local governments.

The Crystal City, Tex., Public Facilities Corp. has received an adverse tax determination notice from the Internal Revenue Service for $14 million of bonds issued in 2003 for a prison.

Former New York Lieut. Gov. Richard Ravitch and former Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker are forming a task force to analyze states' budgets with the goal of helping governments put in place stronger, long-term budget practices.

WASHINGTON — Broker-dealers criticized a proposed Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board rule, saying it would subject them to tougher rules than those that apply to municipal advisers who practice on their own or in independent firms.

Congressional Democrats on Friday called for limits on tax deductions as a way to reduce the deficit and also pushed for the Build America Bond program to be reinstated.