Bonds

As high-speed rail project sponsors across the country compete for federal infrastructure funds, Republican lawmakers Wednesday urged U.S. transportation chief Pete Buttigieg to reject California’s request for its long-struggling project. “We should work together, you and I, to conduct a full audit of the project before any high-speed grant decisions are made,” Rep. Troy Nehls,

Voters will determine if Polk County, Iowa will issue up to $350 million of general obligation bonds to help fund a terminal project at the Des Moines International Airport. The county board of supervisors on Tuesday unanimously approved placing a bond referendum on the Nov. 7 ballot.  The Des Moines Airport Authority, which can issue

An Iowa state law adopted this year means local governments and school districts will face a new hurdle in issuing municipal bonds. House File 718, which Gov. Kim Reynolds signed into law in May, decreased the options for municipalities and school districts to hold bond elections. Until now, cities and school districts in Iowa had

California’s revenues for August came in $1.3 billion above projections putting the state $75 million above the $21.9 billion expected for the first two months of the fiscal year, according to the Department of Finance. The revenues of $1.3 billion were 11.1% above the forecast of $12.16 billion, as receipts from nearly all revenue sources

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp has suspended his state’s gasoline tax for one month as prices at the pump continue to increase. Kemp cited high fuel costs and persistent inflation when he declared a legal state of emergency last week and signed an executive order suspending Georgia’s 31.2 cents-per-gallon tax on gas and 35-cents-per-gallon tax on

California Gov. Gavin Newsom made a pair of big climate-change related announcements this weekend as Climate Week NYC kicked off in New York City. During a Sunday interview at the event, Newsom said he plans to sign into law two bills approved by state lawmakers intended to force major corporations to be more transparent about

Moody’s Investors Service rated the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority’s controversial issuance of initial debt for a $5 billion, 15-year expansion program Aa3 with a stable outlook.  The rating agency, which previously considered a debt increase for the ACCESS (Advancing and Connecting Communities and Economies Safely Statewide) Oklahoma program a negative credit factor for OTA, was the

City of Hope received approval Tuesday from the Illinois Finance Authority to refund up to $650 million of bonds sold last year to refinance a taxable bridge loan for its purchase of Cancer Treatment Centers of America facilities in Illinois, Arizona, and Georgia. The refunding was among $1.3 billion in conduit financings approved by the

Outstanding Illinois debt is now smoke-free after the state defeased the last $449 million of bonds backed by payments from a master settlement agreement with tobacco companies.  Gov. J.B. Pritzker said the move, which was included in Illinois’ fiscal 2024 budget, will save the state $50 million. “Today’s action reflects Illinois’ strong fiscal position and

Rural broadband firm Bug Tussel’s first bond deal was in 2012, when Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin, issued $5.85 million of bonds and the company installed new broadband that ran at five megabytes per second. These figures seem quaint now. Bug Tussel, through Fond Du Lac County, has priced $220.9 million in bonds in partnerships

The Oklahoma Turnpike Authority could be in the municipal market as early as next month after winning conditional approval for $500 million of revenue bonds from a state oversight board. Monday’s approval by the Oklahoma Council of Bond Oversight in a 3-1 vote is subject to the resolution or dismissal of a petition for a

Voters in Maine will have a lot of material to chew over before they decide later this year if a public agency should take over service provided by investor-owned electric utilities. What they won’t necessarily get is a slam-dunk yes or no recommendation. Maine’s Office of the Public Advocate, a state office created to represent

Although the hospital sector has gained traction in recovering from the pandemic, smaller not-for-profit hospitals continue to struggle. With that in mind, California lawmakers took action by approving a zero-interest loan program in May to serve not-for-profit hospitals and public hospitals in significant financial distress. The two agencies charged with running the loan program announced

Officials in Polk County, Iowa, will decide later this month whether to place a referendum on the Nov. 7 ballot seeking voter approval for the issuance of up to $350 million of general obligation bonds for a terminal project at the Des Moines International Airport.  The Des Moines Airport Authority, which can issue debt on

California Attorney General Rob Bonta conditionally approved the $35.6 million sale of three northern California skilled nursing facilities owned by Eskaton. Eskaton, a Carmichael, California-based not-for-profit senior healthcare provider formed in 1968, had $102.8 million in revenue bonds and notes at the end of fiscal year 2022, according to combined audited financial statements for the

While the economic loss from Hurricane Idalia will be counted in the billions of dollars, it could have been a lot worse as it pales in comparison to the death and destruction brought about by Hurricane Ian last year. Idalia made landfall last week as a Category 3 hurricane in the Big Bend area of

Enjoy complimentary access to top ideas and insights — selected by our editors. Transcription: Lynne Funk (00:03):Hello everyone, and welcome to another Bond Buyer podcast. I’m Lynne Funk, executive editor at The Bond Buyer. I’m excited to welcome Ruth Ducret, Senior Research Analyst at Breckinridge. Ruth has more than 19 years of experience in the

Kentucky is gearing up for the start of sports betting at retail locations on Thursday. “Excitement for sports wagering is building as we are just one week away from opening retail locations and one month from opening mobile applications for sports wagering,” said Gov. Andy Beshear said in a statement last week. Kentucky Senate Majority

Oregon’s third-largest city is about to lose its only hospital, illustrating the fallout of pressured health-care systems across the country.  Operator PeaceHealth announced last week its plan to shutter University District hospital because of underutilization. The hospital in Eugene, which is home to the University of Oregon, loses an average of $2 million a month,

Although Oregon’s tax collections have stabilized after several quarters of unexpectedly rapid growth, the state expects to pay out a record-breaking $5.6 billion through its “kicker” rebate, according to state economists, while lawmakers expect to have more to spend on infrastructure and social programs. The previous record kicker was $1.9 billion in 2022. Taxpayers will