Law and regulation

Municipal market groups are ready to band together in 2016 to show the Securities and Exchange Commission that they can improve disclosure practices without increased regulation, even as the commission is set to continue publishing settlements with underwriters and issuers who have failed to comply with their continuing disclosure obligations.

Municipal market participants will once again see an active year for enforcement in 2016 as the Securities and Exchange Commission's self-reporting initiative largely wraps up and the enforcement division mixes a continued focus on pricing and market structure actions with potential new areas for enforcement like municipal advisors and bank loans.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has approved the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board's core conduct rule for municipal advisors, despite its controversial ban on principal transactions.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board filed proposed rule changes with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday to extend its political contributions rule to non-dealer municipal advisors and MAs soliciting business for dealers, advisors or investment advisors.

Dealer groups want the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board and Financial Industry Regulatory Authority to adopt the same approach, but one that is less costly and burdensome, for requiring dealers acting as principals to disclose to retail customers the markups and markdowns on muni trades.

Rep. Luke Messer, R-Ind., and local finance officers plan to continue to push a bill that would treat investment grade and actively traded municipal securities as high quality liquid assets under a bank liquidity rule adopted by bank regulators in 2014.

Municipal market groups are generally supporting a Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board proposal to speed up settlements of muni transactions to two from three days.

Members of the Government Finance Officers Association raised concerns with the Securities and Exchange Commission's proposed rule changes that would require open-end mutual funds and exchange traded funds to take steps to manage liquidity risks so they could handle redemptions during periods of financial stress.

Fifteen organizations are urging members of the House of Representatives to vote on a proposed bill that would treat investment grade and actively traded municipal securities as high quality liquid assets under a bank liquidity rule adopted by bank regulators in September of last year.

Two dealer groups are urging the Securities and Exchange Commission to disapprove the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s proposed municipal advisor core conduct rule, despite an amendment that would provide an exception to the rule’s controversial principal transaction ban.

Three muni regulators and enforcement agencies are opening registration for a free compliance outreach program for municipal advisors that they plan to hold in Philadelphia on Wednesday, Feb 3, 2016.

Bond Dealers of America plans to move its offices to K Street here on Dec. 7 to have more space in which to grow and to continue to enhance its lobbying efforts.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board on Monday announced seven members of an investor advisory group designed to give its board of directors additional expertise on investor protection issues.

Christopher Brogdon, the retirement home financier who is facing Securities and Exchange Commission charges, has denied being liable for a particularly problematic deal in new filings with a federal court in Georgia.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board is working with the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Investor Advocate to identify areas in the muni market that could hurt retail investors.

Municipal market participants want to know why it has taken securities regulators so long to stop Christopher Brogdon from swindling investors by misusing for personal gain the proceeds of bonds and private placements that were supposed to finance the purchase and renovation of senior living facilities.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board's proposed rule changes to lengthen its board members' terms to four years from three has garnered general support from dealer and advisor groups as well as the Securities and Exchange Commission's Office of the Investor Advocate.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has obtained an emergency freeze of the assets of an Atlanta-based businessman and filed a lawsuit charging him and his associates with fraud for misusing investor proceeds that were intended to be used to purchase and renovate senior living facilities.

Two Senators have introduced a bipartisan bill that would allow tax-exempt private-activity bonds to be used to help power plants and industrial facilities finance projects to capture and store carbon dioxide.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board released its much-anticipated best execution guidance for dealers on Friday, providing answers to frequently asked questions about the rule as well as the exemption for sophisticated municipal market professionals.