Washington

The Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service next year will be working on further guidance on issue price, regulations finalizing other proposed arbitrage rules, and additional rulemaking projects.

State and local governments are the underdogs in influence peddling in Congress mostly because they spend little to nothing on lobbyists, in contrast to the millions of dollars spent by the big securities, banking and investment groups.

Fairfax and Loudoun counties in Virginia formally closed on $600 million of federal loans for Silver Line rail project to Dulles Airport.

Muni bond issuers in Texas posted updated disclosures to correct previous omissions under the Securities and Exchange Commission's MCDC initiative.

Increasing interest in public-private transportation partnerships due to constraints from $3.6 trillion of state and local outstanding debt, Brookings Institution said.

Some non-dealer municipal advisors wrongly believe providing advice to an issuer in their capacity as a municipal advisors means they can also act as an intermediary between the issuer and investors.

As state and local governments struggled in the recession, debt grew faster than both revenues and expenditures, climbing 22% from $2.4 trillion in 2007 to $2.9 trillion in 2012.

The National Association of Municipal Advisors is urging the Securities and Exchange Commission to create exemptions from broker-dealer and investment adviser registration for MA firms engaged in activities understood to be normal municipal advisory services.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has fined two firms a total of $7,500 for violations of Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board rules, FINRA said in its monthly disciplinary report Monday.

New York's MTA seeks up to $300 million in federal funding for infrastructure improvements for the L subway line to account for a spike in ridership.

The House late Thursday passed a spending bill known as the "cromnibus" that would fund most federal government agencies through the end of the federal fiscal year.

The Cherokee County School System is negotiating with the Internal Revenue Service to settle a tax dispute, after an IRS agent contended in an audit of 2007 bonds that there was an arbitrage problem.

Members of Congress unveiled a fiscal 2015 spending bill late Tuesday, but some provisions tucked into the measure were drawing opposition.

A report released Tuesday by Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., recommends that Congress should eliminate the tax exemption for municipal bonds.

Dealers said the MSRB's proposal to extend gifts and gratuities regulation to municipal advisors should be reworked to establish uniform recordkeeping requirements for both dealer and non-dealer firms, while a major non-dealer firm said the proposal should be an opportunity to fix a gap in the existing rule.

Governments should invest $163 billion a year in infrastructure to keep pace with growing transportation needs, new study finds.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has approved the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board's proposal to require muni dealers to seek the most favorable price possible when executing transactions for most investors.

Maryland will delay bidding for two months on its $2.45 billion Purple Line P3 project so new governor can review.

Transportation infrastructure construction will grow slightly faster than the rest of the economy in 2015, according to highway construction group.

Municipal issuers' financial challenges are preventing them from issuing more bonds to take advantage of low interest rates, Virginia Treasurer Manju Ganeriwala said here on Thursday.