Washington

The District of Columbia issued $103 million of tax-exempt bonds this week to help finance construction of the first national museum dedicated to telling the story of law enforcement in America.

Two Republican state committees that challenged the constitutionality of a Securities and Exchange Commission political contributions rule are insisting the SEC reject a Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board proposal to extend pay-to-play prohibitions to municipal advisors.

Richard Ravitch, James Spiotto and Lois Scott are among the municipal leaders who've started an advocacy group to help local governments face what it describes as the "uncertain future" of public pension plans.

A King County, Wash. Superior Court judge has struck down a voter-approved ballot measure that would have lowered taxes unless the legislature adopted a new constitutional amendment giving more control of tax increases to voters.

A House panel hearing on a federal oversight board for Puerto Rico has been rescheduled to Feb. 2 as a Republican governor is arguing against a Super Chapter 9 solution for the commonwealth but not ruling out bankruptcy protections for the territory's public authorities.

The Association of Financial Guaranty Insurers is urging House and Senate leaders to pursue federal oversight of Puerto Rico but avoid bankruptcy access for the commonwealth.

Virginia planners determine that express toll lanes on Interstate 66 is best way to cut travel times.

Dealer and advisor groups want revisions to a Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board proposal to extend pay-to-play prohibitions to non-dealer municipal advisors.

South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley asked lawmakers to raise the state's gasoline tax and cut the income tax rate.

The Internal Revenue Service appears is stepping up its audit of $80 million of Arborwood Community Development District's 2006 bonds and appears to be focusing in part on the Florida CDD's board and land that may have been purchased at too high of a price.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board plans to discuss bank loans and dealer disclosure of markups to retail customers during its board meeting here next week.

Aging and underfunded infrastructure is the greatest challenge for mayors, according to a survey sponsored by the U.S. Conference of Mayors and The Boston University Initiative and supported by Citi.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board announced on Tuesday which registered brokers, dealers, and municipal advisors will be required to participate in testing business continuity and disaster recovery plans.

States can begin expending their share of the $39.7 billion of federal transportation funding provided in fiscal 2016 by the new FAST Act.

Only Congress can take the necessary steps to fully resolve Puerto Rico's debt crisis, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said in a letter to congressional leadership on Friday.

A Securities and Exchange Commission proposal designed to bolster liquidity risk management among open-end funds would likely reduce the funds' appetite for municipal securities and deter infrastructure projects, the Government Finance Officers Association warned.

Capital needs are rising in the public transportation sector as aging infrastructure must be repaired or replaced, S&P says.

Washington state will issue $673 million of highly rated general obligation bonds next week.

Omnibus federal budget law revives more than $2 billion of unexpended state road earmarks for new use.

Public pension fund advisors are among a handful of new examination priorities for the Securities and Exchange Commission in 2016.