The Bond Buyer articles from March 2008

The Bond Buyer archives from March 2008

Monday.
March 3, 2008... Washington CITING THE COLLAPSE of the auction-rate securities market, leaders of the House Financial Services Committee are urging the SEC to quickly clarify that there is a way for municipal issuers to bid in auctions for their own...

Wall Street Brokers Get DOJ Target Letters.(Letter to the editor)
March 3, 2008... WASHINGTON -- At least 10 current or former brokers at major Wall Street and other firms have been targeted for possible indictment by the Justice Department in connection with a grand jury investigation in New York City of anticompetitive...

Jefferson Co. Expresses Debt Resolution Doubts: Payment Obligations May Not Be Met.
March 3, 2008... BRADENTON, Fla. -- Jefferson County, Ala., officials said in a new disclosure notice late last week that they might not be able to resolve financial problems afflicting $3.2 billion in outstanding sewer revenue warrants. The disclosure...

Virginia Court Kills NVTA Deal: Ruling Could Affect Other Agencies.
March 3, 2008... WASHINGTON -- The Virginia Supreme Court ruled yesterday that $130 million of bonds the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority, a regional body created by state lawmakers, planned to issue would be unconstitutional. In a unanimous...

New Issues Fall to $20.1B in February.
March 3, 2008... DALLAS -- New-issue volume in the municipal market fell for the fourth consecutive month in February, as turmoil from the subprime mortgage crisis continued to roil bond insurers and disrupt the auction-rate securities market and other sectors....

In Brief: January Personal Income, Core PCE Each Up 0.3%.
March 3, 2008... WASHINGTON -- U.S. January personal income increased 0.3% as personal consumption expenditures rose 0.4% and core PCE prices grew 0.3% for a 2.2% gain over the year, headlines t hat were slightly better than expected on a multitude of special...

In Brief: Chicago PMI 44.5 in Feb., Down From 51.5 in Jan.
March 3, 2008... The Chicago Purchasing Managers Business Barometer fell to 44.5 in February from 51.5 in January, the National Association of Purchasing Management-Chicago said Friday. Economists polled by IFR Markets predicted a 50.0 reading for the...

In Brief: N.Y. Manufacturing Contracted in February.
March 3, 2008... New York City business conditions in early 2008 appear to have entered a second leg of the slowdown that first unfolded in the spring and summer of 2007. Business activity contracted at a faster rate in February than in January as the New York...

In Brief: Preliminary Feb. Consumer Sentiment Index at 70.8.
March 3, 2008... The University of Michigans preliminary February consumer sentiment index reading was 69.6 compared to the preliminary February reading of 69.6, the final January consumer sentiment index reading of 78.4, the preliminary January 80.5, and the...

Munis Continue Divergence From Treasuries.
March 3, 2008... Weakness in the municipal market continued Friday, despite Treasury market gains, as tax-exempts continue to diverge from Treasuries. Traders said tax-exempt yields were weaker by about 10 basis points. I dont know that theres enough...

Clarification.(Correction notice)
March 3, 2008... Yesterdays story about a notice by two members of the National Association of Bond Lawyers on the tax and securities law implications of the auction-rate market crisis should have said that the notice did not reflect the views of NABL or the...

Vallejo, Calif., Reaches AgreementWith Unions, Avoids Chapter 9 Filing.
March 3, 2008... SAN FRANCISCO -- Vallejo, Calif., stepped back from the brink of bankruptcy last week. Ahead of a meeting Thursday night at which the City Council was to consider authorizing the city to file for Chapter 9 bankruptcy, Mayor Osby Davis said...

Detroit Readies Timetable for Overdue 2007 Audit.
March 3, 2008... CHICAGO -- After releasing its long-delayed fiscal 2006 audited financial results last week, Detroit officials are expected to present Michigan this week with a timetable for the release of its already-overdue 2007 audit - a move that could...

Standard & Poor's Ceases Pricing Some ARS.
March 3, 2008... Standard & Poor's Friday ceased pricing more than half of the auction-rate securities previously listed on its securities evaluation service due to lack of information, the company said. "Information and clarity are the underlying fuels of...

