Washington

U.S. cities have significant long-term liabilities other than pensions that warrant attention, Merritt Research Services president and chief executive officer Richard Ciccarone argues in a report.

The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association announced that it has developed model sophisticated municipal market professional, or SMMP, documentation to allow firms to comply with muni rules when dealing with investors who need less regulatory protection.

Washington's Multicare Health System received AA-minus ratings with a stable outlook from two rating agencies ahead of plans to price $88 million of new money and a $274 million refunding bonds.

The Department of Transportation is soliciting applications from public entities for $500 million of grants to help finance transportation projects across the country and will hold the first of four webinars on the application process on Wednesday.

The Internal Revenue Service has granted a school district that experienced "financial distress" a roughly 16-month extension to spend the proceeds of its qualified school construction bonds.

The federal government will run out of money for transportation and other infrastructure projects in late July or August, roughly two months later than expected, Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said Thursday.

The municipal advisory business has exploded over the past 30 years, as economic, regulatory, and technological developments have combined to create a bigger business that is increasingly dominated by firms focused mostly on MA services.

The American Public Power Association has told the Treasury Department that it supports proposals in President Obama's fiscal 2016 budget that would simplify federal tax law pertaining to municipal bonds and would like the department to take further efforts to simplify private business use rules.

The municipal bond market will have an ally in the top echelon of Senate leadership if Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., becomes the Senate Democratic leader in 2017, as is widely expected, tax and municipal bond experts said.

The Internal Revenue Service has determined that multifamily housing revenue bonds issued by the Tulsa County Industrial Authority in 2003 are taxable, but it is unclear to what extent bondholders will be affected by the Service's conclusion.

Indian River County, Fla., Tuesday filed a lawsuit asking a federal judge to block the issuance of $1.75 billion in private activity bonds for the All Aboard Florida private train project.

Airport capital spending will rise over next five years to meet growing passenger demand, Moody's says.

President Obama's proposed six-year transportation bill would give states more flexibility in tolling of existing roads and bridges.

Congress should eliminate the state and local tax deduction and offset the deduction's removal with a reduction in marginal tax rates, a report from The Heritage Foundation argued.

A Republican congressman said Tuesday he is concerned that the Securities and Exchange Commission's approach to municipal market enforcement risks creating an environment where only big players will get a seat at the table.

Municipalities in fiscal crisis faced diminished abilities to manage federal grants because of workforce reductions, decreased financial capacities and outdated information technologies, the U.S. Government Accountability Office concluded in a report.

A subsea traffic tunnel below Chesapeake Bay has been pushed ahead to take advantage of low interest rates.

A House bill would stop federal funding for public transit and bike paths to protect solvency of the Highway Trust Fund.

Lawmakers are concerned about the Securities and Exchange Commission's extensive use of administrative proceedings to enforce securities laws in the wake of the Dodd-Frank Act, a trend that has not extended to municipal cases.

Ports on the West Coast are recovering from the cargo backup that developed during a recent labor dispute and are turning their attention to long-term strategic threats from ports in other regions.