Washington

The Securities and Exchange Commission has announced it intends to issue an order that will allow municipal advisors that are also considered investment advisors to be excluded under its pay-to-play rule for investment advisers because they are now covered under a revised Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board rule.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board will soon introduce the first two of several educational courses it plans to offer as part of its new learning management system designed to keep participants up to date on the municipal market and in compliance with their continuing education requirements.

The default of some unrated nonprofit project bonds in Michigan and subsequent struggle to recover funds highlights the frustration bondholders sometimes feel in working with trustees, who are tasked with acting as the agents of the investors in distressed and default situations.

Ernesto Lanza, formerly a shareholder with the law firm Greenberg Traurig, joined the D.C. office of Clark Hill as a senior counsel in August.

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s settlements with 71 issuers announced on Wednesday under a voluntary continuing disclosure enforcement initiative showed “a widespread and pervasive problem” with continuing disclosure in the municipal bond market but have led to some improvements, the SEC’s enforcement chief said Wednesday.

Wells Fargo Securities and Barclays Capital have agreed to pay the Rhode Island Commerce Corp. $25.6 million in a proposed settlement of a lawsuit involving a loan to former videogame company 38 Studios, the state announced Tuesday.

A criminal case alleging two Ramapo, N.Y. officials misled investors and credit rating agencies in connection with municipal bonds would go to trial on Jan. 9 under the timeline the federal judge has put forth for the proceedings.

The Government Finance Officers Association is urging its members to write senators about the need to get companion legislation to a House bill that would classify investment-grade municipal securities as high quality liquid assets under a rule by written by bank regulators.

Dealers will have 10 calendar days to close out failed inter-dealer transactions now that the Securities and Exchange Commission has approved the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board's amendments to one of its rules.

Municipal issuers are blasting the National Federation of Municipal Analysts' suggestion that Congress give the Securities and Exchange Commission new authority to regulate issuers' disclosures, calling it overly burdensome and ineffective.