Mark H. Vacha

Member

Mark leads the Public and Project Finance Practice’s work in the area of taxation for tax-advantaged municipal securities transactions and handles Section 103 matters for the group. He focuses on bond structures and tax compliance advice to assist state and local governments, conduit issuers, and borrowers in various areas where there is eligibility to receive benefits under the Internal Revenue Code. Recognizing that tax considerations have a long-term impact, Mark focuses both on the tax implications of structuring and marketing a new issue as well as with respect to facility management and use, investments, and capital/debt planning well beyond the time of a particular issuance.

Mark has served as bond counsel, disclosure counsel, and underwriter’s counsel, handling municipal bond transactions involving cities, counties, state, and commonwealth level entities, industrial and economic development authorities, and nonprofit entities, including hospitals, universities, and museums. He also works as counsel in taxable bond transactions, debt restructurings, working capital financings, municipal securitizations, tax increment and special assessment district financings, and municipal derivative transactions.

Mark particularly focuses on matters related to disclosure and security law developments and served on the National Association of Bond Lawyers Securities Law Committee. He has spoken on developments in this area before the Council of Development Finance Agencies, the Pennsylvania Municipal Authorities Association, and the Government Finance Officers Association of Pennsylvania (GFOA) East Chapter. He also has presented webinars and podcasts on public finance, including developments in securities law and Chapter 9 of the Bankruptcy Code.

Mark received his undergraduate degree from Kenyon College. He earned his law degree from the University of Virginia School of Law. 

Experience

Publications

Top (Bottom?) Ten of Tax Headaches (Challenges) for Municipal Bond Issuers

August 31, 2023

In this article, Mark outlines ten examples of challenges, ranging from limiting bank qualifications for debt service savings, and handling arbitrage earnings and swap termination payments, to addressing private use of bond-financed property and managing bond-financed property.

It Might Not Be That Hard Being Green in the Muni Market [The Ledger]

September 01, 2021

Mark Vacha authored an article in the 2021 Winter Issue of The Ledger for the Government Finance Officers Association of Pennsylvania discussing the differences between green bonds and traditional bonds.

Current Labors to Build a Post-LIBOR Marketplace

December 10, 2020

Mark Vacha authored an article in the 2020 Fall Issue of The Ledger for the Government Finance Officers Association of Pennsylvania addressing the current labors to build a post-London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) marketplace.

A Survey of Selected Recent SEC Guidance Helpful for Municipal Securities Disclosure

August 20, 2020

Mark Vacha authored an article published in The Ledger, that provides issuers with an overview of a sampling of recent SEC guidance for purposes of disclosure for public bond and other debt offerings.

There’s A New Investor that’s Come to Town in the Municipal Debt Markets

March 30, 2020

Mark Vacha and Scott Mehok discuss the framework for the U.S. Treasury and Federal Reserve System to introduce supra-institutional investors into the municipal securities markets created by the CARES Act.

Education

  • University of Virginia School of Law, J.D., 1996
  • Kenyon College, A.B., 1992
  • New York
  • Pennsylvania
  • Virginia
  • Government Finance Officers Association of Pennsylvania
  • National Association of Bond Lawyers
  • Pennsylvania Association of Bond Lawyers