Public finance

The meeting, set for July 22 and July 23, will be the board's final quarterly meeting of fiscal year 2026.

Meanwhile, settlements in New York and California cases may be near.

The grace periods are getting shorter.

The state's Republican governor and legislative leaders ordered 3% cuts for the next biannual budget as they announced their priorities for the 2027 session.

The district is planning to bring $1.17 billion of revenue bonds to the market next week.

The focus on Wednesday has been on the primary market, particularly the six-part $2.4 billion deal from the New York State Thruway Authority, which came a little wider than where the issuer had been trading in the secondary market.

"Currently, we are spending a lot more time of our day in the regulatory space in responding to proposed rules and changes," GFOA's Paige Mellerio said.

Given the vastness of the municipal bond universe, analysts have credited some technologies for providing participants witthe ability to better manage, evaluate and navigate the market. 

Fitch Ratings upgraded Cook County to AA-plus from AA on Monday, citing the county's moderating long-term liability burden and sustained resource base growth.

Milwaukee is considering a bond-financed municipalization of its electric utility, which is currently run by investor-owned We Energies.

The Aquarion deal is joined this week by two other sizable deals: the New York State Thruway Authority's $2.444 billion state personal income tax revenue bonds, and the New Jersey Turnpike Authority's $1.06 billion turnpike revenue bonds in two deals.

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee released a bipartisan agreement on the Water Resource Development Act, a positive step toward answering questions about state revolving funds used by local water authorities for infrastructure improvements.

The Build America Bureau "continues to work with the project sponsor to obtain the information required for the creditworthiness review," said a USDOT spokesperson.

With many residents eschewing flood insurance, the floods may, in the long term, hurt the tax base, an analyst said

The city's issuer rating was raised a notch to Aaa and ratings for other debt, including for its water and wastewater utility system, were also upgraded.

Many local governments face budget issues, including two of the largest cities by population, New York City and Chicago, both of which saw negative rating action during the first half of the year, per Breckinridge strategists.

The new Fed chairman has emphasized policymakers' commitment to tackling inflation since he took office in May and said the number one objective is to get monetary policy right.

Increased use and size of the economic development tool led to the exemption of about $1.1 billion in property taxes between 2010 and 2024.

Inflation concerns have the UST market betting on a "higher-for-longer" interest rate environment, Chris Brigati wrote for SWBC.

The Puerto Rico Oversight Board want the U.S. Appeals Court for the First Circuit to uphold a lower court's rejection of the bondholders greater than $3.7 billion claim.