Municipal disclosure

Recently, the SEC has focused its attention on disclosures related to artificial intelligence, including the use of machine-learning, generative models or algorithms, blockchain, and other similar emerging automated technologies, warning market participants of the risks associated with "AI-washing."

Investors may want to consider non-disclosure of climate hazards as a symbol of non-resilient projects and limited planning.

"The shortage of accountants is not a brand new-issue, but it seems to be more thematic this year," said Richard Ciccarone, president emeritus of Merritt Research Services.

In its first report since 2017 on municipal issuer disclosure, the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board found that the average audit time has risen slightly since 2018 to 209 days, its highest on record.

A pair of muni market experts propose cities and towns borrow through state-based, credit-enhanced bond banks to make the market more efficient.

Like many higher education institutions, the university's financial woes started when enrollment dropped thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The median time for issuers in all municipal bond sectors to produce audited financials rose nearly 10.5% from 2011 to 2022, according to a new report.

Proposed rulemaking on the FDTA is expected in June, but clarity on what exactly it means for the muni market is years down the line.

John Hallacy of John Hallacy Consulting and Rich Ciccarone, president emeritus of Merritt Research Services, talk with Chip Barnett about the municipal bond business over the past 40 years. They take a look back at where the industry has been, where it is and where it will be going.

The Fortress Investment Group-backed Brightline now anticipates carrying 4.9 million passengers between Miami and the Orlando airport.

"Insurance rationing by the leading insurers is becoming the mechanism by which climate risk is starting to impact municipal issuers," said Triet Nguyen, vice president of strategic data operations at DPC Data.

While the SEC's cybersecurity rule does not apply to municipal issuers, there are a few points discussed in the Adopting Release that may be useful for municipal market participants. 

With economic uncertainty ahead and the Federal Reserve potentially shifting to interest-rate cuts, analysts should take a closer look at individual issuers' financial disclosures.

Los Angeles alone reported more than 500 mudslides from a storm that deluged the city for days.

The University of Chicago Harris School's Center for Municipal Finance is joining forces with Investortools to help advance municipal finance knowledge.

The current property insurance crisis in several states may dramatically shorten the climate risk horizon for municipal investors. The municipal market's relaxed attitude toward climate risk may be seriously challenged in the years ahead.

The Governmental Accounting Standards Board's new disclosure requirements focus on concentrations and constraints and governments will have to comply by June 15, 2024.

The process of turning the data into a usable form takes time and can be compounded by the difficulty of extracting what data there is and the format used by issuers in documents, like official statements, disclosures and other financials.

Record-breaking hot temperatures in the Southwest this summer likely had economic consequences and could focus the municipal bond market on heat-related credit risks and infrastructure needs.

The National Association of Bond Lawyers has a new president.