Washington

WASHINGTON — The $1.2 trillion continuing resolution the House approved Wednesday to keep federal agencies and programs funded through the end of the fiscal year on Sept. 30 would increase funding for financial regulators and extend transportation and aviation funding as well as nuclear loan guarantees.

WASHINGTON — The new slate of House Republicans picked to preside over financial services staked out an ambitious set of policy goals Thursday, saying they intend to downsize or dismantle the government mandates supported by their Democratic predecessors.

Supporters of Build America Bonds lobbied hard Wednesday to convince lawmakers and administration officials to extend the program for another year as it appeared possible that any compromise tax legislation might not contain any municipal bond-related provisions.

The Justice Department has filed a new indictment against CDR Financial Products and three current and former officials that expands on some of the original October 2009 charges against them to include so-called honest services fraud — a criminal statute that survived a Supreme Court challenge earlier this year and is often used to prosecute wrongdoing by public officials.

Two bipartisan groups are pressing federal lawmakers and the president to get cracking on a solution to the funding crisis troubling the nation's transportation sector. They warned that Congress needs to find a new revenue source instead of leaning on proposals for a national infrastructure bank or increased privatization.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board is initiating a study of the municipal market with an emphasis on pre-transaction pricing efficiency and liquidity, Securities and Exchange Commission member Elisse Walter announced Tuesday.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch agreed to pay more than $137 million, as well as to take remedial steps, in unprecedented enforcement actions announced Tuesday to settle charges from four regulators.

Rep. Spencer Bachus was formally selected by the Republican Steering Committee on Tuesday to serve as chairman of the House Financial Services Committee next year, beating back a challenge from Rep. Ed Royce, R-Calif.

While federal lawmakers are nearing a compromise on tax legislation that would extend many expired and expiring tax provisions as well as the Bush-era tax cuts, it is not certain the measure will continue the popular Build America Bond program, sources said.

WASHINGTON — The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board plans to propose a draft pay-to-play rule for municipal advisers by the end of the month that will mirror existing political contribution restrictions imposed on dealers under its Rule G-37, chairman Michael Bartolotta told reporters in a conference call Monday morning.

WASHINGTON — The president’s deficit reduction commission Friday voted 11 to 7, failing to get a supermajority to move forward with its report.

The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association has upped the ante in its dispute with the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board over the self-regulator’s proposal to nearly double the fees it collects from dealers, warning that the MSRB must do a better job of explaining the need for the increase.

WASHINGTON — House members voted 234 to 188 Thursday for a bill that would extend lower- and middle-income tax cuts and make permanent two school bond-related provisions that were adopted in 2001 but are set to expire this year.

WASHINGTON — The Securities and Exchange Commission has hired two attorney-fellows to double the staff in its office of municipal securities, but efforts to comply with a congressional mandate to heighten the office’s stature so it directly reports to the chairman is being stymied by short-term budget stopgaps, sources said.

WASHINGTON — Three key Republicans in the House of Representatives introduced a bill Thursday that would impose punitive action on any state or locality with a public pension fund that fails to file annual reports to the U.S. Treasury Department that adhere to a uniform set of accounting standards.

WASHINGTON — Raymond Scheppach, longtime executive director of the National Governors Association, announced Thursday that he will leave the group early next year to become a professor of public policy at the University of Virginia’s Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy and senior fellow for economic policy at its Miller Center of Public Affairs.

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service is auditing $147.5 million of auction-rate securities issued by the New Mexico Hospital Equipment Loan Council on behalf of the nonprofit Presbyterian Healthcare Service in 2004 and refunded in 2008.

WASHINGTON — State revenue growth will not bounce back to pre-recession levels until 2013 or 2014, according to new data released Wednesday by the National Governors Association and the National Association of State Budget Officers.

WASHINGTON ­— The central issue for Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board members gathered for a special meeting Thursday and Friday at their Alexandria, Va., headquarters is how the self-regulator will oversee municipal advisers.

WASHINGTON — Municipal market participants warned Wednesday that they would fight any attempts by Congress or the administration to do away with tax-exempt interest for all new municipal bonds.