News and Information from Bond Buyer

The SEC's enforcement action against participants in the Regional Events Center Public Facilities District's arena deal shows that the commission will not shy from seeking financial penalties against municipal issuers and transaction participants, market participants said.

Jefferson County, Ala.'s bankruptcy plan will eliminate dozens of suits, restructure debt, and offer the sewer system "a fresh start," court documents said.

Consumer credit increased by $13.7 billion, or 5.4%, in September to $3.052 trillion, the Federal Reserve reported Thursday.

The Senate Banking Committee Thursday confirmed it will hold a confirmation hearing on Nov. 14 on Janet Yellen's nomination as Federal Reserve Board chairman.

Fitch Ratings downgraded Fresno, Calif.'s subordinate lien water revenue bonds to A-plus based on weakening finances.

The tax-exempt market showed strength on the short-end of the curve Thursday afternoon as bonds received better bids from buys inside five years.

The Maryland Transit Administration plans to seek bids soon for a private partner willing to provide up to $900 million of funding for a $2.2 billion light-rail line in the northern suburbs of Washington following Gov. Martin O'Malley's and the state Board of Public Works' unanimous approval of the P3 competitive solicitation process.

Stressing the importance of preserving "financial stability" to maintain economic prosperity, New York Federal Reserve Bank President William Dudley Thursday said failures of the biggest financial firms must be prevented, not just dealt with after they happen.

The Chicago Infrastructure Trust settled on a model for its inaugural financing but may miss its goal of closing on $27 million deal by the end of the year.

The municipality of Anchorage, Alaska, received Standard & Poor's top rating based on improved finances and the agency's new local general obligation bond criteria.

Municipal managers and strategists, still reeling from Detroit's bankruptcy, the surge in Puerto Rico yields, and a mid-year sell-off that was the worst in a quarter century, are getting their portfolios ready for the next expected hurdle as 2014 approaches — another spike in interest rates.

Bankrupt San Bernardino's city attorney, Jim Penman, was recalled by voters, and so was Councilwoman Wendy McCammack who still qualified for a runoff in the mayor's race.

Moody's Investors Service upgraded Guam Waterworks Authority's revenue bonds to Ba1 from Ba2 ahead of the authority's plans to price $173 million in revenue bonds.

The tax-exempt market opened Thursday morning mostly steady, even with stronger Treasuries and better-than-expected economic data.

Voters agreed to let as many as seven Las Vegas-style casinos open in New York, approved an increase to the minimum wage in New Jersey and set a tax on the legal sale of recreational marijuana in Colorado, Bloomberg news reports. The statewide ballot questions were among 31 decided in six states across the U.S. yesterday. The measures focused on issues related to business, taxes and borrowing, a break from recent years in which social issues such as abortion and gay marriage were put to referendums.

The Treasury Department said it will auction $25 billion year bills on Nov. 13.

The Treasury Department said Thursday it will auction $33 billion 91-day bills and $29 billion 182-day discount bills Tuesday.

The bankrupt city of Stockton, Calif., is planning to sell $55 million of water revenue bonds next week to convert its outstanding variable rate bonds to fixed-rate.

The Federal government is looking very closely at the financial problems that Puerto Rico is grappling with, but can only offer advice but not money, Treasury Undersecretary for Domestic Finance Mary Miller said.

Tax-exempt money market funds gained the first inflows in four weeks as $1.80 billion arrived in the week ended Nov. 4 and total net assets settled at $264.58 billion, according to The Money Fund Report, a service of iMoneyNet.com.