Natural disasters

Politicians are reacting to public frustration about wildfires and planned electricity outages.

Most of the proceeds will refinance direct placement debt with bonds sold in the public markets.

Climate expert Alan Rubin of Blank Rome LLP discusses resiliency and recovery funding mechanisms, rating agency dynamics and how states and cities can cope effectively. Paul Burton hosts.

PG&E Corp. warns it may orchestrate its biggest planned blackout yet to keep power lines from sparking more blazes.

Bankrupt investor-owned utility PG&E was a factor in many of the bills approved to deal with the state's wildfire risk.

Some of the solutions contemplated to bring the investor-owned utility out of bankruptcy involve tapping the municipal bond market.

All three entities have liquidity available to pay claims before turning to bonds to finance losses, said Moody's Investors Service.

CDBG mitigation is a new program to support communities for events that are likely to occur rather than recovery from events that have already occurred. Some disaster recovery funds have been used in the past for mitigation.

The bonds sold for Paradise, the town nearly leveled by a 2018 fire, remain at speculative grade.

A new state law established the wildfire fund to provide a financial buffer for claims against utilities.

The new letter increases the pressure for federal oversight as the island goes through the long process of rebuilding from the damage caused by Hurricane Maria and reorganizing its debt.

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the bill to establish the wildfire fund, to be seeded with new bonds backed by an old utility ratepayer surcharge.

Lawmakers are plowing through a pile of trailer bills, including two tax increases, that must pass to avoid blowing a hole in their $214.8 billion budget.

The commonwealth overall has been allocated $42.3 billion in disaster aid since Hurricanes Maria and Irma struck the island, not counting the new funding approved by Congress.

The disaster-aid measure was delayed for about six months amid Trump’s objections to additional aid for Puerto Rico.

Natalie Cohen and Lynne Funk Posner discuss climate change — from floods to hurricanes to Superfund sites — and how these issues affect state and local governments.

The new guidance issued Wednesday under Notice 2019-39 covers, among other things, Tribal Economic Development Bonds and direct-pay Build America Bonds.

Climate analytics business risQ is partnering with Municipal Markets Analytics to get a better handle on the risk climate change creates for municipal debt.

Damage from the floodwaters will impact state and local governments and ripple through the region's economy.

The House Natural Resources Committee has scheduled a May 2 hearing to examine the successes and failures of PROMESA.