Central Falls - Bankrupt (Providence, Warwick: unemployment, go bankrupt, tax rates)
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It needed to go bankrupt. A one square mile city is unsustainable when it has been looted by corrupt elected officials for several decades.
I do feel sorry for any legitimate previous city workers who will not get their pensions- however, they also turned down recent negotiations so maybe they think they can afford to wait.
are there cities in Rhode Island that are not looted by corrupt elected officials? I don't ask that in a sarcastic tone, but really an honest question! I hear a lot of this on this board and now here is the proof. Maybe this is an extreme case, but is this the way towns and the state is going as a whole? Where are the well-run towns? Where are the accountable elected officials?
Our 'cities' have old problems, it's nothing new. Yes there are 'cities' that aren't looted by elected officials, it's really getting so old. Warwick and Cranston get a lot more respect than they used to and are pretty well run. I think we can agree that Providence was not 'looted' or run into the ground by Cicillini. In terms of 'towns'- North Kingstown, Bristol, Jamestown -well run-generally speaking. Exeter is doing some interesting things. South Kingstown. As with every town, there are always people that won't agree, but no not all are mismanaged. Some town administrators have been there for years, and work very hard at it; it is tough work. And even then, cities like Pawtucket, whose mayor retired after decades, with reputation intact if I'm not mistaken, fight an uphill battle. What has killed it in these places is the collapse of the housing market, unemployment, poverty, and the pensions- with little revenue coming in. That's the problem, lack of revenue.
Last edited by Saltatrix; 08-01-2011 at 06:57 PM..
Central Falls is merely the first in what I believe will be a long, line line of failing municipalities in the coming years. Cities and towns are broke and depend on state aid to plug budget deficits and meet unfunded pension liablities. But the states are broke too and face many of the same deficit and pension issues. The states now also face the possibility of massive cuts in aid from the federal government, which sets the standard in defining the term broke. Looks like Meredith Whitney was right after all.
No, that's not the problem at all. "If only I had more money" is always the cry of the fiscally irresponsible. More money NEVER solves money problems, because when presented with more money, the spender always chooses to keep the status quo. In the case of Central Falls, as with every other level of government in this country, the disasterous financial situation is the result of decades of fiscal irresponsibility and corruption, and a complete lack of financial planning to prepare their budgets to survive economic downturns which happen from time to time. This lack of preparedness is, in fact one of the biggest reasons that downturns become recessions. Policiticans are like drug addicts when in comes to spending - MORE MORE MORE. More money is NEVER, EVER the answer if you don't change the underlying reckless financial culture that created the problem in the first place.
I've been looking at tax rates over the last decade or so for a few towns and it seems they can fluctuate wildly. So it's hard to tell - with my luck I'd move there and the next year they'd implement a huge hike. With the way things are going, it's looking like that is going to be likely in most places in the foreseeable future. Along with "reforms" to the tax breaks for owning a home. I wouldn't be surprised to see new limits put on allowable interest and tax deductions.
Treasure Kidd, you're basically wrong. Like I said some municipalities are well run- usually the ones that aren't poor and struggling. I guess that's not where you live, otherwise you would realize that.
Municipalities began struggling when their jobs went south in the 1950's; now our nation is struggling because the jobs go oversees. I haven't heard any politician explain how a shrunken government will result in jobs. Can you explain it?
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