MuniNet Guide Archive
October Employment Update: The Stand-Outs… and All the Rest
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics recently released its Metro Area Employment and Unemployment data for October 2012. The national unemployment rate for October was 7.5% (not seasonally adjusted). Unemployment rates in October were lower in 329 of the nation’s 372...
Group Calls for Continued Tax Exemption of Municipal Bonds
A number of suggestions calling for a pull back on the tax exemption of municipal bonds in the interest of raising federal taxes have spawned a call to action. Municipal Bonds for America (MBFA) is a recently formed advocacy group comprised of municipal bond issuers,...
A New Way to Look at U.S. Demographic Data
updated March 7, 2013 - Once upon a time, data was, well, a little boring - and, often, overwhelming. Numbers... tables... more numbers. Now, through the use of data visualization tools, some of which are even interactive, the U.S. Census Bureau has breathed new life...
Top Picks: 2012 State and Local Election Results Coverage
The votes are tallied... and the results are in! In addition to making their selection for President and Congressional representatives, voters across the country cast their votes on 174 ballot initiatives. Where can you turn for the best coverage of the 2012 election...
September Employment Update: Sustained Trends Over Time Paint the Most Accurate Picture
What do Elkhart, Indiana and El Centro, California have in common? Admittedly, not much. Yet these two metro areas posted the largest year-over-year decreases in unemployment rate, according to the most recent Bureau of Labor Statistics Metro Area Employment and...
How Tax Burdened is Your State?
New York remains most “tax-burdened” state in the nation, according to The Tax Foundation, which released its Annual State-Local Tax Burden Rankings for 2010. Residents of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut paid over 12 percent of their annual income in state and...
As Property Taxes Continue to Fall, Will the States Replace Lost Revenues?
by guest contributor, Peter Fugiel, Ph.D. During the Great Depression, the sharp fall-off in property tax receipts was offset by the adoption of state sales taxes and state/local aid programs. Recovery from the current real estate recession may well also rely on...
Realtors Lean Toward Optimism for U.S. Home Prices
Real estate professionals have an increasingly positive outlook for the direction of home values, according to a third quarter 2012 survey by HomeGain, a website that provides online home valuations. The survey reported that 51percent of realtors expect home values to...
August Employment Update: Oklahoma City Boasts Lowest Unemployment Rate Among Large Metro Areas
In August 2012, unemployment rates were lower in 325 of the 372 total metro areas in the nation compared to the prior year, according to data recently released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The national unemployment rate was 8.2 percent (not seasonally...
Leading by Example: Syracuse University Is Fastest Municipal Borrower to Complete Financial Audits
Syracuse University is known for many things: its Orangemen, its hilly campus, and its famous alumni, including Joe Biden, Dick Clark, and William Safire. But perhaps one of its lesser known accolades is that it is a leader in timely financial reporting among...
Most Municipal Audits Still Slow, Despite Push for Timely Transparency
In the corporate bond market, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requires that annual audit reports be submitted within 60 to 90 days of the close of the fiscal year. While the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) has said that it would like to have...
Six Websites to Boost Your Municipal Bond Savvy
Need to increase your understanding of the financial markets? If so, you’re not alone. “Retail investors lack basic financial literacy,” with “a weak grasp of financial concepts,” according to the findings of a recent study...
The Growth and Decline of Local Governments in the U.S.
Illinois has the most local governments of any U.S. state, according to preliminary data released in the 2012 Census of Governments. Hawaii has the fewest. The U.S. Census Bureau conducts the Census of Governments every five years - for years ending in “2” and “7” -...
Schools Feel the Financial Crunch
The challenge for schools to provide the same – or improved – service with less money is a reality in over half the states in the nation, as states continue to cut education funding.
Interest in Public Sector Employment Prevails in Spite of Challenges
State and local governments are struggling with budget gaps. Stimulus funds are drying up. Public pension shortfalls are making mainstream media headlines. To the casual observer, it would seem that qualified job candidates would be heading for the hills - or, in this...
MSRB Reports Steady Increase of Disclosure Documents
The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) recently released its annual Continuing Disclosure Statistical Summary, analyzing three years of disclosure documents submitted to the MSRB through its Electronic Municipal Market Access (EMMA) system. EMMA became the...
June Metro Area Employment Update – Lafayette, LA Leads in Employment Growth Rate
Looking for good news in employment trends? June data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) points to annual nonfarm payroll employment growth in 268 of 372 U.S. metro areas - which translates to a positive trend in around 72 percent of the nation’s...
It’s Official … San Bernardino Files for Chapter 9 Bankruptcy Protection
Following on the heels of Stockton and Mammoth Lakes, San Bernardino becomes the third California city to seek Chapter 9 municipal bankruptcy protection
Continued Growth Expected for California, America’s Mega-State
Rapid population growth in the U.S. is expected throughout the next two decades. California, America’s mega-state, could reach 50 million residents by the year 2030, as every age group in the state is expected to grow
SEC Releases Recommendations for Municipal Securities Market
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has released its much-anticipated Report on the Municipal Securities Market, including recommendations to help improve its transparency. According to the SEC press release, “the report is a culmination of an extensive...
Which U.S. States Are Poised for the Greatest Population Growth?
by guest contributor, Peter Fugiel, Ph.D. Perhaps the single most important characteristic of the U.S. population in the 21st century is its rapid growth, expected to continue for at least the next two decades. As the trend continues, the most impressive story is in...
Metro Area Growth Spurs Infrastructure Needs
By the end of 2012, 300 of the nation’s 363 metro areas will experience real economic growth, according to a new economic report released by the U.S. Conference of Mayors at their Summer Leadership meeting earlier this week. And that’s good news, because, as the...
Demystifying the High Yield Municipal Bond Market
“For most investors, the mere mention of high yield recalls the high-risk, speculative “junk bonds” of the Michael Milken era and its well-documented excesses. In the municipal arena, high yield also means higher risk, but the term encompasses a much broader class of...
The Bond Buyer Delivers – News is Just the Beginning
From rating agency actions to political developments, issuance trends, and fiscal challenges, The Bond Buyer has reported on the municipal bond industry through its peaks and valleys - as well as through the evolution of information delivery. For more than 100 years,...
May Employment Data – Which Metro Areas Fared Best? Worst?
Lafayette, Louisiana led the nation in annual percentage gains in employment in May 2012, up 10.5 percent from a year earlier, according to recently released Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Columbus,...