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Contacts:         Lynnette Kelly Hotchkiss, Executive Director
                       (703) 797-6600
                       lhotchkiss@msrb.org

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


THE MUNICIPAL SECURITIES RULEMAKING BOARD ANNOUNCES
 SUBMISSION AND REAL-TIME SUBSCRIPTION SPECIFICATIONS FOR EMMA
 Technical System Requirements Are Outlined  

Alexandria, VA - The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) today published preliminary specifications for submitting electronic municipal bond offering documents to the MSRB's Electronic Municipal Market Access system, known as EMMA.  The MSRB also published preliminary specifications for real-time subscriptions to primary market information posted on EMMA.  The MSRB will accept comments on both sets of specifications through October 24, 2008 and expects to publish final specifications shortly thereafter.  Click here to access the document outlining the draft submission and subscription specifications.

The details outlined today on EMMA submissions support the document-collection side of MSRB's plan to implement a free, all-electronic access portal for municipal market disclosures.  In conjunction with this development, the MSRB is preparing to ask the Securities and Exchange Commission for permission to establish an "access equals delivery" standard for distribution of official statements. This standard allows brokers to notify customers to whom they are selling municipal securities that offering documents are available on EMMA rather than provide them with printed copies.

Today's requirements are directed at broker-dealers and designated agents responsible for submitting documents to EMMA.  The specifications outline the components of EMMA's automated computer-to-computer connection for submission of primary market documents and explain the basic requirements associated with submission.  

EMMA's draft subscription specifications outline the technical requirements for vendors and other entities that want to purchase a subscription to primary market documents and related information available on EMMA's public website. The EMMA subscription service will provide vendors with XML data files in connection with primary market disclosures and advance refunding disclosures and PDF files of official statements, preliminary official statements and advance refunding documents. All files will be provided with a queuing/pull technology initiated by vendors that will permit subscribers to receive information and documents on a real-time basis.

To further explain both sets of specifications to users, the MSRB will host informational calls on these preliminary specifications as follows:

Topic                                        Tuesday, October 14              Wednesday, October 15

Automated submission interface      4:00 pm EDT                            11:00 am EDT

Primary market subscription            12 noon EDT                            3:00 pm EDT

To request to participate in the calls, please send an e-mail to MSRBCommunications@msrb.org.

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. 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. 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. MSRB is overseen by the Securities and Exchange Commission and Congress.

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