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Contact: Jennifer A. Galloway, Chief Communications Officer
             (703) 797-6600
             jgalloway@msrb.org

MSRB RECEIVES APPROVAL TO IMPROVE PRICE TRANSPARENCY
FOR "NOT REOFFERED" MUNICIPAL SECURITIES 

Alexandria, VA – The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) has received approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission to limit the use by brokers, dealers and municipal securities dealers of the designation “not reoffered” or “NRO” without also including price or yield information in written communications about new issues of municipal securities.

The designation “NRO” or “not reoffered” indicates that certain maturities of a new issue of municipal securities are not available to be reoffered to potential investors. The new limits on the use of the NRO or not reoffered designation will improve the availability of current information about initial offering prices or yields of new issues of municipal securities. 

The requirement that the NRO or not reoffered designation not be used without also including the applicable price or yield information is an amendment to MSRB Rule G-34 on new issues and market information requirements. This new requirement, which becomes effective November 1, 2012, will apply to any written communication sent at or after the time an issuer accepts the terms of the new issue of municipal securities from an underwriter.

Underwriters currently are required to report initial offering price or yield information for all maturities, including maturities designated as NRO, to the MSRB’s Electronic Municipal Market Access (EMMA®) website, as well as to the New Issue Information Dissemination System (NIIDS) operated by the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation. This information becomes available to market participants and the general public during or by the end of the first day of trading in the new issue. The approved rule change will ensure that any information provided to the marketplace by dealers regarding new issues prior to such centralized public dissemination and through other market venues also includes the applicable price or yield information for securities designated as NRO.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) protects and strengthens the municipal bond market, enabling access to capital, economic growth, and societal progress in tens of thousands of communities across the country. The MSRB fulfills this mission by creating trust in our market through informed regulation of dealers and municipal advisors that protects investors, issuers and the public interest; building technology systems that power our market and provide transparency for issuers, institutions, and the investing public; and serving as the steward of market data that empowers better decisions and fuels innovation for the future. The MSRB is a self-regulatory organization governed by a board of directors that has a majority of public members, in addition to representatives of regulated entities. The MSRB is overseen by the Securities and Exchange Commission and Congress.

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