Securities Regulation: Lawmakers Seek SEC Guidance for Issuers to Buy Their ARS.
March 3, 2008... Citing the collapse of the auction-rate securities market, leaders of the House Financial Services Committee are urging the Securities and Exchange Commission to quickly clarify that there is a way for municipal issuers to bid in auctions for...

Bond Insurers: Assured Guaranty to Receive $1B Infusion from Wilbur Ross.
March 3, 2008... The cream rose further to the top of the financial guaranty business Friday, as Assured Guaranty Ltd. announced a potential $1 billion capital infusion from Wilbur Ross, and Berkshire Hathaway Assurance Corp. was approved to do business in the...

Deal in Focus: On Its Own, Puerto Rico Water Agency Plans Return to Market With $1.6B.
March 3, 2008... After a nearly 20-year hiatus from the market, the Puerto Rico Aqueduct and Sewer Authority this week will sell $1.6 billion of tax-exempt and taxable debt to refinance previously issued bonds and to raise new money for long-awaited capital...

Northeast Invisible Supply.
March 3, 2008... Approval Underwriter Expected Issuer and purpose Amount* status choice sale date CONNECTICUT State GOs $700 P 2008 DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA GOs $827 A June NEW YORK NY Thruway $740 P ...

Visible Supply by State.
March 3, 2008... Feb. 29, 2008 Feb. 22, 2008 State Issues Amount Issues Amount Chg in Amt Delaware Aaa/AAA/AAA 2.25 / 2.26 3.23 / 3.32 4.02 / 4.20 5.05 / 5.23 Maryland Aaa/AAA/AAA 2.25 / 2.26 3.23 / 3.31 4.02 / 4.14 5.05 / 5.20 ...

Plain/Insured GO Yield Curves for Feb. 28, 2008*.
March 3, 2008... State Ratings One-Year Five-Year 10-Year 30-Year Connecticut 3 $66,565,000 1 $51,115,000 $15,450,000 Delaware 2 260,705,000 1 215,705,000 45,000,000 Maine 1 20,000,000 1 20,000,000 0 Maryland 2 749,745,000...

MARYLAND: Montgomery Dealing GOs.
March 3, 2008... Montgomery County plans to competitively sell $64.7 million of general obligation bonds on Thursday. Fitch Ratings, Standard & Poors, and Moodys Investors Service all assigned the deal triple-A ratings with stable outlooks. Fitchs...

NEW JERSEY: Cap on Bond Counsel Fees?
March 3, 2008... Lawmakers last week filed legislation that would limit the amount of legal fees New Jersey pays for bond counsel services. The measure would restrict the state, municipalities, and authorities from paying more than 1% of the principal...

NEW YORK: The Last Liberty Bond.
March 3, 2008... The New York City Housing Development Corp. last week approved its final Liberty bond deal. The bonds will be issued on behalf of Forest City Ratner Cos., which plans to build a 76-story apartment tower in lower Manhattan. The Beekman...

NEW YORK: Spitzer: No Plan to Probe ARS.
March 3, 2008... Gov. Eliot Spitzer said last week that his administration isnt looking to investigate the investment banks that pushed auction-rate securities that have driven up debt service costs for issuers as auctions failed in the past three weeks. ...

PENNSYLVANIA: Bidding for School Bonds.
March 3, 2008... The Pennsylvania Higher Educational Facilities Authority on Wednesday will take bids for $99.4 million of public higher education revenue refunding bonds for the State System of Higher Education. RBC Capital Markets is the financial...

Competitive Bond Offerings.
March 3, 2008... Letter F next to the issuer's name signifies the Official Notice of Sale is available on the internet! Go to www.bondbuyer.com A letter "P" signifies that a link to the POS is on the Bond Buyer Online's Competitive Bond Offering Calendar....

Competitive Note Offerings.
March 3, 2008... Tentative dates for negotiated sales of $1 million or more. Letter F next to the issuer's name signifies the Official Notice of Sale is available on the internet! Go to www.bondbuyer.com A letter "P" signifies that a link to the POS is...

Negotiated Bond Offerings.
March 3, 2008... Tentative dates for negotiated sales of $1 million or more. ISSUER ST DESCRIPTION AMOUNT ($000s) LEAD MANAGER FINANCIAL ADVISER INSURER MDY'S S&P FITCH FIRST APPEARED Week Of March 3 Leeds Pub...

