2023 MID-YEAR REVIEW - In the first half of 2023, several rule changes have been proposed by the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including changes to...more
As is widely known, the new issue market slowed down in 2022 due to a variety of factors, including rising interest rates, reduced institutional demand resulting from municipal bond fund outflows, inflation and recession...more
In December of 2022, Congress enacted the Financial Data Transparency Act (the “FDTA”), legislation intended to modernize and improve the organization, readability and availability of financial information collected by...more
The Financial Data Transparency Act of 2022 (FDTA), enacted by Congress as Title LVIII of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023, was signed into law by President Biden on December 23, 2022. The FDTA is...more
The Financial Data Transparency Act of 2022 (the “Act”), which was included as part of the National Defense Authorization Act, was signed into law on December 23, 2022. The Act requires that various federal regulatory...more
The Financial Data Transparency Act of 2022 (Act) will change the way issuers and obligors of municipal securities report required disclosure information on the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s Electronic Municipal...more
In an unprecedented move, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) recently filed litigation against one underwriter of municipal securities and announced settlements with three others. The litigation and...more
The Public Finance Abuse Unit of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) had a busy first half of 2022, bringing forth four enforcement cases alleging substantial violations of federal securities laws. Unlike...more
In March 2022, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) released proposed rules that would require public companies to include certain climate-related disclosures in their registration statements and periodic...more
Commercial banks and other financial institutions (“lender” or “lenders”) have historically provided financing to both governmental entities and nonprofits on a tax-exempt basis through loans and direct purchases of municipal...more
The municipal securities market carried its momentum from the first half of 2021 into a strong finish for the year against the backdrop of continued regulatory and enforcement actions. Despite new variants of COVID-19...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Examination (Division) announced its 2021 examination priorities (the Report) on March 3, 2021. The Division’s examination priorities reflect areas that present...more
On May 4, 2020, Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Jay Clayton and Director of the Office of Municipal Securities Rebecca Olsen issued a statement encouraging municipal securities issuers and obligors (each referred...more
Municipal Issuers Urged to Consider Providing Voluntary Disclosure Regarding the Impacts of COVID-19 on Operations and Finances Municipal issuers with pending offerings of municipal securities or required filings are being...more
The Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Director of the Office of Municipal Securities issued a public statement on May 4, 2020 (the Statement) with observations and requests regarding COVID-19...more
For many years, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has advocated for increased transparency for municipal securities investors. Given the absence of a statutory scheme for municipal securities reporting, the...more
In a May 4 joint public statement, SEC Chair Clayton and Municipal Securities Office Director Rebecca Olsen urged municipal issuers to make voluntary disclosures specific to issuers, and their various outstanding municipal...more
Given the far-reaching consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, including unprecedented financial and operational impacts, volatile municipal market conditions and the potential for a significant economic contraction...more
Overview - Many issuers (including conduit borrowers) and others in the municipal market are facing unprecedented financial, operational and other challenges as a result of the spread of the Coronavirus Disease 2019...more
Disclosure to municipal bond investors of material risks stemming from the coronavirus outbreak presents a serious concern in the municipal securities industry. This is particularly true in certain sectors, including bonds...more
On February 10, 2020, an SEC advisory committee called the Fixed Income Market Structure Advisory Committee (FIMSAC) met and adopted a series of recommendations on the topic “Timeliness of Financial Disclosures in the...more
On February 7, 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (the “SEC”) Office of Municipal Securities released its Legal Bulletin No. 21 (the “Bulletin”) regarding the applicability of the anti-fraud provisions of the...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") is seeking comments on a proposed exemptive order granting a conditional exemption from broker registration requirements for certain activities of municipal advisors....more
As a reminder, the new amendments to Rule 15c2-12 of the Securities Exchange Act (the “Rule”) take effect on February 27, 2019. The amendment, summarized in Increased Transparency to Continuing Disclosure Requirements, will...more
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has amended Rule 15c2-12 to add two new events which must be included in continuing disclosure agreements (CDAs) for municipal securities issued on or after February 27, 2019. ...more