Wyden: Mixed Messages On Munis
Published February 13, 2014 12:44 PM
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Updated March 31, 2017 1:56 PM
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Joshua Roberts/Bloomberg
Sen. Ron Wyden, the new chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, has recently voiced some ideas that would favor the municipal bond market, such as extending bond-related and other expiring tax provisions and reinstating Build America Bonds. But the Oregon Democrat's past actions, such as sponsoring legislation that would favor tax-credit over tax-exempt bonds, have posed threats to the muni market. (Image: Bloomberg News) Read the full story here.
Wyden said that one of his first priorities will be to pass a package of tax extenders renewing provisions that expired at the end of 2013. The extenders bill could be used as a "bridge" to broader tax reform, Wyden told those attending a Tax Policy Center event at the University of Southern California's Gould School of Law in Los Angeles on Feb. 7.
Joshua Roberts/Bloomberg
A tax-reform bill Wyden introduced with former Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., in 2010 and a similar bill he unveiled with Sen. Dan Coats, R-Ind., in 2011, would have halted the issuance of tax-exempt bonds in favor of traditional tax-credit bonds that provided investors with tax credits equaling 25% of the interest costs. The bills also would have eliminated the ability of muni issuers to do advance refundings. (Image: Bloomberg News)
Bill Daly, director of governmental affairs for the National Association of Bond Lawyers, said that Wyden might be willing to make changes to his muni proposals, but he would want to hear alternatives that meet the goals he is trying to achieve. Wyden's staff is "certainly open to discussing things," he said.
Wyden will have to tackle infrastructure investment this year. The Highway Trust Fund, which provides federal funds for surface transportation projects, is expected to have a shortfall before Sept. 30, the end of the fiscal year.
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Wyden was born in 1949 in Wichita, Kan., and attended UC Santa Barbara before transferring to Stanford University where he received his bachelor's degree. He received his law degree from the University of Oregon. (Image: Thinkstock)
