Municipal bond ratings and rating services: How are the services of value to issuers? to underwriters and dealers? to investors?

Municipal bond ratings and rating services have been severely criticized from time to time, yet they survive and prosper. Therefore, they must be useful. How are the services of value to issuers? to underwriters and dealers? to investors?

municipal bond rating services - value of and criticisms

What are the main criticisms that have been levelled against municipal bond rating services? What are the advantages and disadvnatages of replacing the present services with one done by a Federal agency?

Need clarification on Private-Activity Bond Issuances, and restrictions by local governments

I am unclear the about possible use of restrictions on "private-activity" bond issuance? Is restricting bond issuances by a local government (especially when we are discussing a state when the state govenment does little borrowing but the local government has significant debt) a sensible idea - what are the pros and cons?

federal income tax exemption - inefficient subsidy because no national interest in capital projects being financed by borrowing - rather than current revenues..

What are the arguements for and against the critisim of the federal income tax exemption of interest on state-local debt as being an inefficient subsidy because there is no national interest in capital projects being financed by borrowing rather than by current revenues?

little state government borrowing, but a lot of local government debt

What is the signifigance (pros/cons) - to the State and the local governments - when the State has low State borrowing but the local government debt is high (ie California, North Carolina)?