News and Information from Bond Buyer

The directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland and the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond wanted a 25-basis-point discount rate hike to 1.5%, while the other 10 Fed banks preferred to leave the rate at 1.25%, according to minutes of the discount rate meeting, released by the Fed Tuesday.

About 600 APPA members plan to meet with U.S. lawmakers to talk about the importance of preserving the tax exemption for municipal bonds.

A struggling Indiana highway public-private partnership may have turned a corner.

Top-quality municipal bonds were steady at mid-session, according to traders, as New York City floated a water deal on Tuesday.

Chicago Public Schools is warning that without state help or court intervention a $129 million shortfall may force it to end the school year early.

The Treasury Department Tuesday auctioned $18 billion of four-week bills at a 0.400% high yield, a price of 99.968889.

The Treasury Department Tuesday auctioned $20 billion of 364-day bills at a 0.850% high yield, a price of 99.140556.

California Sen. Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, has introduced legislation to make it more difficult for healthcare companies to close California non-profit hospitals that provide emergency services.

Indicator Last Report Forecast Actual GDP Q3: +3.5% Q4: +2.1% Q4: +1.9% Final Sales Q3: +3.0% Q4: n/a Q4: +0.9% Chicago PMI Jan.: 50.3 Feb.: 53.0 Feb.: 57.4 Consumer Confidence Jan.: 111.6 Feb.: 111.0 Feb.: 114.8

Texas service sector activity "continued to reflect expansion in February albeit at a slower pace," according to business executives responding to the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas' Texas Service Sector Outlook Survey, as the revenue index slid to 14.1 from 16.2.

Mark Kim from DC Water will become Lynnette Kelly's No. 2 at MSRB, while Lakshmi Kommi of the City of San Diego will replace him on the MSRB's board of directors.

How are the nation's suburban municipalities shaping up politically and financially? Larry Levy, executive dean of the National Center for Suburban Studies at Hofstra University discusses how the 2016 presidential election played out in the suburbs and whether the changing landscape in Washington D.C. will impact borrowing for infrastructure projects. Hosted by Andrew Coen.

Service sector activity "continued to improve in February," according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond service-sector activity survey, released Tuesday.

Manufacturing activity in the central Atlantic region "expanded in February, as shipments increased and the volume of new orders rose broadly," according to the monthly business activity survey conducted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, as the manufacturing index rose to 17 in February from 12 in January.

The consumer confidence index increased to 114.8 in February from a revised 111.6 last month, The Conference Board reported Tuesday.

The Chicago Purchasing Managers' Business Barometer surged to 57.4 in February from 50.3 in January, its highest level since January 2015, the National Association of Purchasing Management-Chicago said Tuesday.

Municipal bond traders are awaiting the first of the week's big deals to hit the screens on Tuesday as they watch the direction of muni yields.

The seasonally adjusted Milwaukee Report on Business declined to 58.69 in February from 59.81 in January, the Institute for Supply Management-Milwaukee reported Tuesday.

Feb. 28, 2017 Southwest: Plain/Insured GO Yield Curve* State Ratings One-Year Five-Year 10-Year 30-Year Arizona Aa3/AA-/NR 0.85 1.62 2.48 3.27 Arkansas Aa1/AA/NR 0.83 1.58 2.41 3.19 Colorado Aa1/AA/NR 0.83 1.61 2.47 3.26 Kansas Aa2/AA/NR 0.83 1.62 2.5 3.28 New Mexico Aa1/AA/NR 0.82 1.55 2.38 3.16 Oklahoma Aa2/AA+/AA+ 0.84 1.66 2.5 3.28 Texas Aaa/AAA/AAA 0.81 1.59 2.47 3.26 Utah Aaa/AAA/AAA 0.8 1.5 2.28 3.04

2/27/2017 2/20/2017 State Amount ($000s) Iss Amount ($000s) Chg in Amt ($000s) Arizona 7 $322,925 6 $248,645 $74,280 Arkansas 3 136,365 1 8,000 128,365 Colorado 2 10,708 1 7,470 3,238 Kansas 3 15,140 4 18,450 -3,310 New Mexico 2 69,235 3 145,490 -76,255 Oklahoma 17 281,055 11 297,330 -16,275 Texas 23 354,460 23 288,005 66,455 Utah 2 78,680 2 30,000 48,680