The Bond Buyer articles from December 2008

The Bond Buyer archives from December 2008

Michigan Hospital to Sell $170M Following Fitch Downgrade to A.(The Regions)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Caitlin Devitt CHICAGO - Michigan's William Beaumont Hospital is expected to enter the market this week with roughly $170 million of revenue bonds after it significantly scaled back its capital plan in the face of operational...

Northeast Bond-Watch.(Northeast)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Michelle Kaske, Ted Phillips NEW JERSEY GOP Targets Toll, Fare Hikes New Jersey Republicans last week filed a resolution to repeal recent bridge-toll increases by the Delaware River Port Authority and a 10% fare hike on...

California Lawmakers Fail to Reach Agreement on Plan for $11B Deficit.(The Regions)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Andrew Ward SAN FRANCISCO - The California Legislature's special session on the state's $11 billion budget deficit for the current fiscal year ended last week without any agreement on how to solve the ballooning budget problem. ...

S&P Upgrades 46 Texas Counties Due to Growth, Low Debt.(The Regions)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Richard Williamson DALLAS - Standard & Poor's has upgraded 46 Texas counties that are growing or maintaining small debt loads in a weakening economy. The counties "have proven themselves worthy of a higher rating because of...

S&P, Fitch Drop Dallas Schools To AA-Minus Before $400M Deal.(The Regions)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Jason Philyaw DALLAS - The Dallas Independent School District received downgrades from Fitch Ratings and Standard & Poor's last week as officials prepare to issue the first slice of a $1.35 billion authorization passed in May. ...

Illinois High Court to Hear Hospital's Tax Exemption Appeal.(The Regions)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Yvette Shields CHICAGO - The Illinois Supreme Court on Wednesday announced it would hear Provena Covenant Medical Center's appeal of a lower court opinion that stripped the Urbana hospital of its property tax exemption for failing...

Guidance: IRS Releases Notice on Midwest, Gulf Coast State Disaster Bonds.(Washington)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Peter Schroeder The Internal Revenue Service has released guidance for Midwestern and Gulf Coast states that wish to issue up to $17 billion of special tax-exempt private-activity bonds or tax-credit bonds authorized this year to...

LIPA Plans to Issue $200 Million of Debt in 2009.(The Regions)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Ted Phillips The Long Island Power Authority plans to sell $200 million of debt in 2009, according to its proposed budget released last week. The utility expects to vote on the plan on Dec. 11 following a public comment period. ...

Swap Termination Fees Continue To Bedevil MassPike's Finances.(The Regions)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Michelle Kaske Swap agreements continue to plague the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, as the agency would need to pay approximately $450 million in combined termination fees in the event of further credit rating downgrades. ...

Munis 'Totally Flat' in Early Close.(Market News)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Michael Scarchilli The municipal market was largely unchanged Wednesday, as the market closed early ahead of Thursday's Thanksgiving holiday. "There's nothing going on," a trader in New York said. "With the early close today,...

Jobless Claims Fall 14,000 To 529,000 in Nov. 22 Week.(Market News Briefs)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Market News International WASHINGTON - Initial unemployment claims fell back 14,000 to 529,000 in the Nov. 22 week, when all states were able to report without having to estimate, the Labor Department reported Wednesday. ...

Personal Income Off 0.3%; Core PCE Flat in October.(Market News Briefs)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Market News International WASHINGTON - October personal income printed up 0.3%, personal consumption expenditures fell 1.0% in its largest drop since the September 2001 terrorist attacks, and core PCE prices were flat for a 2.1%...

Durable Goods Orders Decline 6.2% in October.(Market News Briefs)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Market News International WASHINGTON - October durable goods orders fell 6.2% in their third drop in a row, marking the biggest drop since October 2006. September was revised to a negative from the original report. Orders excluding...

NAPM-NY Business Index Drops to 33.3 From 35.6.(Market News Briefs)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel New York City businesses in November suffered their worst month since April 2003, contracting for the 10th time in the past 11 months, according to the National Association of Purchasing Management-New York's Report...

October New Home Sales Slide 5.3% to 433,000 Rate.(Market News Briefs)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel Sales of new single-family homes slipped, falling 5.3% to a 433,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate in October, according to data released by the Commerce Department Wednesday. The September figure came after a...

