Southeast

Raymond James Financial plans to drop Morgan Keegan from the name of its fixed income arm later this month.

St. Petersburg, Fla. has failed to break a years-long stalemate between the city and the Tampa Bay Rays over the team's quest to build a new Major League Baseball stadium.

Bank of New York Mellon's suspension of bankrupt Jefferson County, Ala.'s sewer warrant payments prompted Standard & Poor's to drop its rating to D, while Moody's said investors are now subjected "to the risk of higher losses."

Bond attorney Albert del Castillo has returned to the Miami office of Greenberg Traurig, where he began working in municipal finance.

Florida's new statewide PACE program has inked a deal for $500 million in funding through California-based Samas Capital LLC.

Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell's controversial transportation plan passed the House of Delegates Tuesday, but failed to get out of the Senate despite both chambers agreeing to ban tolling on Interstate 95 in the southern part of the state.

Some South Carolina legislators are looking for new ways to raise funds for transportation, and are looking at a novel plan backed by Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell.

Triple-A rated North Carolina saved $45.3 million in debt service costs on its $319.26 million general obligation refunding last week.

Moody's Investors Service downgraded Gulfport, Miss.'s underlying general obligation debt rating to A1 from Aa3 citing imbalanced financial operations.

The Kentucky Office of Financial Management is seeking qualified firms interested in becoming members of the state's finance team for various state agencies.