Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan will deliver his annual budget address to the Detroit City Council Tuesday.
It’s a different process this year. That’s because most of the budget is already laid out in the city’s court-approved bankruptcy exit plan, formally known as a “plan of adjustment.”
City Council President Brenda Jones says Detroit’s elected officials have just a limited role the city’s post-bankruptcy budget process.
“It’s truly a new process, because this is the emergency manager’s budget,” Jones says, noting that the budget also needs approval form a state-appointed financial review commission.
But Duggan’s address will be followed by the council’s usual round of budget hearings. “We’ll go through the process as we normally do … we’re going to do our job,” Jones says.
The Detroit financial review commission met Monday. Commission members reviewed budget numbers presented at a revenue estimating conference Detroit held last week.
Officials said revenues are actually coming in slightly higher than projected, while the general fund budget itself could come in slightly under-budget.
However, there are likely to be some (possibly major) modifications before the budget is finalized mid-year. Some big unresolved issues include finalizing the deal that will spin off part of the Detroit water department to the regional Great Lakes Water Authority; and potentially restructuring some of the city’s remaining $1.9 billion in outstanding debt.
