Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board Implements All-Electronic Standard for Official...

Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board Implements All-Electronic Standard for
Official Statements

Documents Are Available on the MSRB's EMMA Website

ALEXANDRIA, Va., June 1 /PRNewswire/ -- The Municipal Securities Rulemaking
Board (MSRB) today implemented an all-electronic standard for free public
access to primary market disclosure documents and transaction price
information for the municipal securities market. All official statements and
advance refunding documents associated with new bond offerings will be filed
electronically and posted on the MSRB's Electronic Municipal Market Access
(EMMA) website at www.emma.msrb.org and are freely available to the public for
immediate access.

"We have made history by creating an electronic standard for municipal bond
documents," said Ronald A. Stack, Chair of the MSRB. "The MSRB is ahead of
the curve on price transparency and document disclosure by making both
available through a single, integrated website tailored to the individual
investor," he said. "The MSRB intends to continue to protect investors by
ensuring that they have the critical information they need to assess municipal
securities."

MSRB Rule G-32, which goes into effect today, requires municipal securities
underwriters to submit electronic official statements and advance refunding
documents to EMMA. Electronic submission of these documents previously was
voluntary.

The MSRB has been operating EMMA on a pilot basis since March 2008 and today
the municipal bond information system becomes a permanent repository for
electronic disclosure documents, official statements and trade data. Also
today, investors will for the first time have free access to certain
continuing disclosure documents submitted by municipal bond issuers on a
voluntary basis, and, beginning July 1, 2009, on a mandatory basis. Over
time, EMMA will be populated by a growing library of continuing disclosure
documents that will complement the vast warehouse of existing official
statements and other data on EMMA. In addition to disclosure documents, EMMA
houses real-time and historical trade data for municipal bonds, interest rates
and auction results for auction rate securities, interest rates for variable
rate demand obligations, daily market statistics and useful educational
material about municipal bonds.

Through EMMA, the MSRB seeks to improve transparency in the municipal
securities market and offer resources to investors. Today's implementation of
the all electronic standard for primary market documents, along with a
companion pilot system for the submission of continuing disclosure documents,
significantly increases the volume of document submissions to EMMA. The MSRB
recognizes that these changes are new to the issuer and dealer communities and
is working to make the transition as smooth as possible. The MSRB is
providing ongoing training and is committed to resolving issues related to
EMMA as they arise.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) was established in 1975 by
Congress to develop rules regulating securities firms and banks involved in
underwriting, trading, and selling municipal securities. The Board also
operates information systems, including the Electronic Municipal Market Access
(EMMA) system, designed to promote transparency and access to information. The
MSRB also conducts extensive outreach and education. The Board is composed of
members from the municipal securities dealer community and the public, and is
charged with protecting investors and promoting a fair and efficient market.
The Board is a self-regulatory organization that is subject to oversight by
the Securities and Exchange Commission.

SOURCE Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB)

Jennifer A. Galloway, Chief Communications Officer, +1-703-797-6600,
jgalloway@msrb.org