News and Information from Bond Buyer

Gov. J.B. Pritzker is now willing to fully fund a scheduled education funding hike but other contentious issues remain, notably corporate tax breaks.

The settlement of a matter involving G-13 is the first time a firm has been charged with violating that rule since 2003 and left some wondering if FINRA was using enforcement cases to establish compliance standards.

Tighter spreads and richer ratios are likely to continue, particularly as looming tax increases amplify the value of the tax-exemption, but analysts are hesitant to predict how much lower rates can go before investors balk.

In Montana, two school districts and the state government reported that a new state law signed by the governor on May 6 will end the state tax deduction for certain school bonds after 2023 if those bonds are federally taxable.

Lawmakers, buoyed by rising revenue estimates, overrode Gov. Laura Kelly's veto of tax cut legislation.

Arizona and neighboring states are preparing for the first mandatory cuts in water from the Colorado River after 20 years of drought.

A disappointing jobs report gives credence to the Federal Reserve’s concern about slack in the labor market.

Guam’s tourism has been hit very hard by COVID-related travel limitations, but the government should be able to get through this period with approved federal aid and the continuation of federal military construction.

Federal coronavirus relief helps the city deal with immediate budget problems, but pensions loom large over the city's post-pandemic fiscal landscape.

SLGS are typically used by issuers of tax-exempt municipal bonds because of yield restrictions and arbitrage rebate requirements under the Internal Revenue Code.

The state has allocated $1.3 billion over three years to repair and replace 163 buildings, General Treasurer Seth Magaziner reported.

“Our net present value savings were $191.5 million or a record-setting 29%," said North Texas Tollway Authority Chief Financial Officer Horatio Porter.

Refinitiv Lipper reported $584 million of inflows, $341 million of which went to high-yield, as investors pull back on reinvesting to pay tax bills with the May 17 tax filing deadline looming.

The numbers are driven by record oil and gas production tax collections and increases in sales and income tax payments, State Treasurer Randy McDaniel said.

An increase to $30 billion from $15 billion on the PAB allotment overseen by the Department of Transportation was one suggestion a House panel heard Thursday.

Assured Guaranty and National Public Finance Guarantee gave their support to Highways and Transportation Authority and Convention Center District Authority revenue bond deals affecting $4.6 billion, solidifing their support for the central government deal.

The administration of Gov. Gavin Newsom and the state legislature have separate efforts that would result in increased climate risk disclosure.

While the race has drawn few headlines compared with the battle for mayor, a dozen hopefuls are running for the office.

The ratings agency also said it expects cruises will resume at modest levels in the second half of this year.

In her role as senior vice president of credit for municipal and corporate bonds, Urtz is overseeing a redesign of FHN's primary website for fixed-income transactions.