Higher education bonds

WASHINGTON - An insufficient number of institutional investors agreed to tender at less than par roughly $6 billion of outstanding taxable student-loan-related securities issued on behalf of the Brazos Higher Education Service Corp. before a preliminary deadline on Friday, casting a cloud over a proposed restructuring of the securities into term floating-rate notes.

Regents of the University of Oklahoma have approved $63.5 million of general, limited, and special obligation bonds for a number of projects at the main campus in Norman.

WASHINGTON - Four nonprofit student loan lenders are urging the Treasury Department to provide issuers of student loan-backed debt with liquidity facilities, such as standby purchase agreements, so that the issuers can convert their existing auction-rate securities into variable-rate demand obligations.

The Dormitory Authority of the State of New York approved $501 million of tax-exempt bond issuance at its monthly board meeting on Wednesday.

A dispute between Louisiana State University and Tulane University over the composition of the oversight board for the proposed new $1.2 billion LSU academic hospital in downtown New Orleans has delayed the state’s plan to issue up to $400 million of revenue bonds for the facility.

BRADENTON, Fla. - Alabama on Tuesday filed a complaint in federal court asking a judge to void a swaption the Alabama Public School and College Authority entered into in 2002 and 2003 with JPMorgan.

As liquidity for municipal issuers remains scarce in the short-term market, a regional broker-dealer group and an organization representing nonprofit student loan lenders are urging the Treasury Department to provide standby liquidity facilities for issuers still trying to convert from auction-rate securities to variable-rate demand obligations.

DALLAS - With oil prices plummeting to half of what they were three months ago, the University of Texas Board of Regents has cancelled plans to raise $1 billion for the state's Permanent University Fund through the sale of oil and gas properties.

The University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey faces new allegations of inflating medical costs by at least $21 million a year and increasing federal reimbursements for the hospital, according to a weekend report in the Newark Star-Ledger.

The Arizona Board of Regents last week priced $104 million of revenue refunding bonds, drawing coupons of 4% and a yield of 3.22% on the short end to 6% with a yield of 6.12% on bonds maturing in 2028.

A pair of deals from two New York municipalities and a Texas sale will headline an estimated slate of $4.47 billion in total new-issue supply in the primary market this week - more than double the revised figures from last week - as municipal volume continues to show signs of recovery from the month-long dry spell inflicted by the nation's financial and economic turmoil.

CHICAGO -The Illinois Finance Authority last week advanced borrowing plans totaling nearly $1.5 billion for health care, higher education institutions, and other nonprofits, including a $375 million sale planned by Rush University Medical Center and $500 million for the University of Chicago.

DALLAS — Despite increased sales activity and a rally that sent yields for The Bond Buyer indexes plummeting last week, market volatility continues to put the brakes on deals in Texas. But two large refundings may get to market at some point this week, as well as a handful of bank-qualified issues from utility districts.

DALLAS - The University of Texas Board of Regents plans to issue $401 million of refunding bonds next week for the triple-A rated Permanent University Fund that endows the UT and Texas A&M University systems.

The New Jersey Educational Facilities Authority yesterday approved up to $800 million of refinancing debt, including $575 million for the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey.

WASHINGTON - The Brazos Higher Education Service Corp. has extended to the end of the month the deadline for issuers to agree to voluntarily tender, at less than par, roughly $6 billion of outstanding taxable student-loan related securities so that it can restructure them as term floating-rate notes.

Arizona State University officials will ask state lawmakers in the upcoming 2009 session to authorize the creation of a special university stadium district to help finance renovation of the school’s 50-year-old Sun Devil Stadium.

DALLAS - Arizona's professional sports mecca of Glendale will take its chances in the bond market today with a $199 million issue to finance a new spring training facility for Major League Baseball's Chicago White Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers.

CHICAGO - The Wisconsin Health and Educational Facilities Authority yesterday advanced the borrowing plans of four major health care systems totaling about $800 million in new-money and refunding debt, including $450 million from Froedtert & Community Health Inc.

Nonprofits in New York City that have been stuck with high interest rates on their variable-rate bonds issued by the New York City Industrial Development Agency could have the chance to refund that debt.