Bankruptcy

WASHINGTON — Only half as many muni advisory firms are registered with the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board compared to those registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission, even though advisory firms are now required to sign up with both regulators under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.

WASHINGTON — The Securities and Exchange Commission has approved a proposal by the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board to nearly double the amount of fees it collects from dealers, despite industry opposition.

OAKLAND, Calif. — A Superior Court judge here promised an answer by Monday morning as to whether he will keep in place the temporary restraining order blocking execution of a public-private partnership to rebuild a key access road to the Golden Gate Bridge.

In one of his final settlements as New York Attorney General, Governor-elect Andrew Cuomo last week announced an agreement with Steven Rattner, former principal of the private-equity firm Quadrangle Group LLC, in an investigation into a pay-to-play state pension fund scheme.

Indiana cities would be allowed to file for Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection under a bill touted by Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels.

DALLAS — Travis County, Tex., commissioners are expected to ask voters in November for up to $300 million of general obligation bonds to finance a new courthouse in downtown Austin.

A California court has placed another roadblock in front of the state government's plans to sell 11 office properties to private investors, while entering into long-term leases to occupy the buildings.

Bad legal advice turned a straightforward refunding deal into an expensive mess, a California school district contends in the lawsuit it filed against Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP, its bond counsel on the transaction.

A firm associated with a former JPMorgan banker being pursued in a Securities and Exchange Commission civil case for alleged pay-to-play charges involving Jefferson County, Ala., was fired on Christmas Eve from a pension consulting job in Florida after Charles LeCroy's legal problems came to light.

The California State Controller's Office has filed a motion in the Vallejo, Calif., bankruptcy case, saying state intercept funds should be used to protect debt owners.

A Wayne County Circuit Court judge will rule in January on the latest legal wrangle that is part of a larger, years-long dispute over dueling plans for a new bridge serving the busy trade route between Detroit and Canada.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission are in a jurisdictional dispute over which agency will regulate municipal swap advisers, sources said.

The National Federation of Municipal Analysts has filed another brief in the Vallejo, Calif., bankruptcy case in support of bond insurer National Public Finance Guarantee.

Alabama federal Judge Keith Watkins accepted a settlement Monday ending a two-year-old lawsuit involving swaptions between the Alabama Public School and College Authority and JPMorgan.

The Harris County Metropolitan Transit Authority last week reached a settlement with CAF USA Inc., over two disputed contracts for the construction of light-rail cars for its North and Southeast Corridor lines.

Little Rock Wastewater will be insolvent by mid-2012 unless the Sanitary Sewer Commission raises rates or cuts spending, according to a new financial plan presented to the commission last week.

BRADENTON, Fla. — Lewis Diaz, a bond attorney with Peck, Shaffer & Williams LLP, has been appointed to a three-year term on the finance and administration committee of the Northern Kentucky Area Development District.

SAN FRANCISCO — A Superior Court judge has granted a restraining order temporarily blocking city and state transportation officials from inking the Presidio Parkway Project deal to upgrade the main roads linking the Golden Gate Bridge with San Francisco.

The Securities and Exchange Commission last week approved a Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board proposal to extend its Rules G-17 on fair dealing and G-5 on disciplinary actions to muni advisers.

BRADENTON, Fla. — Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum Wednesday announced a $25 million settlement with JPMorgan to resolve allegations that the investment bank improperly sold unregistered securities to the local government investment pool.