Jefferson County heads back to bankruptcy court

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) - A hearing for an Alabama county looking to exit one of the largest governmental bankruptcies in American history is scheduled for Wednesday. Jefferson County Commission President David Carrington said Tuesday that officials sold $1.7 billion of the county's refinanced sewer warrants in hopes of exiting the bankruptcy, which was originally valued at around $4 billion before part of it was wiped out by creditors. Chief U.S. Bankruptcy judge for the Northern District of Alabama Thomas Bennett must confirm the county's plan of adjustment before it's allowed to exit the bankruptcy. Carrington says more than 200 investors placed orders for the warrants, including investors in Europe and Asia. Jefferson County's bankruptcy in November 2011 was the largest governmental bankruptcy in U.S. history until Detroit filed one this year for $18 billion.