Munis

State Sen. John Moorlach thinks cities and counties should have to obtain voter approval before issuing pension obligation bonds.

Shifts in smoking habits and increasing tobacco restrictions drove two downgrades of the New Jersey Cigarette Tax Revenue Bonds.

A Florida utility continues to pursue a lawsuit against a public power agency with a stake in the Plant Vogtle project.

Municipal bond counsels accumulated $87.02 billion, up from the $75.14 billion in the first three months of 2019. The top spot remained the same but the rest of the top 10 saw a plethora of changes.

The two active municipal bond insurers insured $4.83 billion in the first quarter of 2020, an uptick from the $3.62 billion of wrapped deals done in the first three months of 2019. The year-over-year increase in the sector is noteworthy given that the primary market was shuttered for weeks in March due to the coronroavirus pandemic.

Virgin Trains USA hopes to sell tax-exempt bonds from its $600 million California allocation this summer.

S&P shifted its outlook the Illinois public universities it rates to negative as questions abound over how the state will manage revenue losses.

Due to the coronavirus, a plant in Indiana may not be able to make its bond payments.

The state will fast-track billions in road projects despite not knowing how the pandemic could impact revenues.

Among NABL's asks from Congress is to introduce a direct-pay taxable bond program through a new proposed bill.

The office of Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul informed a Cook County court it will not allow the Edelweiss lawsuit to be dismissed on public disclosure grounds.

Moody's Investors Service revised the Pennsylvania regional health system to negative citing revenue risks from COVID-19.

Stay-at-home orders and school closures driven by COVID-19 have cut traffic in half or more on many toll roads and bridges.

Financial advisors in the municipal bond market accumulated $74.48 billion, up from the $65.03 billion in the first three months of 2019. The top four places remained the same but the rest of the top 10 all saw big changes.

Despite a muted month of March due to the COVID-19 pandemic which included two weeks of no negotiated deals, muni bond issuers still sold more long-term debt than they did during the first three months of 2019. Issuers accounted for a total of $84.87 billion of bonds throughout 2,119 transactions, compared to $75.84 billion in 1,809 deals in first quarter of 2019. The top 10 features five newcomers from a year ago, including the top spot.

Underwriters of municipal bonds did the majority of business during the first two months of the year, before COVID-19 swept the country with sickness and severe spreading. The top underwriters accounted for $87.84 billion of bonds throughout 2,119 transactions, compared to $75.84 billion in 1,809 deals in first quarter of 2019.

Tuition revenue headwinds made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic cost New Jersey’s Rider University its investment grade rating.

Public finance advocates are focused on the reinstatement of advance refunding and higher limits on bank-qualified issuance.

The corporate bond business appears to enjoy greater liquidity than tax-exempts, said Lee Deviney, executive director of the Texas Public Finance Authority.

While some types of revenue bonds may be less adversely affected than other types of revenue bonds, the entire market could see significant stress as the pandemic continues.