Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf recently signed into law Act 4 of 2019 (HB 264), which amends section 12 of the Municipality Authorities Act, 53 Pa.C.S. 5612, to establish minimum standards for an Authority’s financial and operating procedures. Act 4 received unanimous support in both the House and the Senate.
Act 4 makes a number of…
The Pennsylvania General Assembly continues to battle over revenue sources while the state remains without a complete state budget. And when it seems impossible, things actually continue to worsen with the House and Senate scheduled sessions to begin this afternoon. Over the weekend, the idea of a storage tax was discussed and it now seems…
Pennsylvania State Senators John Blake, John DiSanto, and Mike Folmer recently introduced a trio of new municipal debt reform bills that follow on the package of reform bills introduced in the Senate in March. The new bills – Senate Bill 694, Senate Bill 695, and Senate Bill 696 – would expand the power of the Office of Attorney General to prosecute political crimes at the municipal level, increase the statute of limitations for such crimes, and require third class cities to put out for competitive bid all contracts for professional services.
Continue Reading Pennsylvania Senators Introduce New Municipal Debt Reform Bills
Following his inauguration on January 20th, President Trump issued several Executive Orders, one of which was issued on January 25, 2017 and titled, “Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the United States” (referred to herein as the “Order”). Among other things, this Order punishes so-called “sanctuary jurisdictions” by stripping them of federal grants. As justification for this punitive measure, the Order states that “sanctuary jurisdictions … willfully violate Federal law in an attempt to shield aliens from removal…. These jurisdictions have caused immeasurable harm to the American people and to the very fabric of our Republic.”
In the months since the Order, many state and local entities have parsed the Order to determine whether they would be considered a “sanctuary jurisdiction,” what funding may be in jeopardy, and whether they can modify their policies to limit or eliminate application of the Order. In the midst of these uncertainties, many municipalities also have been faced with the issue of how to address the potential consequences of “sanctuary jurisdiction” status in their public offering documents when they are considering issuing municipal bonds for sale to the investor public.Continue Reading Sanctuary Jurisdictions and Municipal Bond Disclosure
A series of municipal debt reform proposals have been reintroduced in the Pennsylvania Senate.
Versions of these proposals have been introduced in every legislative session dating back to the 2013-2014 term, although the proposals have changed somewhat over the years. This session’s bills are number SB 490 through SB 493.
As with bills from past sessions, the current proposals would change the way municipalities obtain approval from the Department of Community and Economic Development (“DCED”) to issue bonds, notes or other public debt, as well as make a number of reforms to those current provisions governing interest rate swaps, performance bonds and municipal authority projects.Continue Reading Municipal Debt Reform Proposals Reintroduced in State Senate
McNees Wallace & Nurick LLC was ranked fifth in Pennsylvania in the 2016 Bond Counsel Rankings by The Bond Buyer. The firm also was ranked fourth in Pennsylvania in the 2016 Bond Underwriter’s Counsel, and is one of just two firms to appear in the top five in both lists.
Continue Reading McNees Ranked in Top 5 for Bond Counsel and Underwriter’s Counsel in Pennsylvania for 2016
On Tuesday, February 7th, Governor Wolf presented his 2017 budget address to a joint session of the Pennsylvania General Assembly. The Governor’s proposal includes a $1 Billion increase in the tax burden on Pennsylvania businesses and individuals. While the Governor stated that he was proposing no “broad-based tax increases,” his budget does raise revenues significantly while not addressing pension liability. We are currently analyzing the specifics of the Governor’s budget proposal and will provide more information in future posts. For now, however, here are some high level takeaways on the tax front:
Continue Reading Governor Wolf Calls for Major Business Tax Increases in 2017 Budget Proposal
