Wisconsin

CHICAGO — Wisconsin will take competitive bids Tuesday on $212 million of new-money general obligation bonds as it tees up two revenue bond refundings to take advantage of the rise in bond prices.

CHICAGO – Janesville, Wis.-based Mercy Alliance Inc. will issue $172 million of new-money and refunding bonds Wednesday in a deal that will shed floating-rate risk in the hospital's debt portfolio.

Gov. Scott Walker’s administration last week released revenue projections showing Wisconsin is on track to close out the current fiscal biennium with a $154 million balance.

Milwaukee’s recent downgrade by Moody’s Investors Service became a campaign issue last week when Mayor Tom Barrett, who hopes to unseat Gov. Scott Walker in an upcoming recall election, blamed Walker for the action.

CHICAGO — Milwaukee will enter the market Wednesday with a new comptroller at the helm, with a mix of about $225 million of new-money and refunding bonds and cash-flow borrowing.

The sales tax imposed in 1996 in the Milwaukee region to cover the public share of the Milwaukee Brewers’ ballpark may no longer be needed as soon as 2017, according to a new report.

CHICAGO — Milwaukee city and county voters chose new comptrollers last week, while those in a tornado-ravaged Missouri city approved bonding for school building projects, and St. Louis County voters approved new debt for courthouse projects.

Moody’s Investors Service raised its rating to Baa1 from Baa2 on Wheaton Franciscan Services in recognition of several years of improved operations at the Wisconsin hospital and the strong results expected this year.

CHICAGO — Rating pressures on five Wisconsin school districts involved in a now-worthless $200 million investment product eased on Monday when Moody's Investors Service labeled as a credit positive their partial settlement of a lawsuit against the firms that advised and arranged the deal.

Moody’s Investors Service has downgraded the Columbus School District one notch to A1 ahead of its $1.5 million issue that will refund a Wisconsin state trust fund loan.

CHICAGO – Wisconsin enters the market as soon as Wednesday with about $365 million of general obligation refunding bonds designed to capture both traditional interest-rate savings and to accomplish a debt restructuring for budgetary relief.

Wisconsin-based Michael Best & Friedrich LLP has hired public finance attorney Gregory Tears for its Milwaukee office as part of the firm's ongoing effort to rebuild its bond counsel and underwriters' counsel business.

Milwaukee County Supervisor Johnny L. Thomas Jr. has suspended his campaign for Milwaukee city comptroller after criminal charges were filed against him for accepting a bribe during a sting operation in exchange for advancing a financial advisory contract.

CHICAGO — With the prospect of a recall election ahead of him, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker sought to highlight the state's improved fiscal condition after a tumultuous first year in office.

The Fox Valley Technical College will seek approval on the April 3 ballot for $66.5 million of new borrowing to finance capital projects.

The investor who holds $46 million of defaulted bonds issued by a Wisconsin tribe is taking aim at the financial and legal firms on the deal, accusing underwriter Stifel Nicolaus & Co. and bond counsel Godfrey & Kahn SC of misrepresenting the bonds' validity.

CHICAGO — After more than a year of waiting out the market, Wisconsin's largest health care provider, Aurora Health Care Inc., this week will complete refunding plans put on hold amid rising rates in 2010 with the sale of nearly $400 million of fixed-and floating-rate bonds.

CHICAGO — Organizers of the move to recall Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker filed more than one million signatures by the Tuesday deadline in their effort to force a special election for the first-term Republican governor.

Longtime Milwaukee Comptroller W. Martin "Wally" Morics retired late last year, handing the reins of the office that manages the city's debt issuance to his longtime deputy Michael Daun until voters elect a new comptroller this April.

Moody’s Investors Service has upgraded Bellin Memorial Hospital one notch to A2 in recognition of its favorable operating performance.