Law and legal issues

Austin Independent School District filed a petition with a Travis County state court to validate the district's recent $489 million bond referendum.

Pittsburgh officials want Pennsylvania to remove the "distressed" tag and are tired of waiting for the Department of Community and Economic Development to act.

Three years after asking the state for permission to file bankruptcy, the troubled Detroit suburb of Hamtramck stepped closer to state takeover Monday when Gov. Rick Snyder declared it to be in a state of fiscal emergency.

Moody's Investors Service said a court ruling that allows California to cut its Medi-Cal program is a negative for the credit ratings of hospitals, and positive for the state's fiscal flexibility.

Moody's Investors Service has left its junk-bond ratings in place on the Harris County-Houston Sports Authority as the stadium builder's bond insurer appeals a lawsuit over coverage of more than $1 billion of debt.

Jefferson County, Ala., has a busy week ahead with major court hearings on the county's Chapter 9 exit plan and motions to dismiss a suit claiming the county's sewer swaps are invalid.

KidsPeace Children's Hospital of Schnecksville, Pa., looking to pare bond debt from $51.3 million to $24 million, filed a voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition.

The prospects for passage of comprehensive legislation to overhaul Illinois' faltering pension system before lawmakers adjourn Friday dimmed after the Illinois Senate overwhelmingly rejected a House-sponsored reform package estimated to save the state $187 billion in the coming decades.

It would be difficult but not impossible for Detroit or its creditors to lay claim to the Detroit Institute of Arts' prized collection, bankruptcy attorneys say.

Senate Majority Leader Randy Richardville Wednesday introduced a measure to protect the Detroit Institute of Art's prized art collection, days after the city's emergency manager warned the art is vulnerable to creditors.

A federal court in Rhode Island denied a request from three communities for a temporary restraining order against tolls on the Sakonnet River Bridge.

The Tuomey Healthcare System in South Carolina Tuesday notified investors that S&P downgraded its bonds to BB because of a federal court ruling that could render it insolvent.

Holders of Detroit's general obligation bonds are taking note of the specific pledges securing their paper and how the debt might be treated differently in bankruptcy.

A majority of investors holding $113 million of bonds issued for the privately owned and operated Branson Airport in Missouri have agreed to give the struggling Ozarks air field more breathing room to bolster operations.

California Controller John Chiang issues scathing report on Bell, Calif. but city officials say they are close to clearing up their audits and a $39 million bond default involving Dexia.

Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe will name a replacement soon for former Treasurer Martha Shoffner, who resigned after being arrested on a federal extortion charge.

Rhode Island's Pension Study Commission has summoned Coventry officials, who say they have no obligation to replenish an employee pension fund should it go broke.

A five-member Michigan review team Thursday said it found a fiscal emergency in the long-troubled Detroit suburb of Hamtramck, which could lead to an emergency manager.

Legal jousting began in Rhode Island between lawyers for the state and former Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling's failed video-game company, 38 Studios.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged South Miami, Fla. with defrauding investors by negligently making misstatements and failing to disclose actions it took that jeopardized the tax-exempt status of $12 million of bonds.