Bloomberg Podcasts · Congress Has to Support Municipal Bonds Says Brock

1. 1. The federal tax exemption for municipal bonds is created by an act of Congress and must be actively defended each session.
2. 2. Every new administration, especially Republican ones, raises fresh questions about whether the municipal bond tax exemption is at risk.
3. 3. The municipal bond tax exemption costs the federal government roughly $400 billion over ten years, ranking it among the top ten federal expenditures.
4. 4. Brock says party control of Congress matters less than the size of the pro-municipal-bond coalition he has built.
5. 5. With 12 new senators, 21 new governors, and a new Democratic House, Brock plans a heavy offense in the House where the power of the purse begins.
6. 6. Municipal bonds were preserved in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, and the law added space cargo and space infrastructure as allowable uses.
7. 7. Bond referenda passed easily in some states but mostly failed in Texas, showing outcomes depend on how measures are worded and pitched to voters.
8. 8. When voters reject a bond referendum, the onus falls on independent school districts to make the case better next time.