Washington

Gas taxes rose in Maryland and Washington with the beginning of fiscal 2017, while they dropped in three other states.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board is asking the Securities and Exchange Commission to approve rule changes that would create a new academic trade product with anonymous dealer identifiers that has proved somewhat controversial.

Revenue estimates for the District of Columbia's fiscal 2016-2020 budget and capital plan remain nearly unchanged from the district's February estimate, D.C.'s chief financial officer said this week.

Virginia is seeking a $200 million federal grant to help fund its $1.4 billion Atlantic Gateway mobility effort.

The Senate is poised to pass the Puerto Rico rescue bill after clearing what many say was the final hurdle for the legislation on Wednesday morning, invoking cloture by a vote of 68 to 32.

Treasury Secretary Jack Lew added to the pressure for quick passage of a Puerto Rico rescue bill in a letter to the Senate leadership on Monday, even as some public finance professionals maintain the bill is unnecessary and could be harmful for the commonwealth.

The House GOP blueprint for tax reform released Friday sparked mixed reactions in Congress, with leading Democrats criticizing its lack of detail and Republicans lauding its proposed pro-growth efforts through limits on deductions, exclusions and credits in the current tax code.

The District of Columbia submitted its enacted $13.4 billion fiscal 2017 budget and 2017-2020 capital plan to Congress and President Obama Wednesday, defying Republican legislation that would curtail any such action without congressional approval.

No single individual played a more critical role in defending the authority of cities, counties, and states to issue state and municipal debt.

The Senate Appropriations Committee on Thursday approved a fiscal 2017 appropriations bill that would maintain current funding levels for both the Internal Revenue Service and Securities and Exchange Commission as well as increase federal funding for the District of Columbia.

The full Senate is expected to take up the Puerto Rico bill passed by the House and vote on it before the end of the month or in early July.

Road projects in Illinois are imperiled by lawmakers' failure to reach accord with Gov. Bruce Rauner on fiscal 2017 state budget.

The House Appropriations Committee on Thursday approved a fiscal 2017 appropriations bill that would reduce funds for the Internal Revenue Service, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the District of Columbia.

The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association is urging the Securities and Exchange Commission to amend its Rule 15c2-12 on municipal bond disclosure and provide more guidance in this area.

South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley gave her assent to a bill authorizing $2.3 billion of revenue bonds for highway projects.

The Internal Revenue Service should do more targeted than random audits to reduce burdens on issuers and improve compliance amidst strained resources and staff, an advisory panel recommended.

The full House is expected to vote today on a bill designed to help Puerto Rico after the House Rules Committee set the table for the bill's consideration during a lengthy hearing that stretched into Wednesday night.

Voters in Wake County, N.C., will decide in November whether to approve a 0.5% increase in the local sales tax to fund a 10-year, $2.39 billion transit plan to reduce highway congestion in the Raleigh area.

The U.S. Department of Transportation has received 585 applications seeking $9.3 billion of Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grants – almost 19 times more than the $500 that is to be awarded later this year.

Lawyers with Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe are concerned about a ruling by a federal appeals court last week that found a constitutional challenge to the Securities and Exchange Commission's use of administrative proceedings to impose penalties in enforcement cases could not move forward until the proceedings end.