Washington

WASHINGTON — This isn't the first time the Securities and Exchange Commission's has had conduit bonds in their cross hairs.

The SEC's request to impose corporate-style registration and disclosure requirements on certain conduit borrowers may not affect those that are responsible for most defaults, data shows.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has ordered four firms to pay more than $53,000 in fines and restitution to customers for violations of municipal securities fair-dealing, pricing and other rules.

Providers of municipal market data met with Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board staff Thursday to discuss concerns that municipal market participants do not adequately understand muni market indices.

The IRS is auditing $100.89 million of state capital project bonds that the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation issued in October 2006.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board proposed rule changes Wednesday that would require dealers to disclose more details about their contributions to bond ballot campaigns.

Municipal market participants have mixed opinions about the benefits and burdens of a proposal to restrict the ability of underwriters to consent to bond-document changes.

Attorneys for Miami have proposed a settlement to head off federal civil charges proposed by Securities and Exchange Commission, which filed a similar case against the city in the 1990s.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board released a proposal Thursday aimed at increasing protection for retail investors who trade municipal bonds online.

The National Federation of Municipal Analysts released updated disclosure recommendations for issuers of variable-rate demand obligations and other short-term securities on Wednesday.