States need to prepare for population declines; Gateway CEO named
The Bond Buyer
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With a third of states losing population and city dwellers moving to rural communities, finance officials need to rethink revenue forecasts; Former New Jersey Transportation Commissioner Kris Kolluri has been nominated to head the Gateway Development Commission; April revenue collections set records in Southwest states; and what else we're covering in the municipal bond and public finance sectors.
States should be including declines in population and those impacts on state revenue as part of their long-term revenue forecasts, analysts from Pew Research said.
The nomination to the bistate agency comes as the long-stalled project could see its first infusion of federal funds.
April revenue collections set records in Southwest states as a strong economy and inflation boosted income and sales tax collections, although some officials are urging caution.
Despite the pandemic, operating revenues increased 7.6% from 2019 to 2020 and 8.25% from 2020 to 2021.
Despite outsized volatility and liquidity challenges ahead, the possibility of relief for munis is not too far off, analysts say, but USTs lead the way for exempts.
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