Negotiated Note Offerings.
March 3, 2008... Tentative dates for negotiated sales of $1 million or more. ISSUER ST DESCRIPTION AMOUNT ($000s) LEAD MANAGER FINANCIAL ADVISER INSURER MDY'S S&P FITCH FIRST APPEARED Week Of March 3 East Knox...

Results of Negotiated Sales.
March 3, 2008... ARIZONA Litchfield Elementary School District No. 79 Feb 29, 2008 $10,000,000 School Improvement Bonds, Project of 2006, Series B (2008) (book entry) Dated Mar 11, 2008. Due Jul 1, 2009 to 2018. First coupon Jan 1,...

Results of Competitive Sales.
March 3, 2008... IOWA Keota Community School District Feb 28, 2008 $2,365,000 General Obligation School Refunding Bonds, Series 2008 (bank qualified) (book entry). Dated Apr 28, 2008. Due May 1, 2009 to 2018. Callable May 1, 2014...

California Democrats Seeing $5 Billion of 'Green'.
March 3, 2008... SAN FRANCISCO -- California Senate Democrats have unveiled a "green economy" package of legislation that includes $5 billion of new bond authorizations. The four bills in the package would encourage the development of environmental...

Mesa, Ariz., Faces Secondary Property Tax for 1st Time in 60 Years.
March 3, 2008... DALLAS -- Mesa, Ariz., will levy a secondary property tax for debt service for the first time in more than 60 years if voters approve a $408.8 million general obligation package in November. The city of 450,000 is the largest in Arizona -...

ETFs: Van Eck Launches Short-Term Exchange-Traded Fund.
March 3, 2008... Prompted by uncertainty and volatility in the municipal market, Van Eck Global Securities last week rolled out a short-term municipal exchange-traded fund in hopes of targeting investors that are seeking shelter by staying defensive amid the...

Mutual Funds: Weekly Reporters See $170 Million Inflow.
March 3, 2008... Weekly reporting municipal bond mutual funds had a net inflow of $170 million during the period ending Feb. 27, AMG Data Services reported. The results were down from a $182 million inflow the previous week, but represent the seventh week...

The Week Ahead: March Comes in Like a Lion With Three Sizeable Deals on Tap.
March 3, 2008... On the heels of a fairly lackluster February, a trio of super-sized deals will kick off March in the Texas, California, and Puerto Rico markets. An estimated $10.16 billion is expected to be priced into a relatively weak municipal market...

Long-Term Bond Sales: January - February.
March 3, 2008... 2008 2007 Volume No. of Volume No. of Pct. ($000s) Issues ($000s) Issues Chg TOTAL $39,856,900 1,341 $63,242,400 1,747 -37.0 January 19,727,800 704 31,213,900 852 -36.8 February ...

New-Issue Volume Notes.
March 3, 2008... The new-issue volume tables are based on information compiled by The Bond Buyer from Thomson Financial's database on Friday, February 29, 2008. All figures are preliminary and subject to revision. Long-term bonds have final stated...

Largest Issues: February 2008.
March 3, 2008... Amount Issuer Date $3,179.3 California (State) economic development GOs Feb 7 1,000.0 Metropolitan Transportation Authority, N.Y. (NM/ref) Feb 13 766.2 Illinois State Toll Highway Authority (ref) Feb 6 ...

Long-Term Bond Sales: February.
March 3, 2008... 2008 2007 Volume No. of Volume No. of Pct. ($000s) Issues ($000s) Issues Chg TOTAL 20,129,100 637 32,028,500 895 -37.2 Development 3,224,900 11 750,500 41 +329.7 Education 5,038,600 271...

Bond Sales by State: February.
March 3, 2008... 2008 2007 Volume Volume Percentage State Rank (000s) Rank (000s) Change Alabama 27 $255,100 28 $645,700 -60.5 % Alaska 39 115,800 39 251,700 -54.0 Arizona 16 816,700 17 1,097,800...

Market Indicators.
March 3, 2008... Dollar amounts are in millions Day's 2008 2008 DailyYesterday Change High Date Low Date Municipal Bond Index 101-31 -1-15 114-09 (1/15) 101-31 (2/29) 40 Average Dollar Price 92.13 -1.34 103.75...

