MSRB to open window on variable-rate munis

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board has submitted a plan for approval by the Securities and Exchange Commission today to collect and disseminate critical market information about auction rate bonds and other variable-rate municipal securities. The MSRB plan aims to increase transparency in the marketplace. It would require municipal securities dealers or their proxies to disclose information about interest rates set for auction rate securities. Dealers would be compelled to provide similar information concerning interest rate reset data and the type and term of liquidity facilities for variable-rate demand obligations. Under the plan, the MSRB intends to make this information available for free public access on its Electronic Municipal Market Access system. EMMA provides free municipal securities information and real-time trade data online and is geared toward non-professional investors. The plan includes a requested start date of Jan. 30 to begin gathering variable-rate-securities data. The MSRB will continue to develop components for the transparency system, including auction rate security bidding information, and documents detailing liquidity arrangements and auction procedures. “We plan to continue to provide the investing public with municipal market information to help ensure a fair and efficient market,” Ronald A. Stack, MSRB chairman, said in a statement. The MSRB also is awaiting SEC approval to make continuing disclosure documents for municipal bonds available on EMMA. The MSRB is based in of Alexandria, Va.