Nov. Chicago PMI 33.8, Down From 37.8 in October.(Market News Briefs)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel The Chicago Purchasing Managers' Business Barometer slid to a still contractionary 33.8 in November, its lowest level since April 1982, from 37.8 in October, the National Association of Purchasing Management-Chicago...

Consumer Sentiment Slumps to 55.3 in Nov.(Market News Briefs)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel The University of Michigan's final November consumer sentiment index reading was 55.3 compared to the preliminary November 57.9, the final October 57.6, and the preliminary October reading of 57.5, according to...

Kansas City Fed: Activity Weakened in November.(Market News Briefs)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel Manufacturing activity in the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City region "weakened further in November, and firms' expectations for future activity declined considerably," according to the bank's monthly...

Treasury to Offer $28B 91s, $28B 182s.(Market News Briefs)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel The Treasury Department Wednesday said it will auction $28 billion of 91-day bills and $28 billion of 182-day discount bills today. The 91s are dated Dec. 4 and due March 5, 2009, and the 182s are dated Dec. 4...

Chicago Fed Index Drops 1.0% in October to 98.6.(Market News Briefs)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel The Chicago Fed Midwest Manufacturing Index slipped 1.0% in October to a seasonally adjusted level of 98.6. That followed a September report showing a revised 3.6% decrease to 99.5, originally reported as 2.6% drop...

Port Authority of N.Y. and N.J. to Sell $300M of Federally Taxable Notes.(The Regions)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Ted Phillips The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey plans to competitively market $300 million of federally taxable notes on Wednesday. The deal will be the largest competitive municipal debt sale since the market froze up...

With S&P AAA, San Antonio Readies $179M.(The Regions)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Richard Williamson DALLAS - San Antonio hopes to cash in on a flight to quality this week with $179 million of notes and bonds representing the city's last deal of the year. The $16 million of tax notes will sell separately...

Trends In The Region: Transforming Bayonne; City Going RAD to Develop Peninsula City Going RAD to Develop Peninsula.(Northeast)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Michelle Kaske Bayonne, N.J., wants to transform a former naval base in New York Harbor into a large-scale mixed-use development with the help of tax increment financing, among other funding options. The site is a 430-acre...

November Volume Down 22% From '07; Smallest Number of Deals Since 1983.(News)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Jack Herman New-issue par value volume in November fell 22% from last year, as the municipal market continued to grapple with the fallout from the credit crisis that has left it relying on retail investors to scoop up bonds. ...

The Week Ahead: Post-Holiday Issuance Set to Bounce Back.(Investors and Investing)(Calendar)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Christine Albano Compared to last week's lull in new-issue volume ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday, this week investors will have plenty of deals to choose from - including a handful of some of the most sizable offerings that the...

Obama Names Economic Advisory Board.(News)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Audrey Dutton and Patrick Temple-West WASHINGTON - President-elect Barack Obama will rely on a board of external advisers to both contribute to and oversee the development of the economic recovery proposals his administration plans...

Guest Words: Why Pension Funds Don't Buy Munis, and How They Could.(Commentary)
December 1, 2008... Byline: Eugene W. Harper Jr. To stimulate investment in infrastructure and to boost domestic employment, Congress should permit pension fund purchasers of municipal bonds to reassign only the tax-benefit - the exemption feature - of those...

Langford, 2 Others Indicted; Charges Stem From Jefferson Co. Deals.(News)
December 2, 2008... Byline: Shelly Sigo BRADENTON, Fla. - Calling it a "classic pay-to-play scheme," U.S. attorney Alice Martin yesterday outlined a 101-count indictment against Birmingham, Ala., Mayor Larry Langford, his long-time friend and lobbyist Albert...

Southwest Bond-Watch.(Southwest)
December 2, 2008... Byline: Jim Watts ARIZONA Phoenix to Slash 1,000 Jobs Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon said the city will eliminate 1,000 jobs in an attempt to alleviate a portion of a projected budget shortfall of $250 million in fiscal 2010. ...

Calif. Takes Another Stab; Arnold Calls a Special Session, Again.(News)
December 2, 2008... Byline: Rich Saskal SAN FRANCISCO - After failing to obtain a deal to salvage California's teetering budget in a November special session, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is trying again, calling into special session the new state Legislature...