Municipal Market Data General Obligation Yields.
March 3, 2008... Aaa Aaa (pure) (ins) Aa A Baa 2009 2.25 2.35 2.33 2.53 3.05 2013 3.30 3.50 3.43 3.84 4.32 2018 4.12 4.35 4.25 4.70 5.14 2023 4.80 5.04 4.93 5.31 5.72 2028 5.05 5.27 5.17 5.44 5.85 ...

Short-Term Tax-Exempt Yields.
March 3, 2008... Feb 29, 2008 Feb 28, 2008 Mar 2, 2007 Selected MIG-1/SP-1+ Notes California Rans 4s (June 08) 2.20 2.20 3.53 Los Angeles Co Trans 4.50s (June 08) 2.20 2.20 3.60 Puerto Rico Trans 4.25s (Jul 08) 2.35 2.25...

U.S. Securities Prices.
March 3, 2008... Prices as of 3 p.m. ET. Source: GovPx (ICAP plc) Treasury Bills Yesterday's Prev. Day's Yesterday's (in percent of discount) Bid/Offer Bid/Offer Bid Yield 1M - 3/27/2008 2.033/023 2.045/035 2.069 3M -...

New-Issue Balances.
March 3, 2008... (,000 Omitted) *Since initial reoffering +Revised upward since last report Amount Date NEW OFFERINGS Sold Balance $46,750 2/28 * Rialto Redev. Agcy., Calif. $46,750 All Sold 13,150 2/28 * Brookline, Mass....

Reoffering Yields.
March 3, 2008... NRO - Not Reoffered; S.B. - Sealed Bid; SNA - Sold, Not Available Offer Amount Date ($Mil) RECENT OFFERINGS 1 Year 5 10 15 20 25 30 Aaa - AAA (Pure) 2/14 24.1 Lexington, Mass. 1.80 2.60 3.37 4.03 4.30...

Visible Supply.
March 3, 2008... Competitive Negotiated Total ($000s) ($000s) ($000s) Weekly Averages 2/29/08 4,097,780 10,735,726 14,833,506 2/22 2,920,064 8,028,626 10,948,690 2/15 2,420,903 8,145,041 10,565,944 2/8 2,457,929...

Municipal Market Yields.
March 3, 2008... Values at 2/29/2008 - Basis Point Change from 2/22/2008 Aaa Aa A Baa 20092.60 -33 2.77 -33 3.14 -35 3.57 -38 20133.30 -39 3.46 -39 3.83 -41 4.30 -44 20183.99 -43 4.18 -43 4.56 -44 5.03 -47 20234.48...

Placement Ratio.
March 3, 2008... No. Total Amt. Sales from Placement New New Accts. New Accts. Ratio Accts. ($000s) ($000s) (%) 2008 02/29 14 1,092,166 1,075,366 98.5 02/22 12 875,606 788,096 90.0 02/15 18 725,043 700,553 96.6...

Municipal Bond Index Update.
March 3, 2008... The list of bonds used to calculate the Municipal Bond Index was revised after the February 29 pricing. The new coefficient is 1.0173. It was derived by dividing the Feb. 29 index (101.961699) by the average converted price of the new set...

Municipal Bond Prices.
March 3, 2008... These 40 Bonds are evaluated and priced daily by Standard & Poor's Securities Evaluations Inc. All figures are rounded to the nearest eighth when reported in this table. "Change in Bid" is rounded after calculation. Dollar...

Municipal Bond Index.
March 3, 2008... Current Day Previous Day Week Ago Month Ago Year Ago The Bond Buyer Municipal Bond Index 101-31 103-14 108-22 112-13 117-23 Friday, February 29, 2008 Maturity Par Call Dollar Conversion Converted Date Date Price...

Chicago Schools See Interest Rate On Variable-Rate Debt Jump to 9%.
March 3, 2008... CHICAGO -- Already grappling with a spike in interest rates on nearly $1 billion of auction-rate securities in its overall debt holdings, the Chicago Public Schools system last week saw the rate on an insured $65 million variable-rate demand...

Tuesday.
March 4, 2008... Market News STANDARD & POOR'S lowered its underlying rating on the sewer revenue debt of Jefferson County, Ala., six notches to B from BBB due to questions surrounding the county's ability to meet its debt obligations due to the...

