Muni Think

The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico has a long history of fiscal uncertainty and structural deficits. Responding to decades of general fund deficits in 2014, the rating services lowered the ratings on the Commonwealth’s general obligation credit to below investment grade, or junk status.

Contrary to the assertion in a Bond Buyer article that the 2010s may turn out to be the decade of the municipal bankruptcy, it is remarkable how few muni bankruptcies were sought in the wake of the most severe fiscal crisis to hit local governments since the Great Depression.

The Internal Revenue Service has announced a simplified process for issuers that have loaned proceeds of qualified 501(c)(3) bonds to borrowers that automatically lost their tax-exempt status for failing to file annual returns or notices for three consecutive years, but have subsequently received reinstatement of their tax-exempt status from the IRS.

The Florida dirt bond sector, after retrenching dramatically during the financial crisis, is showing signs of recovery in both market activity and credit measures.

Some non-dealer municipal advisors wrongly believe providing advice to an issuer in their capacity as a municipal advisors means they can also act as an intermediary between the issuer and investors.

As it steps up its efforts to police the municipal securities market, the regulator is turning to potentially career ending sanctions for municipal officials.

With the government contemplating changes to the tax exempt status of municipal bonds and investors faced with dubiously researched claims about the potential for defaults, the industry needs someone to step into the late Jim Lebenthal's role, his daughter writes.

When markets are so opaque that trading occurs only in a small fraction of outstanding issues, transactional and risk clarity has to be restored, a market advisor writes.

Are some tax-exempt bond issuers incurring unnecessary costs and unexpected risks by over-relying on traditional fixed rate debt?

The Allen Park, Mich., case marks the first time a city official has been charged on the theory that he "controlled" the persons who committed the primary securities law violations, even though he isn't alleged to have participated or even known of the conduct at issue.