Word: programed
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...Build America Bonds have proved popular, they may also end up being costly. Already, the volume of bonds issued means the federal government is committed to spending a billion dollars in the first year of the program alone. The final price tag may end up reaching $90 billion...
Many credit BABs with reviving the muni-bond sector. Since the program was announced in mid-February, muni-bond interest rates, which are what local governments have to pay to borrow, have fallen dramatically. The typical municipality is now paying 3.7% when they issue a bond, down from as high as 4.5% in January, before the BABs program was announced, according to Barclays Capital. Some of the drop in yields reflects the improvement in the economy in general, and the easing of the credit crunch. But muni-bond-market observers say BABs have played an important role as well...
Under the program, the federal government subsidizes the bond payments that local governments make to investors, boosting the yield by 35%. So a typical muni bond that would normally pay 4.5% yields nearly 7% if it is issued through the Build America Bond program. The higher payments don't hurt the finances of the local government, because Uncle Sam is picking up the difference. (See how Americans are spending...
...likely however the program won't cost nearly that much. First of all, some of the people buying BABs are individuals, who will owe taxes, though not all of them are in the highest tax bracket. What's more, BABs are bringing down the yields of all muni bonds, not just BABs. That is lowering the borrowing costs of local governments in general. That lower expense should save taxpayers money when it comes to paying their state and local taxes, even if it increases the money being shelled out by the federal government...
...which show that 12.7% of U.S. births were preterm. Those figures, which have remained constant in recent years, also earned the U.S. a D last year, when the March of Dimes began compiling its report card. The objective, set by federal health experts in the Healthy People 2010 program, is a preterm birth rate of 7.6%. Worldwide, the preterm birth rate is estimated at 9.6%, accounting for 12.9 million babies per year. "Preterm birth remains a very intractable problem," says Dr. Jennifer Howse, president of the March of Dimes Foundation. "It does not surprise me that we are not seeing...