News and Information from Bond Buyer

Standard & Poor's Ratings Services raised its school issuer credit rating on Aransas Pass Independent School District, Texas' general obligation debt one notch to A-plus from A.

Sen. Mark Kirk, R-Ill., wants an additional $4 billion of tax-exempt private activity bonds available for transportation projects.

Municipal bond yields weakened further Friday as market participants prepared for the biggest week of new issuance so far this year.

The Kansas Supreme Court upheld a lower court ruling that the state's funding for public schools violates the state constitution.

The California Public Employees' Retirement System said it lowering the $551,000 annual pension of convicted felon and former Vernon city manager Bruce Malkenhorst to $116,000 a year.

Hedge funds and cross-over investors are expected to devour Puerto Rico's junk-rated sale of general obligation bonds when the $3 billion deal thunders into the primary market, municipal observers said.

Standard & Poor's affirmed Louisiana's AA rating and stable outlook but warned that the state should find structural solutions to its budget challenges.

The North Carolina Department of Transportation named Clayton Somers as the new executive director of the Turnpike Authority.

New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer named former DASNY operative Carra Wallace to the new position of chief diversity officer.

Federal Reserve Bank of New York President William C. Dudley said he sees a "reasonably favorable" outlook for the U.S. economy, even as elevated joblessness and too-low inflation warrant a high level of stimulus for a "considerable time."

Alaska is planning to sell $170 million of short-term debt to finance transportation projects in a competitive offering next week.

Market observers say no Detroit scenarios are on the Northeast municipal finance horizon and some situations have improved, notably in Pennsylvania and Rhode Island

Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said it lowered its long-term rating one notch to A from A-plus on Brent Utilities Board, Ala.'s water and sewer revenue debt.

Municipal bonds weakened Friday morning as an economic report showed labor market improvement, which would allow the Federal Reserve to continue winding down its quantitative easing program and support the eventual raising of interest rates.

The sentencing of municipal bond bid-rigger David Rubin has been postponed to 3:30 p.m. March 12.

Securities and Exchange Commission member Michael Piwowar has asked the staff of the Office of Municipal Securities to give him some proposals that he can push through the SEC to improve price transparency in the municipal market.

U.S. President Barack Obama included $250 million in his fiscal year 2015 budget for Honolulu's $5.2 billion elevated rail project that will extend 20 miles from the capitol city to the opposite side of the island of Oahu.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Steven Rhodes pushed back by one month a trial date on the city's plan of debt adjustment after bond insurers and other creditors asked for more time to respond to the controversial plan.

U.S. inflationary pressures were higher in February, as the U.S. future inflation gauge climbed to 104.1 from the revised January 102.1 reading, according to data released Friday morning by the Economic Cycle Research Institute.