Investments

Six Texas cities sued the state comptroller over a rule that altered where sales taxes would be collected on certain online purchases.

The battle over ESG investing is spreading in the Midwest, with the recent passage of an Ohio law and a decision by the Indiana Public Retirement System.

Analysts are unsure what the Federal Open Market Committee will do with monetary policy in 2025. The panel projects two rate cuts, but some analysts expect more, and others see fewer.

A new law and constitutional amendment will restrict how fast property tax bills can rise on homestead properties, impacting local governments.

In the remaining days of this year, "taxable rates continue to be pressured but munis are finding a stable, even supportive, bidside," said Kim Olsan, a senior fixed income portfolio manager at NewSquare Capital.

Moody's Ratings said the 2025 budget that passed Chicago's City Council this month won't materially alter the credit profile of the city, which it rates Baa3.

Howard Jarvis Taxpayer Association has until the end of January to file briefs in its case challenging San Jose's pension obligation bond validation.

The Trump administration will bring a shift in infrastructure priorities.

Several metropolitan districts, which finance public infrastructure for housing developments, tapped contingent liquidity for debt service payments this month.

Munis "continued their slide" last week as yields rose an average of 23 basis points across the curve as the Fed Chairman Jerome Powell signaled the Fed will take a "more cautious approach" on interest rate cuts next year, said Jason Wong, vice president of municipals at AmeriVet Securities.

S&P Global Ratings downgraded San Francisco's debt a notch to AA-plus from AAA citing weakened economic trends and deficit spending. Moody's Ratings lowered it's rating a notch to Aa1 in October.

The ratings agency cited strong and growing activity and favorable economic trends in the region.

Moody's upgraded Minneapolis to Aaa. The outlook is stable, reflecting an expectation that a strong financial profile will help absorb cost pressures.

The Chicago Board of Education unanimously approved the firing of Chicago Public Schools CEO Pedro Martinez late Friday during a heated special meeting.

The budgeting constraints transformed the state's finances and bond ratings. But critics say the policy's downsides include the stifling of needed investments. 

Municipals are seeing losses of 1.82% in December, which has dragged down overall gains to just 0.68% for 2024, per the Bloomberg Municipal Index.

Silver Point says it has done nothing wrong, and has retained prominent legal figures for its defense.

The bank's termination of its membership in the Net-Zero Banking Alliance ended a state review that could have led to a ban for governmental contracts.

The San Diego County-based hospital system's financial woes were dire enough to earn junk ratings from Fitch Ratings, Moody's Ratings and S&P Global Ratings earlier this year. Fitch further downgraded the already junk ratings on Wednesday.

Indianapolis-based Sycamore Advisors is building its quantitative muscle with two new experienced municipal finance hires in New York: Peter Orr and Ching Yin.