U.S. Municipal Finance
GO bond and fiscal health analysis covering special tax districts, general fund operations, pension obligations, rate covenants, and credit frameworks for U.S. cities and counties.
Reference Guides
Municipal General Obligation Bonds: A Comprehensive Guide
Understanding GO bonds, unlimited tax pledges, voter authorization, and the mechanics of municipal credit.
Municipal Credit Analysis: Rating Agency Frameworks for Cities and Counties
How S&P, Moody's, and Fitch evaluate the creditworthiness of municipal governments using systematic frameworks.
The Municipal Pension Crisis: Unfunded Liabilities and Credit Impact
Understanding GASB 68 disclosure, pension funded ratios, actuarial assumptions, and how unfunded pension liabilities drive municipal credit downgrades.
Property Tax Revenue: The Foundation of Municipal Credit
How property taxes fund municipal services, the mechanics of assessment, levy limits, and credit implications of tax concentration and exemptions.
Municipal Fiscal Stress: Early Warning Indicators and State Intervention
Identifying municipalities in crisis through fund balance depletion, cash flow borrowing, and structural deficits. Understanding state oversight programs and Chapter 9 bankruptcy.
Special Tax Districts and Assessment Bonds: Structure, Credit, and Risk
A comprehensive guide to Mello-Roos, community facilities districts, and special assessment mechanisms in municipal finance.
How to Read a Municipal ACFR: A Practical Guide for Credit Analysts
Essential framework for interpreting financial statements, GASB reporting, and critical credit metrics from annual comprehensive financial reports.
Municipal Debt Structures: COPs, Lease Revenue Bonds, and Alternative Financing
Comprehensive guide to non-general obligation municipal debt: appropriation risk, credit evaluation, and investor considerations.
Municipal Climate Resilience and Green Bonds: ESG in Public Finance
Framework for understanding green and sustainability bonds, climate risk disclosure, and ESG integration in municipal credit analysis.
State-Local Fiscal Federalism: How State Policy Shapes Municipal Credit
Framework for understanding state policy constraints, revenue sharing, and state aid dependence as drivers of municipal credit quality.
Municipal Pension Funding and Its Impact on Bond Credit Quality
Examining GASB 67/68 reporting, assumption changes, and credit rating implications
DOGE and Federal Funding Cuts: Impact on Municipal Bond Credit
How federal spending reductions affect state and local budgets, Medicaid funding, and municipal bond credit quality.
OBBBA and the Municipal Bond Market: Tax Policy, SALT, and Issuance Outlook
How SALT cap expansion and preserved municipal bond tax exemption shape 2026 issuance and relative value.
Municipal Bond Market Outlook 2026: Record Issuance, Yields, and Credit Trends
Market projections, yield environment, sector performance, credit migration, and supply-demand dynamics for 2026.
How Municipal Bonds Work: A Guide to GO and Revenue Bonds
Introductory guide to municipal bond structures, tax exemption, credit ratings, and key market participants.
Municipal Bond Insurance and Credit Enhancement
How bond insurance works, major insurers (Assured Guaranty, BAM), and when insurance adds value.
Tax Increment Financing (TIF): Revenue Bonds and Redevelopment
How TIF works, bond structures, credit considerations, use cases, and policy controversies.
Municipal Credit Ratings: How Moody's, S&P, and Fitch Evaluate Issuers
Rating agency methodologies, key metrics (debt burden, reserves, economic base), and upgrade/downgrade drivers.