Public finance

An attempt by an issuer to introduce protective language into bond documents on a taxable municipal hospital deal backfired and was thwarted by bondholders, Adam Cohen, the founder of Covenant Review, told a meeting of the Fixed Income Analysts Society on Thursday night.

A trade war or trade slowdown with China could impact some credits, with West Coast container ports particularly vulnerable.

ALABAMA

ARIZONA

The weekly average yield to maturity of The Bond Buyer Municipal Bond Index, which is based on 40 long-term bond prices, rose three basis points to 4.28% from 4.25% in the previous week.

Elected officials must persuade motorists of the value of interstate highway tolling, according to new Fitch report.

CONNECTICUT

ALABAMA

Municipal investors at client meetings with BlackRock are expressing more concern about rising interest rates than about the potential impact of tax reform – to the surprise of officials in the firm’s muni group.

Bipartisan caucus of lawmakers wants to meet with President Trump on developing consensus tax reform, infrastructure legislation.

CALIFORNIA

COLORADO

Keeping the full tax-exemption for municipal bonds will be vital to America’s plans for rebuilding its infrastructure, Scott Pattison, executive director and CEO of the National Governors Association, said on Tuesday.

West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice wants a higher gasoline tax to support up to $2.8 billion of road bonds.

Two corporate executives and lobbyists told treasurers meeting here on Monday that they are hearing positive things about municipal bonds from legislative staffers, but a senior tax staffer from the Senate Finance Committee said tax reform may slip into 2018.

MASSACHUSETTS

CALIFORNIA

Texas Central Rail has dropped eminent domain lawsuits due to “positive dialogue” with many landowners.

Short-term note issuance slipped 1.5% in 2016 as continued austerity among state and local governments and attractive long-term interest rates kept the sector in a downward trend.

MISSOURI