Washington

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.

The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association is seeking a legislative fix to the municipal advisor rule so that it is less burdensome for bank and broker-dealer firms, executives of a broker-dealer group said Thursday.

The House on Wednesday passed a bill that would extend through the end of the year expired tax provisions known as "extenders," several of which relate to bonds, state and local taxes and Puerto Rico.

Total tax-exempt and taxable municipal bond issuance in 2015 is expected to edge up to $357.5 billion, an increase of more than 2.7% from the $348.1 billion forecast for this year, according to respondents of an industry survey.

Securities and Exchange Commission member Daniel Gallagher wants more action on pension accounting and more staff devoted to the municipal market.

The Internal Revenue Service is auditing bonds issued by the East Bay Municipal Utility District in 2003 and 2005.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board and Financial Industry Regulatory Authority will host a joint educational webinar on rule proposals that would require dealers acting as principals to disclose to customers on their confirmations a "reference price" of the same security traded that same day.

Prince George's County, Md., signed 30-year P3 pact with Corvias for management of storm water runoff into Chesapeake Bay.

The International Municipal Lawyers Association has filed a friend of the court brief asking a federal appeals court to reconsider its decision to disregard a qualified immunity defense for Miami, Fla.'s former budget director, warning that allowing the Securities and Exchange Commission lawsuit against him to go forward would negatively affect municipalities everywhere.

Northern Virginia Transportation Authority will sell $69 million of revenue bonds to finance regional transportation infrastructure.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has unanimously approved new rules to require self-regulatory organizations and alternative trading systems to strengthen their defenses against technological failures.