News and Information from Bond Buyer

Government

The blizzard that slammed into the east coast Tuesday managed to squelch a budding rally in the municipal bond market.

Contracting sales tax receipts are a credit negative for New York counties outside the metropolitan New York City area, Moody's Investors Service said.

Kansas lawmakers are considering Gov. Sam Brownback's proposed increases in spending for the next two fiscal years.

A key legislative panel Tuesday approved a bill that would cut the state's corporate and business taxes as part of an effort by Gov. Mike Pence to attract more businesses to the Hoosier State.

State District Judge John Dietz reopened testimony on Texas school funding Tuesday, nearly a year after his ruling that the state's formula was unconstitutional.

Municipal bankruptcy expert James Spiotto is proposing the idea of public pension authorities to resolve pension issues.

Most California water agencies are well-positioned to withstand a typical drought, but a more severe, or longer-than-usual drought, could put pressure on ratings, according to rating agencies.

The Detroit bankruptcy judge Wednesday will consider a motion by bond insurers and other major creditors asking for a formal role in the assessment of the city's art collection and ways to monetize it.

Bond insurance reached the lowest level since the financial crisis last year, even as the industry's market penetration began to rise.

With a better Fitch outlook, Regional Transportation Authority of Illinois will take bids on $106 million of general obligation bonds with officials hoping to benefit from an improving market for Illinois paper.

Moody's Investors Service said it has affirmed the Aa2 rating on Cedar Park, Texas's general obligation limited tax debt and upgraded to Aa2 from A3 the general obligation bonds assumed by Cedar Park through the annexation of Williamson-Travis Counties Water Control and Improvement District (WCID) 1-D.

Bipartisan group of eight U.S. senators have joined 50 House members to support a proposed national infrastructure bank funded with $50 billion of 1% bonds.

Florida conservation groups have obtained enough signatures on petitions to ask voters to approve funding and bond financing to purchase environmentally sensitive lands.

The Massachusetts pension reserves investment trust fund returned 15.2% in calendar 2013, marking an investment gain of $7.9 billion, according to the Pension Reserves Investment Management board.

Some trading in maturities at the long end of the municipal bond yield curve has given the market a somewhat stronger tone as Tuesday's session crosses noon.

The first critical step in a municipal workout, whether inside or outside of bankruptcy, is to get all parties, the debtor and the creditors, to accept that they will all have to incur significant losses as a result of the workout process.

There is no easy, single answer to explain why Detroit or San Bernardino or Jefferson County and other local governments have resorted to bankruptcy in recent years.

Moody's Investors Service has revised its outlook to stable from negative on Springfield, Ill.'s A1 rating.

Standard & Poor's signaled that Fairview Health Services in Minnesota could win an upgrade over the next two years due to its strong business position and improved governance and management.