State budgets

The question of how to pay for the governor's $21 billion, 10-year transportation bill points to the political third rail of highway tolls.

Montreal businessman Anthony McCord will arrive next month as New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority's chief transformation officer to address the authority's myriad operational and capital funding challenges.

NDH founder Scott Haber told Louisiana officials that state tax credits can provide seed funding for public-private partnership projects.

The risk of a state takeover of the bankrupt utility, which Gov. Gavin Newsom has suggested, is not incorporated into California's rating, S&P said.

Reduced activity in the oil patch is showing up in Oklahoma's revenue growth, Treasurer Randy McDaniel said.

Gov. Brian Kemp asked state agencies to reduce spending by 4% in the current budget and by 6% in fiscal 2021.

Kenneth Potts, senior vice president and portfolio manager at Fiera Capital, checks in on the state of the municipal bond market. He talks about the effect of the SALT deduction on high-tax states and supply and demand factors in this podcast recorded in September. Chip Barnett hosts.

Proposition CC, which would have allowed the state to retain revenues above a 27-year-old formula, was defeated.

Moody's Investors Service upgraded $1.2 billion of general obligation bonds to Aa1 from Aa2.

The unfunded liabilities rose to $137 billion in fiscal 2019 from $134 billion, and the state will have to contribute $600 million more in fiscal 2021.

Texas continued its record-setting pace in October with monthly sales tax revenue growing 7% year-over-year to $2.82 billion.

The New Jersey Department of the Treasury released $53.7 million of $104.8 million in suspended transitional aid.

Jared Polis proposed a $34.5 billion budget, including $13.8 billion for the general fund.

The federal government has been operating on a stopgap budget since the Oct. 1 start of the fiscal year but President Trump has declined to give any assurance he will agree to another one past Nov. 21.

Andrew Rein president of the watchdog Citizens Budget Commission, tells The Bond Buyer's Paul Burton why New York City voters on Nov. 5 should vote yes on ballot Question 4, which calls for a dedicated rainy-day fund. The state must also approve the change.

Optimistic investment assumptions are the primary cause of public-sector pension plan underfunding, according to a report by Hilltop Securities.

State Treasurer Randy McDaniel said the state’s efforts to increase reserves, eliminate structural deficits, improve pension finances, and diversify the state’s economy are working.

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker's administration says the forecast shows that Illinois needs to change its income tax structure.

The taxing and regulating of a new product that's ingested into the lungs to deliver nicotine is dealt with under federal, state and local laws. William Cox explains Kroll Bond Rating Agency's thoughts about vaping and the associated revenues for governments. John Hallacy hosts.

A Senate committee has approved a bill requiring remote sellers to collect the state's 6% sales tax. It could generate $700 million in new revenue.