When the California State Auditor’s Office released its annual report on the “Fiscal Health of California Cities” in fall 2022, most city officials and journalists focused on the blunt financial risk rating results and the relative position of their city organization amongst the 431 cities analyzed. But there is more that we can learn from...

Virtually everyone in local government claims to champion transparency and accountability, but few attempt to define either of these terms or identify what conditions support and maintain them. Too often, municipal leaders rely on gimmicks and process to demonstrate that their government organization is meeting these laudable goals, rather than focus on building the culture...

As with transparency, accountability is championed in government settings. Government officials and employees must be accountable to the public for the decisions they make and the money they spend, but what is really meant by accountability, and how should we think about it in a local government context? The best description of accountability that I...

In what may be the most embarrassing California-related headline to appear in a while, Reuters announced last month: Tony resort city mulls bankruptcy, blaming wages, pensions. That supposedly “tony” city is Desert Hot Springs, on the northern edge of the Coachella Valley near Palm Springs. Though it’s certainly true that Palm Springs and many of its...

Add Desert Hot Springs, CA to the list of California cities in dire straits due to poor management, union wages, and ridiculously unaffordable pension promises. Please consider Another U.S. city mulls bankruptcy due to soaring wages and pensions A resort town in California warned on Tuesday that it will run out of money by March due...

It is truly pathetic watching politicians flop like fish out of water trying to prevent something that was clearly inevitable long ago. Please consider Moody’s warns of bankruptcy in Scranton as city faces $20 million budget gap.  Moody’s warned investors that Scranton could be facing the threat of default or bankruptcy thanks to a $20 million...

There are many implicit rationalizations justifying paying generous government pensions. Here are my nominations for the top ten bogus excuses: 1. “Public employees deserve high pensions because of their low pay.” FALSE. Perhaps true at one time, but not anymore. In many instances, today’s government employees are earning 10%-30% more than their true private sector...