Higher education bonds

The "Golden Age of Public Finance," as it was called by industry pundits, is likely to face significant changes under the Trump administration.

The escalating dispute between the prestigious issuer and the White House is spooking some bond holders and creating opportunities for others.

With the threat to tax exempt municipal bonds looming in a Congress searching for pay-fors, private activity bonds supporting hospitals and higher education are high on the list of potential first targets.

Brown is among the Ivy League schools borrowing money as they face funding threats from the Trump administration.

Harvard University braved the most volatile market in years this week to price a $750 million taxable deal. Princeton is hot on its heels. 

The deal will raise money for general purposes as the Ivy League school faces cuts to government grants as the Trump administration attacks higher education.

Colleges and universities have already begun hiring freezes and spending cuts, dialing back research and rescinding offers to Ph.D. candidates, the rating agency said.

Northeastern University plans to sell municipal bonds to help replace its 115-year-old Matthews Arena, long-ago home of the Boston Bruins and Celtics.

Bond-issuing infrastructure districts and development zones were a focus of legislation passed by Utah lawmakers during a session that ended March 7.

The Trump administration has dealt several blows to an already-battered sector. 

State Treasuer Brad Briner said he hopes a longer maximum maturity will lead more borrowers to use the state conduit instead of the Public Finance Authority.

Glenn Hegar, the state comptroller since 2015, was chosen as the next chancellor for the Texas A&M University System by its board of regents.

Trustees of New Jersey City University voted to approve the pursuit of a merger with Kean University, a larger fellow state university 12 miles away.

The IRS has issued a preliminary determination that educational and general revenue bonds issued in 2018 by the University of Rhode Island are taxable due to alleged noncompliance with requirements of Section 149(g).

The rating agency said the one-notch downgrade, which comes ahead of a bond sale, was due to weaker operating performance and liquidity.

The school wants to be able to offer bonds supported by its general fund and not just bonds its revenue streams.

Moody's cited heavy reliance on reserves, potential for continued operating deficts, and a fall 2024 decline in enrollment as factors in the downgrade.

The president of St. Augustine University in North Carolina called the loan a "necessary evil" as it fights to remain solvent and accredited.

A dispute over open meetings laws has stalled progress on UI's plans to purchase online University of Phoenix.

Nonprofit Provident Resources Group is buying a five-year old student housing building that serves the University of Central Florida and Valencia College.