N.Y. ESDC Approves Transfer of $1.2B Incentive Package.(The Regions)
December 2, 2008... Byline: Ted Phillips New York's Empire State Development Corp. yesterday approved the transfer of a $1.2 billion incentive package from Advance Micro Devices Inc. to a new venture the firm is forming with a private equity company to help...

People: MSRB Hires Sandor as Associate General Counsel.(Washington)
December 2, 2008... Byline: Andrew Ackerman The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board announced yesterday that it has hired Lawrence Sandor as an associate general counsel. Formerly chief compliance officer of Wachovia Securities LLC in Richmond, Sandor...

Munis Weaker as Investors Return to Work.(Market News)
December 2, 2008... Byline: Michael Scarchilli The municipal market was slightly weaker yesterday as investors returned for the first full market session since last Tuesday, following two early closes and one full close due to the Thanksgiving holiday. ...

Bernanke: More Rate Cuts 'Are Certainly Feasible'.(Market News Briefs)
December 2, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel The economy continues to deteriorate, although there are some bright spots and further cuts in interest rate targets are "feasible," their ability to support the economy is limited, Federal Reserve Board chairman Ben...

Oct. Construction Falls 1.2% to $1.073 Trillion.(Market News Briefs)
December 2, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel Spending on construction projects fell 1.2% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1.073 trillion in October as private construction decreased 2.0% and public construction rose 0.7%, according to Commerce...

Nov. ISM Index at 36.2, Down From 38.9 in Oct.(Market News Briefs)
December 2, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel The overall economy failed to grow for the second straight month after 83 months of expansion, while the manufacturing sector was contracted for the fourth month in a row, the Institute for Supply Management reported...

State and Local Finance: House Dems Plan Infrastructure-Heavy Bill.(Washington)
December 2, 2008... Byline: Lynne Funk House Democratic leaders yesterday said they will have an economic recovery package ready for Congress to consider when it begins its new session on Jan. 6 that includes billions of dollars for infrastructure projects...

N.J. Gov. Corzine OKs Bill to Use Debt Defeasance Funds for Foreclosure Aid.(News)
December 2, 2008... Byline: Michelle Kaske New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine yesterday signed into law an initiative to prevent home foreclosures, with $12.5 million of funds previously allocated to pay down outstanding debt now being used to fund the program. ...

N.Y. Panel Recommends Capping Property Taxes, Other Measures.(The Regions)
December 2, 2008... Byline: Ted Phillips A New York property taxation commission yesterday recommended capping the state's property tax growth, reducing unfunded mandates, consolidating school districts, and decreasing personnel costs. The proposals,...

Ohio Officials Warn of Deep Cuts As Record $7.3B Deficit Looms.(The Regions)
December 2, 2008... Byline: Caitlin Devitt CHICAGO - Ohio is facing a record $7.3 billion deficit in its next two-year budget cycle - as well as a $640 million shortfall in its current budget - raising the specter of steep budget cuts without an infusion of...

Oregon Governor Offers Budget With Tax Hikes, Slower Spending Growth.(The Regions)
December 2, 2008... Byline: Andrew Ward SAN FRANCISCO -Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski yesterday proposed a $50.1 billion all-funds budget for the 2009-2011 biennium that includes both tax increases and slower spending growth to deal with a weakening economy. ...

Spreads: Crisis Upends Muni-Treasury Relationship.(Investors and Investing)
December 2, 2008... Byline: Dan Seymour It used to be that a good stretch for Treasuries probably also meant a good stretch for municipal bonds. No longer. A scorching-hot two months for Treasuries did munis little good in October and November. As...

Deal In Focus: Amid a Long Trail of Woes, Dallas ISD Ready to Price $400 Million GO Issue.(Southwest)
December 2, 2008... Byline: Jason Philyaw and Richard Williamson DALLAS - On the heels of a downgrade, accounting mismanagement, a lawsuit, and questions about its leadership, the Dallas Independent School District this week plans to issue $400 million of...

Bond Funds: Pimco Freezes Dividends on 6 Closed-End Funds.(Investors and Investing)
December 2, 2008... Byline: Dan Seymour Pacific Investment Management Co.froze dividends yesterday on six municipal bond funds because the value of their investments is insufficient to cover the funds' debt. The six funds - Pimco Municipal Income Funds II...

