It couldn’t come at a worse time.  The 53 Gulf Coast counties in Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas look forward to peak summer months when tourists flock to beach resorts, casinos and summer homes.  This year the tourists are staying away.  Revenues related to tourist spending and waterfront development projects are likely to drop.  The [...]

Florida, municipal bonds, oil spill

June 1st marks the beginning of hurricane season.  It’s been quiet for a few years but forecasters are predicting a more active 2010 season.  Here are a few thoughts for analyzing the links to municipal bonds.  Gray and Klotzbacher of Colorado State University operate the Tropical Meteorology Project believe that 2010 will be a “significantly [...]

Florida, municipal bonds

See this post on Reuters for discussion about Antioch, latest city in California to talk bankruptcy.  There is a bill, sponsored by state senator Mendoza, AB155, that would require cities to go through the state (via the California Debt and Investment Advisory Commission, CDIAC).  The bill was referred last week by the Senate appropriations committee [...]

California, fiscal emergency, municipal bankruptcy, municipal bonds

Why is the municipal market selling at such a premium?  I have been asked this question several times in the last few weeks — not by career municipal analysts at mutual funds or rating agencies, but sophisticated investors who are trying to make sense of the asset class.  The counterpoint is coming from writers forecasting [...]

municipal bonds

Here’s a podcast with the author on Derivactiv, Municipal Market Pulse; a bit long but covers a lot of ground:  http://www.derivactiv.com/Podcasts/Natalie_Cohen_Muni_Bond_Market_Is_Not_Systemic04-20-2010.mp3
Municipal Market Pulse podcasts, produced by Derivactiv are also available on iTunes (for the ubernerds like me; ha, you thought I was listening to music)

municipal bonds

The author on Bloomberg TV discussing the coming municipal market collapse (not).

municipal bonds

The financial reform proposals, designed to eliminate systemic risk, could actually trigger another meltdown upon the bill’s passage.  This is due to the ratings notching approach that has given rating credit to government support since the meltdown.  A change in the expectation of support – both emergency and on-going would result in ratings downgrades for [...]

fiscal emergency, fiscal stress, municipal bonds, ratings

The tables below are for contextual reference as state and local governments face draconian spending cuts.   The combination of public policy with the several bubble periods over the last twenty-five years has created a toxic brew.  Some state and local governments are valiantly trying to tackle the issues while other legislatures and councils are more interested in [...]

fiscal stress, municipal bonds, Nevada, state and local politics, states

This link from a recent release by the Brookings Institution, Robert Puentes comments on the New Jersey and Virgina transportation funds.  New Jersey’ transportation trust fund will be spending all of its revenues on debt service by 2011; Virginia’s new governor too, suffers lack of funds for infrastructure improvements.  Concerning gas tax as a mechanism [...]

fiscal stress, gas tax, municipal bonds, transportation

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municipal bonds