Northeast

Maine needs a strong bond package in 2012 to fix its crumbling infrastructure, said the legislative director at the Maine Center for Economic Policy.

WASHINGTON - The Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency has paid $12.3 million to settle tax-law violations and protect the tax-exempt status of its student loan bonds.

Harrisburg Mayor Linda Thompson urged the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania to require the capital city's new state-appointed receiver to implement her proposed financial recovery plan.

Rhode Island's passage of landmark pension overhaul legislation could clear a path for similar moves in other states that need it, municipal and bond market observers say.

The status of a bankruptcy filing of compelling interest to the municipal finance and legal industries will be in the hands of a federal judge in Harrisburg, Pa., this week.

Harrisburg City Council Vice President Patty Kim said the capital is but one of many struggling cities in the state.

Moody’s Investors Service has downgraded Allentown’s underlying general obligation rating to A2 from A1, affecting $100 million of parity-related debt. The outlook remains negative.

Weak and unsettled economic conditions worldwide have darkened New York’s fiscal outlook, the Division of the Budget said in the midyear update to its fiscal 2012 financial plan.

Massachusetts issued $1.2 billion in cash-flow notes at what Treasurer Steven Grossman called record-low interest rates.

The $150 million refunding portion of Connecticut’s $700 million general obligation bond sale is expected to generate $21.5 million in budget savings over eight years, said Treasurer Denise Nappier.