Investments

With the Christmas holiday arriving later this week, a year-end lull has settled over the muni market that is likely to last at least until the second week of January as the market puts what has become one of the most eventful and tumultuous years behind it.

ALABAMAMuscle Shoals Utilities BoardDec 11, 2008 . . . . . . $32,155,000

The Empire State Development Corp. gave final approval to a controversial plan to expand Columbia University's campus in Manhattan at its monthly board meeting yesterday. The plan is almost certain to wind up in the courts as property owners in the area fight the use of eminent domain.

DALLAS - The Louisiana State Bond Commission gave its tentative approval on Thursday to $210 million of revenue bonds to finance the state's student loan program, even though there is little chance the bonds can be issued until market conditions improve.

New York State should consider privatizing assets and using design-build strategies to fill funding gaps for capital projects, a state commission said in a preliminary report yesterday. The report identifies transportation and education projects as candidates for public-private partnerships.

As 2008 begins to wind down, holiday-minded investors withdrew $2.94 billion from tax-free money market funds for the week ending Dec. 15, according to the Money Fund, a service of iMoneyNet.com of Westborough, Mass.

After several weeks of continuously rising yields, the municipal market rebounded in a dramatic way this week, as nearly all The Bond Buyer's weekly yield indexes showed sizeable declines.

ALABAMAAuburn (City)Dec 4, 2008 . . . . . . $25,370,000

INDIANAHamilton Heights School CorporationDec 18, 2008 . . . . . . $4,085,000

Top executives at Vanguard Group expect robust growth in 2009 from its target-date and exchange-traded funds, but in this economy analysts are skeptical.

DALLAS - The U.S. Justice Department is investigating a 2002 bond sale by the University of New Mexico as part of an investigation into possible violations of securities laws, officials said.

Yeshiva University's tax-exempt bonds have been hammered this week as the private, nonprofit university acknowledged potential losses in an investment scheme and a shrinking endowment.

ARIZONARio Nuevo Multipurpose Facilities DistrictDec 17, 2008 . . . . . . $70,080,000

ALASKAAlaska Housing Finance CorporationDec 17, 2008 . . . . . . $45,000,000

Most executives wouldn't consider themselves "fortunate" if they took over one of the largest fund companies weeks before an historic market collapse.

ARIZONAYuma Industrial Development AuthorityDec 9, 2008 . . . . . . $109,025,000

CONNECTICUTMonroe (Town)Dec 16, 2008 . . . . . . $4,855,000

The Arkansas Student Loan Authority will have until the end of September 2010 to repay the State Board of Finance for its draw on an $80 million line of credit after the agency was unable to issue bonds for its student loan program.

DALLAS - Attempting to defy a declining economy and challenging markets, Tucson's Rio Nuevo downtown development district is issuing $78 million of debt to speed restoration of the city's core.

Advisors Asset Management Inc. hopes to reshape the landscape for municipal bond unit investment trusts with a series of bigger, lower-cost UITs.