Washington

Michigan Democrat Rep. John Conyers has introduced legislation that would make it much harder for municipalities to restructure their debt through bankruptcy.

Congress needs to preserve the tax exemption of municipal bonds if it's serious about supporting infrastructure, National Governors Association vice president and Utah Gov. Gary Herbert said.

MBTA completes its funding for a $2.3 billion light rail project in Boston with a $996 million federal grant.

The Internal Revenue Service has closed a targeted audit of Philadelphia's series 2010A water and wastewater revenue refunding bonds without making any changes to the bonds' tax-exempt status.

Experts expect a busy enforcement year in the municipal market.

Market participants can expect increased municipal securities enforcement during 2015, a year that may bring resolution of the Securities and Exchange Commission's self-reporting initiative as well as greater emphasis on individual liability and secondary market disclosures.

A lawsuit challenging the Securities and Exchange Commission's investment adviser pay-to-play rule is moving forward in a D.C. federal appeals court, with implications for muni market pay-to-play restrictions hanging in the balance.

Missouri's proposed $2 billion upgrade of I-70 could be funded by tolling the 200-mile link between Kansas City and St. Louis.

Market participants forecast the regulatory agenda

This year will bring more municipal advisor and secondary market transparency regulation, while a newly Republican-controlled Senate could lead Congress to scrutinize and possibly ease existing laws and rules.

Lack of action on federal transportation funding means growth in states' use of public-private partnerships to build, fund, and operate large projects.

The Central Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority in Washington received a negative outlook from Standard & Poor's on its outstanding "parity" lien obligations, but the authority, known as Sound Transit, retained its AAA rating.

States on the whole will see a slight increase in their new capacity to issue private-activity bonds in 2015.

Congress is facing a big challenge in 2015 in reaching agreement on how to pay for transportation infrastructure spending.

Short-term extensions of federal transportation spending are likely to continue through 2015 as lawmakers struggle with a gasoline tax that can't pay the bills.

Credit rating agencies have made strides in implementing mandatory reforms, the SEC said in recent reports that found the raters also need to improve in several areas, including the way they handle conflicts of interest.

Washington's Performance Management Program has saved the state millions of dollars, according to a report from Gov. Jay Inslee's office.

2015 will bring a new Congress, with Republican majorities in both the House and the Senate and two new chairmen of the tax-writing committees.

Tax reform, particularly corporate tax reform, is likely to be on the agenda in 2015, congressional observers said.

Market participants discuss the outlook for tax regulation in 2015.