Bill on Bankruptcy: Stockton May Win the Battle, Lose the War
In today's evolving world of security and data privacy, K-12 schools, universities, local governments, and hospitals are increasingly finding themselves on the same list: vulnerable to the threat of a cyberattack....more
Budget hearings were a focus this week as the Chair of the SEC and Chairman of the CFTC visited Capitol Hill. Both sought substantial increases, requesting more money for technology, inspections and enforcement. While the...more
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) this week announced enforcement actions under its Municipalities Continuing Disclosure Cooperation (MCDC) Initiative, targeting 22 municipal bond underwriting firms for alleged due...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) continues to increase its enforcement efforts in the municipal bond market by focusing on the sufficiency and timeliness of disclosure in initial municipal securities...more
The Financial Institutions Regulatory Authority fined a UBS unit $750,000 for mistakenly reporting customers’ municipal-bond-account interest was tax-exempt, when the firm’s handling of the trades made it taxable instead....more
FINRA issued its late-July Regulatory Notice 15-27 warning brokerage firms that inadvertent short positions or fail-to-delivers in municipal securities trading can create situations where the member-firm pays a customer...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission recently settled the first securities fraud charges brought against a municipal official alleging “control person” status under the federal securities laws. The SEC’s settlement...more
On October 23, 2014, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) Proposed Rule G-44, the MSRB's first dedicated rule for municipal advisors, with conforming changes to...more
The SEC last week approved new MSRB Rule G-44 implementing supervision and compliance requirements for municipal advisors. The MSRB touted the Rule as “its first dedicated rule for municipal advisors” under the Dodd-Frank...more
Issuers, underwriters and advisors in the municipal bond marketplace are facing unprecedented challenges from federal regulators in connection with both the issuance of bonds and ongoing post-issuance compliance. These...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Enforcement Division recently announced a program intended to resolve violations of federal securities laws regarding continuing disclosures in bond offering documents. The program,...more
Effective July 5, 2014, the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (“MSRB”) implements a consolidation and re-write of its prior fail-dealing Rules and Guidance for municipal securities dealers. On March 7, the SEC...more
On September 13, 2013, the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") adopted final rules for Municipal Advisor registration. The final rules are intended to implement certain provisions of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform...more
The FDIC released four new videos (the “Videos,” and each a “Video”) designed to provide technical assistance to directors, officers and employees of depository institutions that are FDIC insured. The Videos are available on...more
July 2013 was a big month for the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") in its quest to increase enforcement in the municipal market. On July 19, 2013, the SEC charged the City of Miami, Florida ("Miami"), and its...more
A number of municipal entities have been receiving a solicitation to purchase a post-issuance debt policy and procedure manual. The advertisement suggests that having such a policy is required by the Internal Revenue Service...more