Southwest

DALLAS — Oklahoma sales tax revenue hit a historic peak in January, bringing in $165 million to the general fund.

DALLAS — Gov. Jan Brewer urged lawmakers to draft a bill to buy back the Arizona capitol for the state's 100th birthday, but the centennial passed on Tuesday with no sign that lawmakers were ready to pay off the $106 million debt.

AUSTIN — Texas public school districts will face financial stresses in educating Texans to the level needed to sustain economic development, according to education officials and financial professionals at The Bond Buyer’s 16th annual Texas Public Finance Conference.

Texas has emerged from the recession with its credit intact, but the state faces major adjustments to environmental patterns and demographics that are likely to affect long-term investors, experts told the Texas Public Finance Conference here Monday.

Texas cities will share $471.1 million of the more than $2 billion of state sales tax revenue that was collected in January.

The Rockwall, Texas, City Council last week set an election for May 12 on a $59 million, four-part general obligation bond program that includes a $25.1 million athletic complex.

Trustees of the Tyler Independent School District in Texas adopted a long-range capital plan last week that would begin with proceeds from a bond election in November.

Tulsa’s sales tax revenues were up 9.5% in December from 2010, Mayor Dewey Bartlett said last week.

Mayor Joe Reardon said last week that the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kan., must decide on how to use tax revenues from the new state-authorized Hollywood Casino that opened Feb. 3 in Wyandotte County.

The Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board has approved the sale of $19.6 million of housing and student revenue bonds by the Arkansas State University Board of Trustees.