|
Beginning in 2004, Bloomberg, a leading global provider of
data, news and analytics, published a series of articles and
commentaries regarding the high cost
to taxpayers resulting from negotiated bonds sales.
Concerned
Citizens’ Guide to US Public Finance,
December 2004
(Summary: Mysak urges
citizens to ask public officials questions regarding negotiated bond
sales.)
States, Cities
Shun Finance Competition, Victimizing Taxpayers,
January 2005
(Summary: Through
negotiated sales, underwriters have taken control of municipal finance,
causing governments to pay millions of extra dollars in interest costs
and fees as much as six times higher than comparable issues sold
competitively.)
SEC
Official Says No-Bid Bond Sales Raise 'Conflict' Concerns,
February 2005
(Summary: Article regarding no-bid bond
sales includes concerns expressed by Martha Haines, head
of public finance regulations at the Securities and Exchange Commission, regarding underwriters' contributions to bond referenda.)
Citigroup
`Double-Dipped' Louisiana Taxpayers With No-Bid Bond,
February 2005
(Summary: According to
data compiled by Bloomberg, Louisiana paid about $8.2 million more in
borrowing costs for its negotiated sale than for an issue that was
competitively sold only four months earlier.)
The Banks
that Fleeced Alabama,
September 2005
(Summary: Bloomberg
reported that taxpayers are angry that $160 million in fees were paid to
JP Morgan Chase and other banks to arrange financings that were never
put out to bid.)
Bond deals fair to
taxpayers?, September 2005
(Summary:
Hawaii has sold more than $10 billion dollars worth of bonds for roads,
schools and other projects without seeking bids. This practice may have
cost taxpayers $6 million at Hawaii’s last sale alone.)
Missouri Taxpayers
Lose on Non-Competitive Bond Sales,
January 2005
(Summary: Article
described the findings of Missouri State Auditor Claire McCaskill’s 2005
report on Missouri’s general obligation bond sale practices. For this
article, Bloomberg interviewed Roger Kurtz, associate director of the
Missouri Association of School Administrators who said “Schools favor
negotiated sales because they believe they require less time and work of
superintendents and other administrators”.)
Missouri Bond Study Shows Dim Issuers, Mad
Bankers,
January 2006.
(Summary: “Municipal bond
issuers are lazy, when they aren’t entirely clueless”)
Oregon Taxpayers
Denied Benefits of Competitive Bid by Schools, December 2006
(Summary: “At
Southwestern Oregon Community College, anyone taking ECON201 learns that
monopolies drive up prices and competition brings them down.” Even so,
the College and the majority of local governments in Oregon engage
Seattle-Northwest Securities Corp. as underwriter without competitive
bidding.”)
|
