Moody’s Upgrades Montgomery County’s Bond Rating Outlook To ‘Stable’

NORRISTOWN, PA – Moody’s Investor Service upgraded the county’s bond rating outlook from “negative” to “stable” on Monday, according to a press release.

The county is expecting to refund $25.6 million in outstanding bonds in the coming weeks and had its rating “affirmed” to an Aa1 rating, according to the release sent out Monday afternoon.

“With the upgrade, Moody’s is recognizing the remarkable turnaround in the fiscal situation in Montgomery County,” commissioners’ Chairman Josh Shapiro said in the press release.

Read more:

http://www.timesherald.com/general-news/20150317/moodys-upgrades-montgomery-countys-bond-rating-outlook-to-stable

US Gains 288k Jobs, Most In 2 Years; Rate 6.3 Percent

WASHINGTON (AP) – U.S. employers added a robust 288,000 jobs in April, the most in two years, the strongest evidence to date that the economy is picking up after a brutal winter slowed growth.

The Labor Department also said Friday that the unemployment rate sank to 6.3 percent, its lowest level since September 2008, from 6.7 percent in March. But the drop occurred because the number of people working or seeking work fell sharply. People aren’t counted as unemployed if they’re not looking for a job.

In addition to the burst of hiring in April, employers added more jobs in February and March than previously estimated. The job totals for those two months were revised up by a combined 36,000.

Employers have now added an average of 238,000 jobs the past three months, up from 167,000 in the previous three.

Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/business/20140502_ap_8f84a138e20f4ac28ac7183f68972fba.html#8ZcZ0H6uK0amdHP5.99

Wilkes-Barre’s Credit Rating Is Upgraded

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Luzerne County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

WILKES-BARRE. PA — Mayor Tom Leighton is touting the city’s new “positive outlook” rating from a national credit rating company, and representatives of a local bond broker and financial services company say the city has reason to celebrate.

Standard & Poor’s Rating Services revised its outlook on the city’s outstanding general obligation bonds from A- negative to A- positive, according to a recently released S&P report.

It’s noteworthy, the mayor says, because “it saves taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars and allows us the flexibility to invest in our city, improve our infrastructure and create jobs for our citizens.”

Pete Shelp, a certified financial planner at Janney Montgomery Scott, a stock and bond brokerage and financial services firm in Kingston, said Thursday a higher credit rating could save the city considerable cash.

Read more: http://timesleader.com/news/local-news/1026124/Wilkes-Barres-credit-rating-is-upgraded

Easton City Council Looks At $17 Million Bond For New City Hall

English: Skyline of Easton, PA from Lafayette College (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

If things go as scheduled, Easton will float bonds for its new City Hall in two weeks.

The bonds total $17 million, most of which will go toward the new City Hall, with a small amount for other projects. The amount of debt the city plans to take on for its new headquarters is 50 percent more than officials proposed a year ago, but plans have changed.

Easton was going to solicit a private developer to build out for the three-story, 45,000-square-foot building along South Third Street the city plans to erect in front of a 370-space parking deck. Earlier this year the city chose to take on the entire project and move City Hall to the new building and sell the Alpha Building.

The change in plans meant the city needed to borrow an additional $5 million to complete the project.

Read more: http://www.mcall.com/news/local/easton/mc-easton-city-council-introduces-bond-20130925,0,5236996.story#ixzz2g0cuXS79
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Agreement Reached To Sell Harrisburg Incinerator To Lancaster Authority

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Dauphin County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

An agreement has been reached that will allow the Lancaster County Solid Waste Management Authority to purchase the long-troubled Harrisburg incinerator, officials said Wednesday.

Details about the plan — including the sale price — were not disclosed.

At a press conference, Harrisburg Mayor Linda Thompson touted the agreement, months in the making, as a key to bailing out the financially beleaguered city.  “This is the turning point we’ve all been waiting for,” she said.

Read more: http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/875044_Agreement-reached–to-sell-Harrisburg-incinerator-to-Lancaster-authority.html#ixzz2ZzKfEDjE

SEC Case Against Harrisburg Falls Short For Exempting Finance Pros, Some Say

Seal of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

HARRISBURG, PA – No one answered the phone or the door at former Mayor Steve Reed’s home Tuesday nearly 24 hours after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced a settlement with Pennsylvania’s capital city over fraud charges rooted in activity during his administration.

Some public finance and securities experts saw the settlement – dubbed “toothless” by one – as a warning to municipalities that consequences await them if investors are misled by false or incomplete financial statements from local governments.

Others, however, criticized SEC for failing to hold the city’s hired advisers to account.

“Reed ran the city, (current Mayor Linda) Thompson (is running) the city,” said Mark Schwartz, a former bond lawyer who previously represented Harrisburg City Council on its ultimately rejected bankruptcy petition. “There is a ‘buck stops there’ liability for (city leaders), but the people who do the work are bond lawyers.  These are bonds that never should have been issued.  Reed cannot issue bonds on his own.  Professionals were abysmal in terms of fulfilling their responsibilities to investors and they have gotten off scot-free.  They’ve made millions.”

Read more:  http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2013/05/fsec_case_against_harrisburg_l.html#incart_m-rpt-1

Montgomery County Issues $55M In Bonds For Infrastructure Projects

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Montgomery County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

NORRISTOWN — The Montgomery County Commissioners issued $55 million in bonds this week to address some county infrastructure projects.

While it does not address every item on a long laundry list of infrastructure needs throughout the county, the issuance of the bond addresses a good part of those needs without increasing the county’s current debt service over the next decade, according to the county’s top money manager.

“The bond sale received strong interest from underwriting firms with 10 banks submitting aggressive bids,” said Uri Monson, the county’s chief financial officer.

The commissioners approved the bond ordinance last month. Monson said the bonds were sold through a competitive sale process via an online bid service.  The winning bidder was PNC Capital Markets, with a True Interest Cost (TIC) of 2.39 percent.  The reported difference between the lowest bid and the next lowest bid was .017 percent.

Read more:  http://www.pottsmerc.com/article/20130405/NEWS01/130409500/montgomery-county-issues-55m-in-bonds-for-infrastructure-projects#full_story