Natural disasters

The Los Angeles-area wildfires have sparked a negative rating watch for several credits from Fitch Ratings.

With losses expected to be measured in the tens or hundreds of billions, the municipal finance industry begins to take stock of the Los Angeles-area wildfires.

Because of the disaster, income tax filing deadlines for Los Angeles County residents will be delayed to October, muddying the revenue picture for the state.

Trading in Los Angeles credits has become more volatile. An L.A. Department of Water and Power deal slated for Wednesday went day-to-day.

Lifting the SALT cap is one of several thorny issues Republicans hope to iron out as part of a larger reconciliation bill by March.

Early totals on Los Angeles' trio of raging fires appear to vastly surpass devastating blazes experienced by the city over the past decade.

In the long run, Helene and Milton may further drive already rising property insurance costs, while in the short-term S&P placed three utilities on CreditWatch.

Local governments that were in Hurricane Milton's path, however, will face significant credit challenges, Moody's said.

Santa Cruz, on California's coast, was particularly hard hit by flooding in 2023. In addition to the the I-Bank loan, the city secured a federal loan.

Fears of a Hawaiian Electric bankruptcy abated after a settlement was announced that would cap the utility's liability for the Maui wildfire under $2 billion.