Midwest Bond-Watch.(Midwest)
December 3, 2008... Byline: Yvette Shields, Caitlin Devitt ILLINOIS Pension Merger on the Table Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias on Monday proposed consolidating the investments of Illinois' five pension funds in order to save money and curb ethics...

'Wine Shrine' in Chap. 11; Calif. Nonprofit Has $77M Outstanding.(The Regions)
December 3, 2008... Byline: Andrew Ward SAN FRANCISCO - Copia: The American Center for Wine, Food and the Arts, a Napa, Calif., nonprofit with about $77 million of outstanding tax-exempt bonds, sought Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Monday evening. ...

Correction.(Market News)(Correction notice)
December 3, 2008... Due to inaccurate information provided by the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, Monday's story about the agency included incorrect details. MassPike is currently working with four different underwriters on refinancing $800 million of fixed-rate...

Health Care: Fitch Ratings Lowers Outlook on Hospitals to Negative From Stable.(Investors and Investing)
December 3, 2008... Byline: Caitlin Devitt CHICAGO - Fitch Ratings yesterday revised to negative from stable its outlook on the U.S. not-for-profit hospital sector, citing a slew of capital and operational challenges. Among the factors expected to weaken...

Florida's Crist Sets Voluntary Foreclosure Relief Plan.(The Regions)
December 3, 2008... Byline: Shelly Sigo BRADENTON, Fla. - As Florida looks to trim the state budget once again, Gov. Charlie Crist and representatives of leading lending organizations on Monday announced a voluntary plan to provide foreclosure relief for the...

IRS Offers Fast-Track Program for Settlements.(News)
December 3, 2008... Byline: Peter Schroeder WASHINGTON - The Internal Revenue Service has launched a "Fast Track Settlement" program that would allow tax-exempt bond issuers and nonprofit organizations that are under audit by the IRS and meet certain...

Judge Drops Charges Against Cheney, Gonzales in Prison Probe.(The Regions)
December 3, 2008... Byline: Richard Williamson DALLAS - Indictments against Vice President Dick Cheney, former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, and other high-profile political figures have been dismissed, but Willacy County, Tex., district attorney Juan...

RAM Re to Pay $156.5M to Commute Exposure to $10.6B of MBIA's Book.(News)
December 3, 2008... Byline: Jack Herman RAM Reinsurance Co. has entered an agreement to pay MBIA Insurance Corp. $156.5 million to commute its exposure to the $10.6 billion portfolio of business it had assumed from MBIA, RAM Holdings Ltd. announced earlier...

Munis Weaker, Yields Up 1-2 Basis Points.(Market News)
December 3, 2008... Byline: Michael Scarchilli The municipal market was slightly weaker yesterday. Traders said tax-exempt yields were higher by one or two basis points. "There was a bit more activity than there was yesterday or last week for that matter,...

Plosser: Deflation Not a Big Threat; Reg Reform Needed.(Market News Briefs)
December 3, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel The government must impose regulatory reform of some type when the markets return to normal, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia president Charles I. Plosser said yesterday. He added that while he doesn't believe...

CEOs Worry More About Economy, Financial Risk.(Market News Briefs)
December 3, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel Global economic performance and financial risk - including liquidity, volatility, and credit risk - are growing in importance to CEOs worldwide, although still not to the extent of executing their corporate strategy,...

Fed 84-Day TAFs Go At 0.420% Stop-Out Rate.(Market News Briefs)
December 3, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel The Federal Reserve yesterday announced the results of its term auction facility, selling $66.471 billion of 84-day credits at a 0.420% stop-out rate, the sole rate awarded to all successful bids. The...

Treasury 4-Week Bills Go At 0.040% High Yield.(Market News Briefs)
December 3, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel The Treasury Department yesterday auctioned $36 billion of four-week bills at a 0.040% high yield, a price of 99.996778. The coupon equivalent was 0.041%. The bid-to-cover ratio was 3.16. Tenders at the high rate...

New Orleans Council Adopts Budget, Nixes Nagin Tax Cut.(The Regions)
December 3, 2008... Byline: Jim Watts DALLAS - The New Orleans City Council on Monday night adopted a $1.16 billion operating budget for 2009 after rejecting Mayor Ray Nagin's call for a $24.5 million property tax increase. The council narrowly complied...

