News and Information from Bond Buyer

ARKANSAS

Government

With Atlantic City inching closer to insolvency, the gambling hub took another hit Tuesday with a judge ruling that the Borgata Casino Hotel & Spa can seek refunds for its 2011 through 2014 property tax bills.

The University of Texas System will seek savings with a $134 million refunding of revenue bonds.

Wayne County, Mich. closed out fiscal 2015 with a $5.7 million surplus, reversing a prior trend of deficits that led to state oversight, according to its audited financial reports.

Illinois’ net financial position based on governmental activities worsened in fiscal 2015, reaching a negative $125.3 billion, according to the state auditor general.

U.S. lawmakers are stepping up scrutiny of colleges and universities with endowments of more than $1 billion and are threatening to introduce legislation that could jeopardize the tax-exempt status of their bonds.

Arkansas revenues remained above the forecast for March as state legislators prepared to open a special session dealing with Medicaid expansion.

Most municipal bond analysts believe Chapter 9 bankruptcy is taboo for municipalities and should be avoided, according to an analyst survey by PNC Capital Markets LLC.

Long Island’s Nassau County is transferring its authority to install 1,000 video lottery terminals to Resorts World Casino at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens under a provision in the 2017 New York State budget.

Top rated municipal bonds finished stronger on Tuesday, according to traders, with yields on some maturities falling by seven basis points. In the primary, the University of Connecticut deal was offered again to retail investors ahead of Wednesday’s institutional pricing.

A federal judge approved a $20 billion settlement with BP to resolve litigation brought by five Gulf coast states over the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

The time may be ripe to rethink Michigan’s emergency management law after the Flint and Detroit Public Schools crises exposed flaws that critics say highlight how the law can fail citizens and ultimately hurt the state’s credit.

Fitch Ratings downgraded Louisiana’s general obligation bonds by one notch to AA-minus on Tuesday as the troubled state prepares to refund debt as part of a deficit-reduction plan.

Top quality municipal bonds were substantially stronger at mid-session, according to traders, with yields on some maturities weakening by as much as six basis points.

The Treasury Department Tuesday auctioned $35 billion of four-week bills at a 0.185% high yield, a price of 99.985611.

Bond holders and analysts criticized Puerto Rico’s proposed debt payment moratorium, saying it would bog down the territory in constitutional challenges.

Veteran bond attorney Mary Nash Rusher has joined McGuireWoods LLP as a partner in the firm’s Raleigh, N.C., office.

This week’s Los Angeles Department of Water and Power water revenue bond sale will benefit from an upgraded bond rating and a rate increase.

Indicator Last Report Forecast Actual International Trade Jan.: -$45.9B Feb.: -$46.2B Feb.: -$47.1B ISM Non-Manufacturing Feb.: 53.4 March: 54.0 March: 54.5