Washington

WASHINGTON — The Internal ­Revenue Service is seeking public comment on existing regulations that outline how bond attorneys should practice ­before it.

WASHINGTON — Despite a renewed push this month for a national infrastructure bank, market participants are at odds over such basic issues as how it would be funded and structured and what projects should receive its help.

WASHINGTON — The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority is considering options to trim the new $3.83 billion estimated cost of the Metrorail extension project’s second phase in order to reduce the amount of debt that will be needed.

WASHINGTON — Michael Bartolotta, vice chairman of First Southwest Co., a dealer financial advisory and underwriting firm, has been elected the new chairman of the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board beginning Oct. 1, drawing concerns from non-dealer advisers that will fall under the board’s regulatory regime at the start of his term.

WASHINGTON — Senate Finance Committee chairman Max Baucus on Thursday proposed to extend the Build America Bonds program for only one year in legislation he unveiled that would extend several expiring or expired bond and tax provisions.

A high-ranking Securities and Exchange Commission ­enforcement official warned Tuesday that issuers risk running afoul of the federal securities laws if they hide materially important information deep within bond-offering documents.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board issued a notice Wednesday making clear that it will not begin registration and rulemaking activities for non-dealer municipal advisers until after Oct. 1, as required by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has fined UBS Financial Services Inc., Wells Fargo Securities LLC, and two other firms a total of $50,500 for violating municipal trade, pricing and supervisory rules.

The top Republican on a House Financial Services Committee panel on Wednesday applauded the decision by the Federal Housing Finance Agency to block PACE energy programs nationwide.

WASHINGTON — Several derivatives market participants attending a federal roundtable here were supportive of a lag in the reporting of large or “block” over-the-counter derivative transactions that can move the market, but they were not sure how much of a delay would be reasonable.

WASHINGTON — Market participants are concerned that issuers of draw-down bonds with tax benefits provided by temporary stimulus provisions could lose some benefits if the provisions expire at the end of the year as scheduled.

Washington will sell $786 million in general obligation bonds Wednesday in a deal that has grown nearly a quarter in response to market hunger for tax-exempt paper.

WASHINGTON — Market participants attending a federal roundtable here Tuesday are expected to raise concerns about price reporting requirements for dealer counterparties to municipal swaps that will be proposed in coming months by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

The Internal Revenue Service has published a list of answers to frequently asked questions about new tax-credit bond programs.

WASHINGTON — The Washington Suburban Sanitary District of Maryland expects Tuesday to competitively price $240 million of public improvement bonds to modernize its aging sewer system for 1.8 million customers in Montgomery and Prince George’s counties.

WASHINGTON — Douglas Lee Campbell, a former senior vice president and marketer in Bank of America’s municipal derivatives group, pleaded guilty Thursday to three criminal counts for engaging in bid-rigging and fraud conspiracies connected with guaranteed investment contract and other municipal finance agreements.

WASHINGTON — Five airports will receive a total of $9 million in unexpected grants from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act because of lower-than-expected bids on other airports’ stimulus projects.

WASHINGTON — The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board has issued draft guidance warning broker’s brokers of their obligations under its rules following recent enforcement actions by the Securities Exchange Commission and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority alleging rule violations.

WASHINGTON — The Cinco Municipal Utility District No. 1 near Houston announced that the Internal Revenue Service has closed an audit of $5.2 million of revenue bonds it issued with no change to their tax-exempt status.

WASHINGTON — Federal lawmakers return to work next week, but market participants warn it is unlikely they will take action on proposals to ­extend expiring tax programs like Build America Bonds or extend income tax cuts for the middle class before the November ­elections.