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November 29 – Washington Post (David Cho): “The widening credit crunch is making it harder for cities and school systems to get money for buildings, ballparks and other vital projects from the $2.5 trillion market for municipal bonds, a sector of Wall Street that rarely sees trouble. That is leaving them with a tough choice: either put off the projects, or pay higher interest rates on their bonds… Faced with the prospect of paying higher interest rates this month, Chicago canceled a $960 million bond. Miami-Date pulled a $540 million offering for its airport… Several finance directors said it is unusual for turbulence to hit municipal bonds, a tax-exempt investment that has long been considered safe. ‘There’s some unique and maybe even unprecedented dynamics that have been occurring because of the credit crunch,’ said Lasana Mack, the District’s treasurer. For the past several years, cities and towns have been able to borrow money by issuing bonds that pay historically low interest rates. That era of easy money is ending for many municipalities, mostly because of spiraling losses in the mortgage industry that have been driving up borrowing costs.”