The states and others are pushing back against studies showing adverse financial effects from laws that punish banks for their fossil fuel and firearm policies.

Challenges to laws banning investment banks from underwriting municipal bonds and the targeting of other financial firms for divestment purposes may result from a recent Oklahoma ruling.

In Texas, the Austin City Council set a climate bond election for no later than November 2026, while an Arizona water authority is dealing with a funding drought.

The state attorney general's office said it will appeal the ruling prohibiting enforcement of 2022's Energy Discrimination Elimination Act.

A majority of likely California voters favor a $10 billion bond for climate resiliency projects, according to a Public Policy Institute of California poll.

Fiduciary responsibilities and politics are keeping the ESG debate alive in public finance.

Ohio legislators are mulling a bill that would bar the state's pension systems, universities and Bureau of Workers' Compensation from pursuing ESG investing.

Without legislation, the Supreme Court's Chevron ruling makes it "less likely" the U.S. will meet its stated climate goals, said Moody's Investors Service.

A revenue bond issue for Galveston Wharves will price Tuesday after Hurricane Beryl interrupted port operations earlier this week.

Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon, a Republican, recently vetoed anti-ESG legislation similar to Missouri's, saying that it overstepped legal authority.

The state's new law requires companies like investment banks to provide written verification of their positions, part of a trend among similar bills aimed at preventing Wall Street banks from lying about their positions, said a firearms industry lobbyist.

The City of Angels is the latest in recent days to score a ratings upgrade as Fitch reviews its local government ratings using amended criteria.

"It would be irresponsible for us to ignore factors that can fundamentally impact the long-term viability of investments," said CalPERS interim Chief Investment Officer Dan Bienvenue of climate risks.

As the public finance landscape evolves with increased philanthropic interest and a focus on climate resilience and community health, it's time for traditional market participants to align their investments with impactful outcomes to drive systemic change and foster equitable growth.

The majority of the debt sold for the state's community choice aggregators came through CCCFA, a conduit issuer that ranked third among all issuers nationwide for volume issued in 2023.

Population growth has spurred economic growth in the South. But the changing climate, and risks climate change poses there, may turn that equation on its head.

Palm Beach County residents are using a Florida law passed last year aimed at ESG investing to challenge its county's investment in Israel bonds.

The steady demand for municipal bonds in high-risk areas underscores the complex relationship between climate change and financial markets.

Its state university systems face a funding freeze for noncompliance with a 2023 state law banning diversity, equity, and inclusion offices.

More funding went to oil and gas subsidies than into green energy projects in recent years, according to panelists at Milken Institute's Global Conference.