Issuer Disclosure

Municipal bonds are unique compared to corporate and other government bonds because they are generally exempt from federal government oversight. They are not regulated by the SEC, and issuers do not have to publish a prospectus. Instead, they offer a more informal disclosure document called an official statement. This document contains detailed information about the bonds and the financial condition of the issuer, as well as a legal opinion verifying the municipality’s authority to issue the bond.

The preparation of the official statement, led by the financial advisor, is completed in two steps. The preliminary official statement describes the pertinent details of the bond issue before its price and interest rates have been determined. Once the pricing elements have been decided, they are added to the preliminary official statement, and the new document is published as the final official statement.

The preliminary official statement details the purposes and essential terms and conditions of the bond issue, such as

•The loan amount

•Maturity structure of the bond (whether seri