Deal in Focus: NTTA Stepping Up With $2.3B Deal.
March 4, 2008... DALLAS -- Two weeks after breaking ground on the $5 billion State Highway 121 turnpike, the North Texas Tollway Authority will confront a challenging credit market this week with a $2.3 billion revenue bond deal, the largest bond transaction in...

Market Looks Ahead With Uncertainty: No Clear Path for Battered Munis.
March 4, 2008... As municipal market participants surveyed their surroundings after the worst days of the market's recent history, a robust primary calendar and still uncertain buying conditions have many participants wondering when or whether the market can...

Virginia Transportation Funding Up in the Air.
March 4, 2008... WASHINGTON -- Virginia officials and lawmakers are scrambling to find a way to provide funds to the state's transportation system in the aftermath of a state Supreme Court ruling last week that found it would be unconstitutional for the...

Lockyer's Rating Proposal Gets Mixed Response From Market: Some Issuers Backing Calif. Treasurer Plan.
March 4, 2008... WASHINGTON -- Market participants expressed mixed views yesterday about a plan floated informally by California Treasurer Bill Lockyer to either petition the three major credit agencies to harmonize their municipal rating scales with corporate...

In Brief: Construction Spending Dips 1.7% to $1.121 Trillion.
March 4, 2008... Spending on construction projects fell 1.7% to an annual rate of $1.121 trillion in January as private construction decreased 2.2%, and public construction slid 0.2%, according to Commerce Department figures released yesterday. The overall...

In Brief: February ISM Index at 48.3; Off From 50.7 in January.
March 4, 2008... The overall economy grew for the 76th straight month, while the manufacturing sector contracted, the Institute for Supply Management reported yesterday. According to the ISMs monthly report on business, the ISM index decreased to 48.3 in...

In Brief: 3.928M Jobs Posted On Internet in February.
March 4, 2008... About 3,927,500 online job postings appeared on leading Internet job boards in February, a 17% jump from January, the Conference Board said yesterday. The softening in advertised vacancies is widespread, said board economist Gad Levanon....

In Brief: Weekly T-Bills Go At 1.790%, 1.810% Highs.
March 4, 2008... Tender rates for the Treasury Departments latest 91-day and 182-day discount bills were lower yesterday, as the three-months incurred a 1.790% high rate, down from 2.160%, and the six-months incurred a 1.810% high rate, down from 2.070%. ...

In Brief: Treasury 4-Week Bills To Raise $5B New Cash.
March 4, 2008... The Treasury Department yesterday said it will sell $31 billion of four-week discount bills today to raise $5 billion of new cash and refund $26 billion of maturing bills. (c) 2008 The Bond Buyer and SourceMedia, Inc. All rights reserved....

Weakness Persists Even as Demand Increases.
March 4, 2008... The uninterrupted weakness in the municipal market seen in the second half of February continued yesterday amid soft conditions, even as retail demand increased resulting from tax-exempt yields Friday jumping to their highest levels in history...

S&P Drops Jefferson County Sewer Debt Six Notches to B.
March 4, 2008... DALLAS -- Standard & Poor's lowered its underlying rating on Jefferson County, Ala.'s sewer debt six notches to B from BBB because of questions surrounding the county's ability to meet its debt obligations due to the resetting of interest rates...

Colorado Issuers Look to Shed Auction-Rate Debt.
March 4, 2008... DALLAS -- Colorado issuers are seeking quick exits from their auction-rate debt after failed auctions drove interest costs up dramatically. In Colorado Springs, the city-owned Memorial Health System is planning to refinance $272 million of...

N.J. EDA OKs Treasury Action on Auction-Rate Debt.
March 4, 2008... The New Jersey Economic Development Authority yesterday voted to allow state Treasury officials to take action on $1.38 billion of state-backed, auction-rate securities by refinancing or converting the debt into fixed- or variable-rate bonds....

Insurers Take Still More Losses; Buffett Takes Offer Off Table.
March 4, 2008... The ever-evolving situation for the municipal market's most vulnerable financial guarantors showed further developments in the last couple of days, as two companies announced additional losses while another removed one of the potential...

