Tax

Congress should repeal the Tower Amendment and other securities law exemptions for municipal issuers so that the Securities and Exchange Commission can require them to comply with certain disclosure requirements as well as with generally accepted governmental accounting standards, SEC commissioner Elisse Walter said Wednesday night.

The federal government is expected to forego more than $26 billion in annual revenue each year from fiscal 2008 through fiscal 2012 because of what tax-exempt bond financing of infrastructure projects costs federal coffers, the Congressional Budget Office and Joint Committee on Taxation said in a report this week.

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service is auditing $61.3 million of auction-rate securities issued in 2005 by the Coastal Bend Health Facilities Development Corp. of Corpus Christi, Tex.

Fitch Ratings plans to weigh several factors unique to qualified school construction bonds, but will still approach the securities in basically the same way it handles traditional tax-exempt offerings, the agency said in a report to be issued today.

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service has determined that bonds issued by a university medical school to finance or refinance items used by a nonprofit hospital are considered obligations of a state governmental unit and therefore tax-exempt, the IRS said in a private-letter ruling released this week.

Maple Grove, Minn., has disclosed that the Internal Revenue Service has initiated an audit of $53.8 million of bonds it issued in 2005 to finance renovations and construction to two health care facilities.

WASHINGTON — The Treasury Department’s Inspector general for tax administration has found the Internal Revenue Service’s tax-exempt bond office cannot determine if states are complying with volume cap limits for private-activity bonds.

WASHINGTON — The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board plans to soon propose revising its Rule G-37 on political contributions to require municipal securities dealers, their muni professionals, and political action committees to disclose the political contributions they make to bond ballot election campaigns, the board announced yesterday, following its quarterly meeting last week.

WASHINGTON —The Obama administration yesterday unveiled a long-awaited temporary bond purchase and liquidity program designed to help state and local housing finance agencies that have been forced to curtail or shut down their programs during the financial crisis.

WASHINGTON — Groups representing student loan bond issuers, port authorities, and airports are asking Congress to permanently exempt private-activity bonds from the alternative minimum tax and allow all current PABs to be refinanced to obtain the exemption

WASHINGTON — Guggenheim Partners LLC wants to be the first in the municipal market to “strip” the tax credit from tax-credit bonds and isn’t waiting for the Treasury Department to issue guidance on the matter.

CHICAGO — The market for tax-credit bonds created by the federal stimulus is expected to take off despite a sluggish start and remaining questions surrounding the so-called tax-stripping option, said participants at The Bond Buyer’s Municipal Finance in the Stimulus Era conference here yesterday.

WASHINGTON — The American College of Bond Counsel yesterday named 20 new fellows to its group and announced the nominations of four officers and five new directors to lead the association.

WASHINGTON — Lauding the success of the Build America Bonds, market participants here yesterday turned their attention toward the potential for the program to be extended beyond its current Dec. 31, 2010, expiration.

A law school professor scheduled to speak during an American Bar Association teleconference today will question whether the Obama administration and Congress are attempting to "addict" the municipal market to taxable Build America Bonds.

WASHINGTON - The Obama administration is preparing to announce that it will provide $35 billion to help state and local housing finance agencies, many of which were hit hard by the economic crisis and forced to curtail or suspend tax-exempt bond programs that allow them to provide affordable mortgages. But the window for $20 billion of the assistance may close by the end of the year.

CHICAGO - Treasury Department officials are looking into whether a glitch in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act could prevent Build America Bond issuers from challenging the Internal Revenue Service in a U.S. District Court in an effort to reclaim federal subsidy payments halted as a result of an audit.

The Dormitory Authority of the State of New York approved the state's first qualified school construction bond deal at its monthly board meeting yesterday.

WASHINGTON - Municipal issuers and bond attorneys are concerned about when the Build America Bond cash payments issuers plan to use to make debt-service payments could be disrupted or even reclaimed by the Internal Revenue Service if it finds the BABs violate tax laws or rules.

DALLAS - The Tyler Junior College District will upgrade and repair critical infrastructure and existing facilities at its campuses in the East Texas city of Tyler with proceeds from today's competitive sale of $24.5 million of 10-year maintenance tax notes.