News – Page 1807 – Ranson Financial Group LLC

Public Finance Network urges Fed to act quickly on municipal bond purchases

info2020-04-01T09:00:06-05:00March 31st, 2020|

Members of the Public Finance Network are asking the Federal Reserve to expedite its purchase of municipal securities to help restore equilibrium to the market. ... Section 4003(b)(4) of the bill, also known as the CARES Act, gives the Fed and Treasury up to 10 days to begin purchasing municipal securities on the secondary market.... that deadline is Monday, April 13. The letter urges speedier action. “Stability in our $3.8 trillion municipal bond market is particularly important during this crisis as state and local governments and the municipal bond market provide critical support for the infrastructure — including hospitals — needed [...]

Derby approves emergency response resolution

info2020-04-01T09:24:09-05:00March 31st, 2020|

Navigating through the current state of emergency has been a fluid process, according to Derby City Attorney Jacque Butler. “We are responding as quickly as possible to this,” Butler said. Measures of response to the coronavirus pandemic are changing daily, though, if not hourly. Considering that, Butler brought a resolution before the Derby City Council March 24 to help in those efforts. Butler noted that while many municipalities have emergency powers built into their city codes, Derby does not. When an emergency is declared (as was the case in Sedgwick County as of March 16), those emergency powers are then granted [...]

Officials deal with confusion over activities allowed by statewide stay-at-home order

info2020-03-31T08:59:15-05:00March 31st, 2020|

After closing temporarily last week because of a countywide safer-at-home order, Topeka Country Club reopened Monday afternoon while asserting that golf is permitted under a statewide stay-at-home order issued by Gov. Laura Kelly. Kelly’s order, which supersedes a countywide order issued last week, apparently doesn’t prohibit golf or otherwise address golf courses, Shawnee County Commissioner Bill Riphahn said. “So as far as I know, they’re good to go,” he said of TCC. (Read more: Local - The Topeka Capital-Journal)

Officials getting better handle on local COVID-19 expectations

info2020-03-31T08:58:40-05:00March 31st, 2020|

Looking at best- and worst-case scenarios for the potential impact of COVID-19 on local medical facilities, Hutchinson Regional Medical Center vice president Chuck Welch said Monday that officials there “feel better and better every day about our readiness.” “We’ve had an outpouring of health care professionals willing to come in and work,” Welch said during a morning conference call. “Many who may be retired, if the governor passes a reactivation of licensure, they’re ready to help.” “Projections are projections,” Welch said. “There are worst-case and best-case and a range in between. We’re planning for the worst-case and exploring opportunities to split [...]

Municipal bond market steadies as it enters new normal

info2020-03-31T08:58:04-05:00March 31st, 2020|

Yields in the municipal market declined slightly Monday as new-issue market showed some signs of activity. Municipal credit is beginning to emerge as more of an investing consideration as the market deals with the coronavirus-led selloff and subsequent Fed-led rebound. These moves are starting to make participants pick winners and losers from a credit perspective as they look at the underlying worthiness of municipalities after an extended period of significantly low rates and a supply/demand imbalance. For now, the market is settling into a new normal, though caution still pervades. (Read more: The Bond Buyer)

Municipal Bond Trends for March 30, 2020

info2020-04-16T08:06:26-05:00March 31st, 2020|

The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of MBIS "investment grade" yields. Every issuer's credit is different. For rates that may be applicable to your municipality, contact our Municipal Bond Advisors, Larry Kleeman and Beth Warren.

Kansas health providers face financial strain from COVID-19. ‘We need help now’

info2020-03-31T09:22:03-05:00March 31st, 2020|

A pandemic is sweeping Kansas, but Lawrence family physician Chad Johanning isn’t seeing a ton of patients. “Even with tele-health visits, I’ve seen a 50 percent drop in visits during this and I have heard of other clinicians who are closer to 80 percent drops,” Johanning said. The novel coronavirus has forced healthcare providers in Kansas — and across the country — to suddenly pivot to confront an insidious disease that threatens to overwhelm hospitals in a matter of weeks. But it’s also meant a sharp drop in the number of patients seeking routine and non-emergency care. (Read more: Kansas City [...]

New Johnson County health director describes first week on job dealing with coronavirus pandemic

info2020-03-31T09:16:22-05:00March 31st, 2020|

Sanmi Areola started his new job as Johnson County director of health and environment in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. ... From the moment he walked in the door of the public health department in Olathe on March 18, the coronavirus has been his life. He had a say in crafting the metro’s stay at home order. He asked Johnson County leaders to buy more tests kits for the county’s residents. He filmed a coronavirus YouTube video. He’s trying to take care of his staff’s own health and mental well-being and, oh yeah, the media want to talk to him, [...]

Thousands of coronavirus test kits coming to Kansas

info2020-03-31T09:14:50-05:00March 31st, 2020|

As of Monday, 65,000 coronavirus test kits are coming to Kansas. “We’re talking about a different scale,” Kansas Department of Health and Environment Secretary Lee Norman Norman said. On Monday, Norman gave an update to members of the media on the coronavirus outbreak in the state. At the time of the press conference, Kansas had seen 368 cases of coronavirus. Norman announced that the state will receive thousands of kits, likely by the end of the week, that will be able to test for coronavirus in about 45 minutes. (Read more: KSN-TV)

Economic fallout from coronavirus casts pall over budget planning for Johnson County government

info2020-03-31T09:09:32-05:00March 31st, 2020|

As the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic continues, Johnson County Commissioners have begun to cast a wary eye toward what may be in store for the next year’s budget. The county budget, which surpassed $1 billion two years ago, has been bobbing along in recent years, buoyed by steady increases in property values and low unemployment. But the rosy outlook has fallen into question the past year as officials have grappled with a possible major loss of commercial property value due to challenges to the way it was appraised, nicknamed the “dark store theory.” Last year they also puzzled over [...]