Public finance

School districts are facing many challenges, including less federal funding, increased competition, declining enrollment and inflating costs.

The city council signed off on an $810 million debt sale, while it considers asking voters for a property tax rate increase this year to address budget gaps.

An investor presentation highlights industry conferences and consulting services that "have made the CIA the 'think tank' of the food service industry."

The asset class got a "much-needed boost" from inflows into muni mutual funds last week, said Birch Creek strategists.

The port, which operates Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, received a Moody's Ratings upgrade ahead of a $761 million revenue bond deal slated for next week.

Although the Federal Reserve is not expected to cut rates at this meeting, the market is closely watching for signs of a September easing and how the divide among officials plays out.

The funds have net assets of around $187 million.

Issuance for the week of July 28 is estimated at $11.035 billion, with $9.018 billion of negotiated deals and $2.017 billion of competitive deals on tap, according to LSEG.

Damage claims from the Eaton wildfire could wipe out the $21 billion fund created to protect utilities and their customers when an investor-owned utility's equipment is deemed responsible.

Investors are watching an Aug. 13 refinancing on $985 million of bonds for proposed commuter line projects with southern Florida counties.

Columbia College Chicago was lowered one notch to BB-plus from BBB-minus by S&P Global Ratings, citing the school's falling headcount and diminished demand.

The top five featured in the ranking handled deals totalling more than $84 billion in par value.

The airport, also selling $412.8 million of new money, will join a bevy of issuers who have deployed a tender offer in the hope of realizing refunding savings.

Investors added $571.5 million from municipal bond mutual funds in the week ended Wednesday, following $224.6 million of outflows the prior week, according to LSEG Lipper data.

The fund's sell-off in June shows the challenges of accurate pricing in the high-yield muni market.

Larger dealer networks lead to lower markups, but smaller networks show evidence of potential collusion and market manipulation, the paper said.

Year-to-date volume stands at $310.166 billion, up 17.4% from $264.151 billion at the same time last year, prompting several firms to revisit their supply projections for the year.

The toll revenue bonds, subject to federal alternative minimum tax, will be issued through the Wisconsin-based Public Finance Authority.

U.S. District Judge Laura Taylor Swain gave no indication at the hearing as to how she was leaning and said some issues might not be able to be resolved as a matter of law.

Longer-term munis have become more attractive, said Cooper Howard, a fixed income strategist at Charles Schwab.