Washington

Moody's Investors Service ratings will be available on the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board's EMMA website later this year, ending the rating agency's long holdout from the site.

Circumstances have changed and a different approach to Puerto Rico debt is warranted.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has approved the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board's proposal to create baseline standards of professional qualification for municipal advisors.

Standard & Poor's raised its long-term rating to AA-minus from A-plus on Kelso, Wash.'s 2008 general obligation bonds.

New York City public advocate Letitia James has filed a friend of the court brief in support of the Securities and Exchange Commission's pay-to-play restriction on investment advisers, which is under attack in a lawsuit filed by two state Republican parties last year.

Legislation that would allow government-owned corporations in Puerto Rico to reorganize through Chapter 9 may face an uphill battle after drawing a lukewarm reception from Republicans on a House panel Thursday.

Almost 300 House Democrats and Republicans joined in a letter pushing for passage of a long-term highway bill by May 31.

The SEC concluded without charges an investigation it launched into Bell, Calif.'s bond debt in 2010 after fraud perpetuated on the city by the former administration came to light.

The Securities and Exchange Commission is still seeking a leader for its Office of Municipal Securities, and is keeping its search open until next month.

Public policy scholar Dall Forsythe will join the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board as a public member to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Robert Fippinger, who is becoming the MSRB's chief legal officer.

Recent trends in the public pension arena "are not all gloom and doom," as most cities' pension funding ratios appear to have stabilized since the low point in 2010, Merritt Research Services said in a recent report.

The debate over the appropriate amount of public funding for professional sports facilities has been reignited in part because of growing revenue in the sports market, according to a report from Wells Fargo Securities.

Standard & Poor's placed Samaritan Healthcare's BBB-plus long-term rating and underlying rating on credit watch with negative implications after the Washington state healthcare provider failed to provide timely information.

Securities and Exchange Commission officials are seeking changes to practices in the municipal market and more stringent actions to enforce rules protecting investors.

Jessica Giroux has been promoted to general counsel of the Bond Dealers of America, assuming the number two position in the middle-market dealer group.

An agreement on staffing a new customs facility in Detroit removes the final roadblock to a $3.3 billion P3 bridge project.

A House panel will hold a hearing Feb. 26 on legislation that would allow Puerto Rico government-owned corporations to restructure their debts under Chapter 9 of the Federal Bankruptcy Code.

Robert Fippinger, senior counsel at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe and a Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board director since 2010, plans to join the MSRB as its chief legal officer on March 3, the board announced. Michael Post has been promoted to general counsel for regulatory affairs.

Connecticut governor proposes 30-year, $100 billion transportation program to modernize state's highway and transit infrastructure.

Municipal advisors remain concerned about one of the key provisions of the Securities and Exchange Commission's municipal advisor registration rule, although communications between issuers and underwriters remain robust nearly eight months after the final effectiveness of the rule.