Register

July

17-18
2024

Upcoming Event

13th annual Municipal Finance Conference

Wednesday, July 17 - Thursday, July 18, 2024
Brookings Institution

1775 Massachusetts Avenue N.W.
Washington, DC
20036

MFC 2024 logo landscape

The annual Municipal Finance Conference brings together academics, practitioners, issuers, and regulators to discuss recent research on municipal capital markets and state and local fiscal issues. The conference is a joint venture of the Hutchins Center on Fiscal and Monetary Policy at Brookings, the Rosenberg Institute of Global Finance at the Brandeis International Business School, the Mitchell E. Daniels Jr. School of Business at Purdue University, and the Harris School of Public Policy at the University of Chicago. The 2024 conference will be held primarily in person – there will be livestream options for remote viewers – on July 17 and 18 at Brookings Institution.

Registration is required to attend an event in person and guests at Brookings are required to attest to their state of health before attending. Visitors may not enter the building if they are feeling ill for any reason, have any symptoms commonly associated with COVID-19, have recently tested positive for COVID-19 and do not yet meet the criteria to resume normal activities based on current CDC guidance, or have been advised by their healthcare professional or otherwise to not enter any space where some persons may not be vaccinated.

*Please find a draft agenda below (subject to change). This event is free of charge.

Agenda

  • July 17
    • DAY 1: Wednesday, July 17

    • Breakfast/registration opens

      9:00 am - 9:30 am

    • Welcome remarks

      9:30 am - 9:35 am

    • Paper session 1

      9:35 am - 11:20 am

      Digital Data Standards Support Greater Transparency and Opportunity in the Municipal Bond Markets

      Authors: Christine Kuglin (University of Denver), Stephanie Leiser (University of Michigan Ford School of Public Policy), and Michelle Savage (XBRL US)

      Discussant: Mike Olander (Bloomberg)

      Mark-Up Disclosure Rule and Its Effects on Trading Costs in the Municipal Bond Market

      Author: Yu He (University of Nebraska-Lincoln)

      Discussant: Brad Wendt (Charles River Associates)

      Do School Bond Issuances and Outcomes Depend on Ballot Disclosures?

      Authors: Nicole Boyson (Northeastern University) and Weiling Liu (Northeastern University)

      Discussant: Jess Cornaggia (Penn State University)

      Moderator

      Justin Marlowe headshot
      Justin Marlowe Research Professor & Director of the Center for Municipal Finance - Harris School of Public Policy, University of Chicago
    • Panel: Should state pension funds use ESG criteria in making investment decisions?

      11:20 am - 12:20 pm

      Panelists: Steven Johnson (Kansas State Treasurer) and others

      Moderator

      Liz Farmer headshot
      Liz Farmer Officer - Pew Charitable Trusts
    • Breakout lunches

      12:20 pm - 1:30 pm

      Technological Change and Trading in the Muni Market

      Host: David Erdman (Baker Tilly Municipal Advisors)
      Location: TBD

      Cyber Risks

      Host: Ivan Ivanov (Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago)
      Location: TBD

      Current Issues in State and Local Economies and Fiscal Conditions

      Host: Louise Sheiner (Brookings Institution)
      Location: TBD

      Impact of Inflation and Higher-for-Longer on Municipal Finances and Muni Bond Market

      Host: Richard Ryffel (Purdue University)
      Location:
      TBD

    • Paper session 2

      1:30 pm - 2:40 pm

      State Government Trifectas and Municipal Bond Pricing

      Authors: Riddha Basu (George Washington University), Amanda Beck (Georgia State University), Angela Gore (George Washington University), and Kevin Rich (Marquette University)

      Discussant: Tracy Gordon (Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center)

      Flow-Induced Trading: Evidence from the Daily Trading of Municipal Bond Mutual Funds

      Authors: Sergey Chernenko (Purdue University) and Viet-Dung Doan (Hong Kong Baptist University)

      Discussant: Peter Block (Ramirez & Co.)

