Southeast

BRADENTON, Fla. — Former Montgomery, Ala., bond dealer William Blount and lobbyist Albert LaPierre are scheduled to be sentenced Friday in Alabama federal court after pleading guilty to pay-to-play charges related to Jefferson ­County’s troubled sewer debt.

BRADENTON, Fla. — On the heels of an upgrade for its Garvees, Kentucky tomorrow plans to sell $90 million of the debt for work related to its share of the massive $4.1 billion Louisville-Southern Indiana Ohio River Bridges Project.

Louisiana will refund up to $240 million of outstanding general obligation debt under a proposal approved Thursday by the State Bond Commission.

After receiving a federal loan commitment Tuesday, the Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia yesterday announced it would soon sell $2.53 billion of municipal bonds for the project. The U.S. Department of Energy said MEAG would receive approximately $1.8 billion in loan guarantees toward construction of its share of two new nuclear units being planned at Plant Vogtle in Georgia.

Miami-Dade County expects to be in the market early next week for a two-day pricing of $600 million of water and sewer bonds — the first round of large yearly debt sales for a newly revised $4.2 billion capital improvement program.

Standard & Poor's last week downgraded Hampton University to A-minus from A-plus based on increasing debt and business risk related to the university's Proton Therapy Institute.

Standard & Poor's Tuesday raised the underlying rating on the Lamar County School District's general obligation bonds two notches to A from BBB-plus based primarily on its rapidly expanding property tax base and good income levels.

Kentucky's general fund receipts fell 3.3% in January compared to January 2009, a decrease of $23.9 million.

Atlanta BeltLine Inc.'s board of directors last week selected lead designers for the BeltLine project and established the basis for future design and construction, the agency announced.

Vestavia Hills City Council president David Carrington has announced he will run for a seat on the Jefferson County Commission that is opening this year.