Public finance

Legislation recently introduced in Congress would transfer nearly all authority over federal highway and transit programs to states and substantially reduce federal motor fuel taxes over a five-year period.

The tax-exempt market ended firmer for the week as investors put in more orders for bonds than were available on deals in the primary market. The secondary was firmer as the week progressed with dealers unloading balances from deals to customers at higher prices.

As Jefferson County, Ala., began to sell sewer warrants on Friday, analysts said they remained concerned about the rate increases needed to repay the debt.

Tolls from managed traffic lanes can be an effective way to fund expensive highway projects, but investors need to consider revenue volatility.

States are no longer waiting for the federal government when it comes to trying to drum up new revenue for transportation infrastructure, said Victor Mendez, administrator, Federal Highway Administration, Friday morning at the Bond Buyer's Transportation Finance/P3 conference here.

Bill de Blasio's budget proposal about a month into his tenure could provide a window to investors anxious to see how New York's new mayor will handle finances.

A Nov. 11 announcement that Major League Baseball’s Atlanta Braves will be building a new stadium in suburban Cobb County and will receive some form of local government funding has brought an age-old debate on whether public dollars for sports facilities makes economic sense for municipalities back to the forefront. The question of governments such as Cobb County utilizing public money for sports venues was raised on Nov. 6 during a panel called “Stadium Financing: Boon or Bane” at the Bloomberg State & Municipal Conference in New York. Gregory Carey, managing director at Goldman Sachs & Co. who heads the investment banking company’s sports finance and surface transportation finance group, argued that the pros of governments investing in stadiums and arenas for their sports teams outweighs the cons. One example cited by Carey was how the $400 million the state of Minnesota is putting in toward a new stadium for the Minnesota Vikings comprises roughly the payroll tax paid by the National Football League franchise that would be lost should the team have relocated out of the area.

The Puerto Rico Treasury is taking a variety of steps to crack down on tax evasion, including hiring 195 professionals to crack down on the practice.

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The Bond Buyer's weekly yield indexes rose the week ended Nov. 14.

Investor demand for municipal bond mutual funds remained sluggish for a 25th straight week, with outflows of $903 million for the week of Nov. 13.

Fitch Ratings placed the BBB-minus rating of Puerto Rico's general obligation bonds on rating watch negative, citing in part concerns about market access.

Legislation introduced in the Senate Thursday would create a new financing authority that would provide loans and loan guarantees for infrastructure projects.

The proposed merger of US Airways Group and American Airlines could be bad news for smaller airports as the combo unit gives up gates at major hubs, Moody's says.

Municipal borrowers looking to expedite the process to tap the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act program for project loans should bring a thorough financing package to the table and be flexible in negotiating terms, loan recipients offered up as advice Thursday.

The federal judge overseeing Detroit's bankruptcy case ruled Thursday that the city must reveal the fees it plans to pay to Barclays for a $350 million debtor-in-possession financing, one of the few DIP loans for a municipality in Chapter 9.

The total net assets of tax-exempt money market funds declined by $1.32 billion to $263.26 billion in the week ended Nov. 11, as they gave up most of the prior week's gains.

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