Washington

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is challenging in federal court the Environmental Protection Agency's ability to regulate greenhouse gas emissions under the federal Clean Air Act.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has fined three firms $242,500 for municipal rules violations. They include $150,000 against Raymond James Financial Services for supervisory failures related to so-called 529 college savings plans it sold to clients.

For the second straight quarter a Federal Reserve Board survey suggested that the ultraconservative credit standards and loan terms put in place immediately after the crisis are beginning to thaw — though banks are still very tentative.

The Securities and Exchange Commission late Friday approved a controversial set of rule changes floated by the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board that will dictate the priority of retail and other customer orders in primary offerings, as well as dealers' related record-keeping responsibilities.

WASHINGTON — Martin Kanefsky is the second broker of muni investment agreements that the Justice Department has taken action against, after CDR Financial Products, which the government indicted in October on nine criminal counts over alleged bid-rigging of muni investment and derivatives contracts.

Many states will have to revisit their fiscal 2011 budgets and may have to rearrange their spending plans due to gaps between what they expected and what they actually receive from a six-month extension of extra federal Medicaid funding.

ALAMEDA, Calif. — Issuers in the Far West sold $43.36 billion of municipal bonds in 672 transactions during the first six months of 2010, according to Thomson Reuters, down from $47.12 billion in 600 transactions in the first half of 2009.

WASHINGTON — Two medical groups have asked the Internal Revenue Service to allow hospitals to be flexible when conducting the community health needs assessments required under the health care reform law.

WASHINGTON — Fitch Ratings this week released expanded global criteria that its analysts will use to evaluate debt secured by tolled facilities such as roads, bridges, and tunnels.

WASHINGTON — Dealers are urging regulators not to impose fees on them to help fund the Governmental Accounting Standards Board until after a congressional watchdog agency completes a study of the standards setter.

A direct feed of the reset information for auction-rate securities and variable-rate demand obligations that dealers submit to the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board will cost $10,000 annually if the Securities and Exchange Commission signs off on a proposal submitted by the board Tuesday.

The Internal Revenue Service has initiated an audit of $21.8 million of tax refunding bonds issued in 2005 by the Uvalde, Tex., Consolidated School District.

House members Tuesday sent to President Obama a $26.1 billion measure that would extend but gradually phase out higher federal Medicaid payments to states through June 30 and provide $10 billion to local school districts to prevent layoffs.

WASHINGTON — Since the beginning of the year, Wall Street firms, trade associations, and municipal bond issuers have significantly stepped up their lobbying efforts to get lawmakers to extend the Build America Bonds program before it expires at the end of December.

WASHINGTON — Four major municipal market groups are urging the Treasury Department to issue guidance confirming that the existing regulatory framework on issue price for tax-exempt bonds also applies to Build America Bonds and stating that if issuers follow certain long-standing practices, they can be confident they are complying with the rules in this area.

ALAMEDA, Calif. — A year and a half after Seattle-area voters approved a sales tax hike to finance $18 billion in mass transit projects, a quarter of that amount has evaporated due to reduced economic activity.

A federal judge in Birmingham last week denied motions filed by two former JPMorgan bankers to dismiss a Securities and Exchange Commission suit that alleges they committed securities fraud in connection with municipal bond and swap transactions with Jefferson County, Ala.

The American Bar Association’s taxation section has sent the Treasury Department several suggestions it contends would simplify and make more flexible interim guidance for issuers, bondholders, and other market participants that want to strip the tax credits from tax-credit bonds.

WASHINGTON — Despite recent headlines warning that deteriorating state and local finances will lead to bond defaults, a Treasury Department advisory committee has determined the municipal market “appears to be in reasonably good condition.”

WASHINGTON — The Senate yesterday voted 61 to 39 to approve a $26 billion measure that would extend but phase out increased federal Medicaid payments to states through June 30 and give $10 billion to local school districts to prevent layoffs.