S&P Drops N.Y. Thruway Authority To Stable A-Plus From AA-Minus.(The Regions)
December 3, 2008... Byline: Ted Phillips Standard & Poor's downgraded the New York State Thruway Authority to A-plus with a stable outlook from AA-minus yesterday, affecting $2.4 billion of outstanding general revenue bonds. The rating agency cited as...

Judge Dismisses 15 of 24 Charges Against Acevedo Vila.(The Regions)
December 3, 2008... Byline: Michelle Kaske A federal judge Monday in San Juan threw out 15 of the 24 campaign corruption charges facing outgoing Puerto Rico Gov. Anibal Acevedo Vila. The decision was due to technical interpretations of the law as opposed...

SEC Names Hoerl Permanent Director of Denver Regional Office.(News)
December 3, 2008... Byline: Andrew Ackerman Washington - The Securities and Exchange Commission yesterday named Donald Hoerl as the director of its regional office in Denver, about six months after the 26-year commission veteran became the office's acting...

Central Texas Agency OKs Tollway Plan.(The Regions)
December 3, 2008... Byline: Richard Williamson DALLAS - A heavily traveled turnpike north of Austin will become the first part of a tollway system under a finance plan approved by regional planners. With passage Monday by the Capitol Area Metropolitan...

Trends In The Region: Chicago Scores $1.16B With Meter Lease Deal; Mayor Daley Announces Winning Bid.(Midwest)
December 3, 2008... Byline: Yvette Shields CHICAGO - Mayor Richard Daley yesterday announced a winning bid of $1.157 billion from a private consortium to lease Chicago's parking meter system for 75 years, with more than half of the proceeds earmarked to see...

Municipal Bond Activities.(News)
December 4, 2008... December 8 The Northeast Chapter of Women in Public Finance invites you to a "Special Session Cocktail Party." Is the global economic crisis getting you down? Join us for an evening dedicated to the uplifting of spirits, a good laugh, and...

BP Sells $200M for Pollution Control; Refinery Project Sparks Controversy.(News)
December 4, 2008... Byline: Caitlin Devitt CHICAGO - BP this week sold $200 million of tax-exempt bonds to launch a roughly $1 billion pollution-control project that's part of a controversial expansion of a crude oil refinery located in northwest Indiana. ...

Southeast Bond-Watch.(Southeast)
December 4, 2008... Byline: Shelly Sigo, Jim Watts, Lynne Funk FLORIDA Validation for $1B of Bonds Leon County Circuit Judge William Gary on Monday validated $1 billion of tax-exempt bonds for the Florida Water Pollution Control Financing Corp.'s...

Trustee for St. Louis Hotel Debt Sets Bondholder Conference Call.(The Regions)
December 4, 2008... Byline: Yvette Shields CHICAGO -With investors weighing a forbearance proposal that seeks to avoid foreclosure proceedings, the trustee on $98 million of senior-lien revenue bonds issued for a struggling St. Louis hotel and convention...

Enforcement: IRS Audits May Follow Surveys; TEB Officials Talk About Their Agenda.(Washington)
December 4, 2008... Byline: Peter Schroeder WASHINGTON - The Internal Revenue Service's tax-exempt bond branch plans to send out about 300 surveys to governmental issuers on their post-issuance compliance practices next month. But unlike a similar...

Muni Yields Up as Much as 3 Basis Points.(Market News)
December 4, 2008... Byline: Michael Scarchilli The municipal market was slightly weaker yesterday. Traders said tax-exempt yields were higher by two or three basis points. "We're a bit weaker, pretty much the theme of the week," a trader in New York said....

Productivity Up 1.3%; Labor Costs Rise 2.8%.(Market News Briefs)
December 4, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel U.S. nonfarm unit productivity rose at a 1.3% annual rate in the third quarter, up from a 1.1% projection in the previous estimate but off from the 3.6% growth in the second quarter, the Bureau of Labor Statistics...

ISM Non-Mfg Index 37.3, Down From 44.4 in Oct.(Market News Briefs)
December 4, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel The Institute for Supply Management's non-manufacturing business activity composite index was 37.3 in November on a seasonally adjusted basis, down from 44.4 in October, the group said yesterday. Economists...