      Moderator

      Richard Ryffel headshot
      Richard Ryffel Professor of Practice & Executive Director of Business Leadership - Mitchell E. Daniels, Jr. School of Business, Purdue University
    • Paper session 3

      2:40 pm - 4:25 pm

      Procurement and Infrastructure Costs

      Authors: Zachary Liscow (Yale University), Will Nober (Columbia University), and Cailin Slattery (University of California, Berkeley)

      Discussant: Leah Brooks (George Washington University)

      City Hall Has Been Hacked! The Financial Costs of Lax Cybersecurity

      Authors: Filippo Curti (Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond), Ivan Ivanov (Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago), Marco Macchiavelli (University of Massachusetts Amherst), and Tom Zimmermann (University of Cologne)

      Discussant: Anna Scherbina (Brandeis International Business School)

      A Market-Based Measure of Climate Risk for Cities

      Authors: Alex Butler (Rice University) and Cihan Uzmanoglu (Binghamton University-SUNY)

      Discussant: Erika Smull (Breckinridge Capital Advisors)

      Moderator

      Daniel Bergstresser Associate Professor of Finance - Rosenberg Institute of Global Finance, Brandeis International Business School
    • Break

      4:25 pm - 4:35 pm

    • Panel: The latest in public infrastructure spending and finance

      4:35 pm - 5:35 pm

      Panelists: Elaine Buckberg (Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability, Harvard University), Jeremy Ebie (Phoenix Infrastructure Group), Joung Lee (American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials), and Samantha Silverberg (White House)

    • Cocktail reception

      5:35 pm

    • DAY 2: Thursday, July 18

  • July 18
    • Breakfast/registration opens

      8:00 am - 8:30 am

    • Opening remarks

      8:30 am - 8:35 am

    • Paper session 4

      8:35 am - 9:45 am

      Winning at the Starting Line: Underwriter Connections and Municipal Bond Fund Performance

      Authors: Bingkuan Cao (University of Nebraska-Lincoln), Russ Wermers (University of Maryland at College Park), and Zihan Ye (University of Tennessee)

      Discussant: Daniel Bergstresser (Brandeis International Business School)

      From Arm’s Length to Arm in Arm: Banks and Municipal Bond Financing

      Authors: Gustavo Cortes (University of Florida), Igor Cunha (University of Kentucky), and Sharjil Haque (Federal Reserve Board)

      Discussant: Khalen Dwyer (Columbia Capital Management)

    • Paper session 5

      9:45 am - 10:55 am

      Markup or Markdown: National Underwriters’ Exit and the Changing Landscape of Municipal Finance

      Authors: John Hund (University of Georgia), Christian Lundblad (University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill), Christos Makridis (Stanford University), and Giang Nguyen (Pennsylvania State University)

      Discussant: Yaffa Rattner (HilltopSecurities)

      When the Thin Bench Gets Thinner: Investment Bank Consolidation and Municipal Finance

      Author: Renping Li (Washington University in St. Louis)

      Discussant: Peter Iliev (Penn State University)

      Moderator

      Christine Cuny 2022
      Christine Cuny Associate Professor of Accounting - New York University Stern School of Business
    • Break

      10:55 am - 11:05 am

    • Paper session 6

      11:05 am - 12:15 pm

      Federal Assistance and Municipal Borrowing: Unpacking the Effects of the CARES Act on Government Liquidity Management

      Author: Luis Navarro (Indiana University, Bloomington)

      Discussant: Lauren Larson (Brookings Institution)

      Tax-Exempt Tenders — A Critical Examination

      Authors: Andrew Kalotay (Kalotay Advisors, Inc.) and Martin Luby (University of Texas at Austin)

      Discussant: Allen Garman (Maryland Transportation Authority)

    • The view from city hall

      12:15 pm - 1:15 pm

      Conversation with Mayor G.T. Bynum (Tulsa, OK), Mayor Steven Reed (Montgomery, AL), and Mayor Brett Smiley (Providence, RI)