Racial discrimination and violent policing are negative externalities not typically considered in municipal bond ratings. For our investment choices to support Black communities, and as financial fiduciaries, we must review this vital risk assessment data. Since credit ratings agencies don't typically look closely at the data that point to racial and economic justice in a municipality, how can we access this critical decision-making information?

Taxes were on the ballot in a number of states in the 2020 election, and the outcome of these statewide ballot initiatives will have a modest effect on state budgets, Fitch Ratings says. Voters split in their support of taxes against a backdrop of weakening state revenues. Measures targeting narrow types of activity or those with specific funding purposes fared better.

The Public Finance Network, a coalition of bipartisan organizations, has released a new report titled the Advance Refunding Myth Buster. The report aims to educate and inform partners on advance refunding municipal bonds, a crucial infrastructure financing tool eliminated in 2017.

Because of the continuing COVID-19 crisis, the IRS has issued Revenue Procedure 2020-49 (the Revised Guidance), which extends the period during which remote telephonic hearings qualify as "public hearings" required for private activity bonds to Sept. 30, 2021. Originally, such telephonic hearings could not be held past Dec. 31, 2020.

Americans approved at least $26.7 billion in state and local borrowing measures, more than half of the proposed bond sales on ballots across the country, while another $15.7 billion are still pending final results. So far, only $2.7 billion of bond measures, or about 6% of those proposed, had been defeated as of Thursday.

The effects of the coronavirus pandemic will leave municipal market issuers facing competing priorities in their efforts to address the growing challenges posed by environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues. The need to prepare for long-term future risks such as climate change will continue to grow, even as a more austere budget environment intensifies funding challenges.

A federal judge on Monday said Philadelphia and Baltimore may sue eight big banks for allegedly conspiring to force state and local governments to pay inflated interest rates on a popular type of tax-exempt municipal bond.

The per-capita multiplier to set a state's 9 percent low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) cap for 2021 will remain the same as 2020, while the private activity bond (PAB) multiplier will increase by $5 per capita, according to Revenue Procedure 2020-45, published today by the Internal Revenue Service.

CDFA // BNY Mellon Development Finance Webcast Series: Educational Facilities Funding Solutions
Tuesday, December 15, 2020 - 1:00 PM Eastern

CDFA-PFM Capital Markets Webinar Series: Mitigating Default Risk with Bond Guarantee Programs
December 17, 2020 - 2:00 - 3:30 PM Eastern

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