MWAA to Convert $141 Million of Auction-Rate Securities to VRDOs.
March 4, 2008... WASHINGTON -- The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority will convert a total of $141 million of auction-rate securities to variable-rate demand obligations March 13, an authority official said yesterday. MWAA chief financial officer...

New York's IDA Law Expiration Leaves Nonprofits in Lurch.
March 4, 2008... The expiration of the law that allowed New York industrial development agencies to sell bonds to finance civic facilities on behalf of nonprofit institutions has put some of those borrowers with outstanding bonds in auction-rate mode in a...

Southwest Invisible Supply.
March 4, 2008... Approval Underwriter Expected Issuer and purpose Amount* status choice sale date ARIZONA AzDOT/Maricopa County $2,673 P negotiated 2008-20 Maricopa County CCD $511 A negotiated 2008-15 Phoenix Water...

Visible Supply by State.
March 4, 2008... March 3, 2008 Feb. 25, 2008 State Issues Amount Issues Amount Chg in Amt Arizona 5 $855,805,000 5 $928,380,000 -$72,575,000 Arkansas 3 17,305,000 1 4,535,000 12,770,000 Colorado 10 168,620,000...

Plain/Insured GO Yield Curves for Feb. 29, 2008*.
March 4, 2008... State Ratings One-Year Five-Year 10-Year 30-Year Utah Aaa/AAA/AAA 2.26 / 2.26 3.34 / 3.44 4.17 / 4.30 5.19 / 5.34 New Mexico Aa1/AA+/NR 2.29 / 2.29 3.43 / 3.45 4.26 / 4.32 5.30 / 5.34 Oklahoma Aa3/AA/AA 2.27 /...

ARIZONA: No Big Cuts for Scottsdale.
March 4, 2008... The economic slowdown might curtail some capital projects in the Phoenix suburb of Scottsdale, but the city is not contemplating budget cuts as severe as those looming over its neighbors. Finance director Craig Clifford told the City...

COLORADO: Eyes on High-Speed Rail.
March 4, 2008... Several cities in western Colorado are teaming up to study the possibility of high-speed passenger rail service under the name the Rocky Mountain Rail Authority. Key cities participating include Steamboat Springs, Craig, and Hayden. With...

OKLAHOMA: OKC GOs for Development.
March 4, 2008... Most of the capital projects being funded during the first years from the $835.5 million of general obligation bonds approved by Oklahoma City voters in December will be related to downtown development, officials said last week. The...

OKLAHOMA: Bill Targets Turnpike Leases.
March 4, 2008... The House General Government and Transportation Committee last week passed a bill to prohibit the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority from selling any of the states 10 turnpikes to a private operator. HB 3182 bans the OTA from approving any...

OKLAHOMA: Governors Back Arena Tax.
March 4, 2008... Gov. Brad Henry and former governors David Boren, Frank Keating, and George Nigh have endorsed Oklahoma Citys plans to use a 1% city sales tax to renovate a downtown arena as the home of the National Basketball Associations Seattle SuperSonics....

TEXAS: Leander Stadiums Get Nod.
March 4, 2008... The rapidly growing Leander Independent School District near Austin will spend about $40 million of voter-approved bond money to build two new stadiums and renovate the existing Bible Stadium. The school board voted 5 to 2 to proceed with...

TEXAS: Keller ISD Weighs Bond Vote.
March 4, 2008... Keller Independent School District north of Fort Worth could seek voter approval for another bond issue in November to handle growth in intermediate and middle schools, district officials say. The bond issues size has not been determined,...

UTAH: Session Nears Quiet End.
March 4, 2008... Utahs Legislature appears headed toward a quiet finish tomorrow, with agreement reached on most of the major issues and little money left to be allocated in the $11 billion budget. The three biggest issues school equalization,...

Competitive Bond Offerings.
March 4, 2008... Letter F next to the issuer's name signifies the Official Notice of Sale is available on the internet! Go to www.bondbuyer.com A letter "P" signifies that a link to the POS is on the Bond Buyer Online's Competitive Bond Offering Calendar....

Competitive Note Offerings.
March 4, 2008... Tentative dates for negotiated sales of $1 million or more. Letter F next to the issuer's name signifies the Official Notice of Sale is available on the internet! Go to www.bondbuyer.com A letter "P" signifies that a link to the POS is...