Tagged: Detroit consent agreement

Detroit city officials are struggling to come up with a unified response to Governor Snyder’s decision to appoint an emergency financial manager.

They now have less than a week to decide if they want to challenge that. If they do, Governor Snyder has said a hearing will be held March 12.

Most members of the City Council want to at least pursue a public hearing challenging Snyder’s decision. But several say that’s difficult because Detroit mayor Dave Bing hasn’t publicly declared his position.

We should know more about Detroit’s grim financial situation on Tuesday.

That’s when Governor Snyder is expected to receive a long-awaited report on the city’s finances.

A state-appointed review team began the process in December. Governor Snyder gave the group an extension because he wanted them to take a deep dive into Detroit’s long-term debt--estimated at more than $12 billion.

Snyder's office declined comment on Monday. But speaking to reporters a couple of weeks ago, the Governor said he’ll move quickly after he gets the report.

“It will probably take a week or two for me to make a full analysis of the report, and then decisions will be made,” Snyder said. “My reputation is not one to be sitting on things rather than making decisions.”

It’s widely expected that the report will depict a city on the brink of insolvency, a mayor and City Council unable to handle it—and suggest further state intervention.

Detroit has had a “financial stability agreement” with Lansing for nearly a year, but the city’s financial picture has only worsened since then.

Snyder has acknowledged interviewing candidates to potentially serve as the city’s emergency manager.

Detroit can just barely avoid running out of cash this fiscal year--if it implements some key measures.

That’s what the city’s finance officials told its financial advisory board on Monday.

The premise to avoid insolvency involves some immediate cuts, some deferred payments—and a few big “ifs.”

Some of those measures are so-called “structural changes,” like mandatory furlough days, layoffs, and possible pension and health care changes. Others defer payments or take one-time opportunities to grab
cash.

Mayor Dave Bing, with the support of six city council members, has ousted Detroit’s top city lawyer, Krystal Crittendon.

Crittendon, a controversial figure at City Hall, had been criticized by Bing for her opposition to Detroit’s consent agreement with the state.

A preliminary state review of Detroit’s finances says “financial reporting problems” make it difficult to know where things actually stand.

The report was issued Friday, just days after state treasurer Andy Dillon initiated the process that could lead to an emergency financial manager.

It found Detroit has “significant cash flow problems.” But projections vary from month to month, “making it difficult to make informed decisions.”

Detroit’s march toward a state-appointed emergency financial manager appeared to speed up Monday, as State Treasurer Andy Dillon announced his intention to start the review process that could end up there.

The city’s financial advisory board voted to support Dillon's move to start the process. It can last up to 30 days under Public Act 72.

Efforts to resolve a dispute that’s pushed Detroit to the brink of financial crisis flopped again on Monday.

Mayor Dave Bing called a special meeting with the City Council, hoping Council members would approve a contract with law firm Miller Canfield.

Lansing is sitting on $30 million in Detroit bond money because Council didn’t approve that contract, which was part of a “milestone agreement” between Bing and state officials.

Detroit mayor Dave Bing says he’ll resort to mandated employee furlough days before letting the city go broke.

The city is facing a likely $18 million cash shortfall next month. That’s despite having a consent agreement with the state that’s intended to avoid just such a crisis.

This week, the Detroit City Council voted down a contract with a law firm. That relatively small item was crucial to the city’s cash situation because it was part of a “milestone agreement” laying out conditions for releasing Detroit bond money the state is holding in escrow.

Detroit mayor Dave Bing says the Detroit City Council has pushed the city to the brink of another cash crisis.

The Council voted Tuesday to reject a contract with the law firm Miller-Canfield.

Bing maintains that approving that contract was part of a so-called “milestone agreement” with the state, which is holding $30 million Detroit bond money in escrow.

Without major changes, it looks like the proposal to turn Detroit’s Belle Isle into a state park doesn’t have a shot with the Detroit City Council.

City Council members blasted the proposal at a meeting Tuesday, calling it, among other things, “ridiculous” and “terrible.”

Mayor Dave Bing and Governor Snyder outlined the plan last week. It calls for the city to lease Belle Isle to the state for 30 years. In return, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources would maintain the island. The state would also make some as-yet-unspecified major upgrades.