Sources for Municipal Securities Information

Most municipal securities offerings are exempt from the registration provisions of the federal securities laws. That means municipal issuers do not have to file a registration statement with the SEC. But you can still obtain information about municipal securities from the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) and Nationally Recognized Municipal Securities Information Repositories (NRMSIRs).

Since 1990, underwriters of municipal securities have filed the official statement, or offering document, for most municipal securities offerings with the MSRB’s Municipal Securities Information Library.

In addition, for most municipal securities issued after July 3, 1995, NRMSIRs have collected on an annual basis financial information and operating data, as well as notice of certain important events, such as default of a bond. This information must be filed with all four of the current NRMSIRs and is available to the public for a nominal fee.

Some states—Texas, Michigan, and Ohio—also have their own depositories, known as "SIDs," that make available information about municipal bonds issued in their states. The SEC maintains a list of SIDs.

In May 2009, the SEC approved the “access equals delivery” system for primary market disclosures and trade data. Effective June 1, 2009, this rule change permits municipal securities dealers to electronically post official statements (functional equivalents of a prospectus) and other disclosure documents rather than sending paper copies to investors, unless paper copies are specifically requested. The official statements and other disclosure documents will be available free on EMMA. In addition, the rule change provides for “real time” trading data received by the MSRB from dealers to be available on the EMMA website. Most trades are required to be reported to the MSRB and are posted on EMMA within 15 minutes of the time of trade. In addition, information regarding municipal auction rate securities and variable rate demand obligations is now available on EMMA.