Government finance

The study adds to the growing body of findings by think tanks and credit rating agencies that highlight the pitfalls states face when considering new taxes on e-cigarettes and marijuana because of the changing habits of American consumers.

Homeless advocacy groups collected enough signatures to qualify the measure for the November ballot.

James Spiotto warns that communities with pension problems face potential population loss if they raise taxes too high and are not able to maintain public service levels.

States and localities can’t continue to postpone resolving their pension problems or they will crowd out essential services and infrastructure and lose population, Chapman Strategic Advisors managing director James Spiotto says in a paper to be delivered in Washington on Tuesday.

Kalotay faults the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board and U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for not requiring training in options-based analytics as part of their certification of municipal advisor representatives.

State and local governments were advised Thursday to avoid imposing burdens on out-of-state e-commerce retailers that could spark a new round of litigation as they begin implementing the Supreme Court’s June 21 South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc. ruling on sales taxes.

During a webinar Thursday moderated by the National League of Cities, officials pointed out that the South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc. sales tax case has been remanded by the U.S. Supreme Court back to the South Dakota Supreme Court.

MSU plans to issue roughly $784 million of bonds, $450 million of which will be used to cover settlement costs from the sexual abuse scandal involving Larry Nassar.

The deposit exceeds some pre-budget estimates that the fund would receive $14 million, said Gov. Tom Wolf.

Three Republican senators have introduced legislation that would slash federal spending for transportation and federal fuels taxes and put more responsibility on states for transportation infrastructure and all mass transit projects.

Congress might provide clarity by preventing states any state from imposing retroactive liability.

Membership in the Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board is voluntary, but the Supreme Court ruling may serve as an impetus for more states and e-commerce retailers to join.

Tax accountants, financial advisors, private schools, and other organizations are advertising tax credits for donating to private K-12 voucher funds as ways to "sidestep," "bypass," "circumvent," or "mitigate" the impact of the federal SALT deduction cap, according to a survey.

Six straight treasurers want SEC chairman Jay Clayton to stay the course on the commission's forced arbitration policy.

Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., and co-sponsors of a recently offered bill want to prevent businesses in their states from being forced to collect sales taxes from e-commerce transactions.

The ruling may trigger the renegotiation of almost all public sector contracts, though severability clauses prevent immediate wage and benefit reductions.

The decision could ultimately free up more spending flexibility for state and local governments by weakening organized labor in the sector of the economy where the rate of unionization is the highest.

The Kinney County Public Facility Corp. issued $9.23 million in project revenue bonds to finance the the warehouse style building with 384 beds for adults.

Illinois and Pennsylvania are the only two with a negative rating outlook, Fitch Ratings said Tuesday.

A majority of states leverage their revolving funds to issue municipal bonds to finance local projects.