Tax reform

The 29% tax exposure rate is up for a readjustment because the new tax bill slashed the corporate tax rate to 21% from 35% and also lowered individual tax rates.

The light month for long-term municipal bond volume is another ripple effect of the new tax law and the issuance rush leading up to its enactment.

John Cross, the Treasury Department's associate tax legislative counsel, said the existing tax rules are clear on advance refundings of taxable debt.

Long-term issuance in the municipal market virtually matched its record high set in 2016, against the backdrop of tax reform that produced an end-of-year flood of volume, but the outlook for 2018 is less rosy.

The plan would expand flexibility and broaden the uses of tax-exempt private activity bonds.

Shorter calls and a shift in the use of floating rate paper are part of Wisconsin's toolkit after tax reform.

The MSRB's annual Fact Book paints a picture of a 2017 muni market that held fairly steady despite tax reform anxiety, with no major declines or drastic shifts in trading activity or trends.

Treasury Department sales of state and local government series securities are expected to dramatically decline this month now that issuers no longer need them for tax-exempt advance refunding escrows.

The Government Finance Officers Association's federal liaison center is warning some members against using interest rate swaps and derivatives.

The municipal bond market has had a rough start to 2018, according to a panel of buy and sell side experts at The Bond Buyer‘s Texas Public Finance Conference in Austin.

Lawmaker suggests advanced refundings be renamed “refinancing to save taxpayer dollars” and private activity bonds be called "public good bonds."

The final bill had several elements which will impact the municipal markets, and could potentially result in significant structural changes.

As the Baby Boom generation retires, economic growth may slow and fiscal deficits could grow, complicating monetary policy, Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City President Esther George said late Thursday.

NABL details at least seven alternatives for outstanding bonds as well as five ways that new bond transactions can be structured.

Some bond lawyers don't see a replacement for tax credit bonds, which were banned after last year by the new tax law.

There was no consensus on prospects for a federal infrastructure plan at Wednesday's Bond Buyer event.

Municipal bond volume evaporated in January, as the market felt the aftereffect of federal tax legislation that pulled issuance forward into 2017.

It will take some time to see how both tax reform and infrastructure makes an impression on the muni market, said panelists at The Bond Buyer's National Outlook 2018 Conference.

The $10,000 limit on deductions for state and local taxes could pose a long-term threat to Connecticut, New Jersey and New York, according to credit analysts.

First Deputy Mayor Dean Fuleihan put the price tag at $425 million over four years.