Internet Job Postings See 70,200 Drop in November.(Market News Briefs)
December 4, 2008... Byline: Gary E. Siegel About 4,369,200 online job postings appeared on leading Internet job boards in November, a 70,200 decrease from October's revised level of 4,439,400, the Conference Board reported yesterday. "Online advertised...

Beige Book: Activity Down Across All Fed Districts.(Market News Briefs)
December 4, 2008... Byline: Yong Lim Economic activity weakened across all the Federal Reserve districts, according to the Fed's Beige Book released yesterday. Declines were noted in retail sales, particularly motor vehicles. Discount stores reported...

Fitch Downgrades N.J.'s Largest Heath Care System to BB-Plus.(The Regions)
December 4, 2008... Byline: Michelle Kaske Declining revenues and a potential default event prompted Fitch Ratings late Tuesday to downgrade Saint Barnabas Health Care System to BB-plus from BBB, affecting roughly $900 million of debt. Fitch also revised the...

DASNY OKs $776M, Backs Boosting Role of Minorities, Women.(News)
December 4, 2008... Byline: Ted Phillips The Dormitory Authority of the State of New York yesterday gave final approval to issue $776 million of bonds and preliminary approval for another $600 million of bonds. DASNY's board also adopted the recommendations...

SEC to Tap EMMA as Key Repository.(Washington)
December 4, 2008... Byline: Andrew Ackerman WASHINGTON - The Securities and Exchange Commission is expected to designate the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board's EMMA system as the sole repository for issuers' secondary market disclosure documents "very...

Trends In The Region: Storm by Storm, Louisiana Learns Lessons About Recovery.(Southeast)
December 4, 2008... Byline: Jim Watts DALLAS - Three years into the country's largest-ever reconstruction effort following one of the most devastating storms in U.S. history, Louisiana was hit by two hurricanes in less than two weeks. On Sept. 1,...

Deal of the Year Awards Announced.(News)
December 4, 2008... The Puerto Rico Housing Finance Authority won The Bond Buyer's 2008 Deal of the Year award, presented last night, for its $384 million capital fund program subordinate bonds that raised money to help finance modernization of more than 4,000...

Bond Insurers: Ambac Board of Directors Votes to Cut One-Cent Quarterly Dividend.(Underwriters and Dealers)
December 5, 2008... Byline: Jack Herman The board of directors at Ambac Financial Group Inc. voted to eliminate the company's one-cent quarterly dividend earlier this week, in a move that the company says will preserve approximately $11.5 million in cash...

Far West Bond-Watch.(Far West)
December 5, 2008... Byline: Andrew Ward, Rich Saskal CALIFORNIA Voters OK BART Extension A plan to extend the Bay Area Rapid Transit system to Silicon Valley scored a come-from-behind victory this week, as the Santa Clara County registrar of voters...

Chicago Council OKs 75-Year Lease Of Parking Meter System for $1.16B.(The Regions)
December 5, 2008... Byline: Yvette Shields CHICAGO - The ChicagoCity Council overwhelmingly approved a 75-year lease of the city's parking meter system to a private group for $1.157 billion, just two days after Mayor Richard Daley unveiled the winning bid and...

Corrections.(Market News)(Correction notice)
December 5, 2008... Yesterday's market column misstated a rating on the Illinois Finance Authority's $315.9 million bond issue for the University of Chicago. Fitch Ratings rates the bonds AA-plus. Yesterday's lead story about the Internal Revenue Service's...

Deal In Focus: After a Busy, Crazy Year, S.F. Airport Prices Its Last (?) Offering for $90M.(Far West)
December 5, 2008... Byline: Andrew Ward SAN FRANCISCO - Kevin Kone sold $90 million of notes with a 1.5% yield this week, and he's going on vacation. Like many municipal debt managers, Kone, the assistant deputy airport director for capital finance at the...

Transportation: Dulles Metrorail Extension Gets New Life With Approval of FTA.(Washington)
December 5, 2008... Byline: Lynne Funk The $5.2 billion Dulles Metrorail extension, all but dead nearly a year ago, was revived Wednesday when the Federal Transit Administration signed off on the plan, essentially guaranteeing $900 million of funding for a...