Detroit Financial Review Team To Meet In Public

The 10-member body examining Detroit's finances will meet for the first time in public Tuesday, thanks to a successful lawsuit that charged the group was subject to Michigan's Open Meetings Act.

Detroit's financial review team was appointed by Gov. Rick Snyder in December after the city failed a preliminary state review. Under Michigan's emergency manager law, the board is tasked with determining whether or not Detroit faces a financial emergency dire enough to require state intervention.

On Friday, the review team requested and was granted a 30-day extension to complete its investigation.

Snyder spokeswoman Sara Wurfel said there wasn't "anything in particular" that affected the governor's decision to grant the extension, but that he wished to "try and accommodate based on the review team's needs."

She added the governor considered recent developments in the city's financial situation -- including tentative labor agreements with city workers to extract significant concessions -- left some leeway to allow the review team more time.

Despite Mayor Dave Bing touting progress, the Detroit News reports Monday that Detroit still faces an imminent cash shortfall:

The cash flow numbers as of Jan. 27 also show the city would be $46.8 million in the hole at the end of the fiscal year on June 30. The city would officially run out of cash in mid-to-late April, the figures posted on the city's website predict, a fiscal reality that first prompted the governor to consider sending in an emergency manager.

But Detroit's financial review team hasn't even met since January, according to Treasury Department spokesman Terry Stanton.

That may be because an Ingaham County Circuit Court Judge ruled the body must meet in public, rather than behind closed doors. The ruling was seen as a victory for those opposed to Michigan's emergency manager law; while it doesn't stop the financial review or emergency manager process from moving forward, it does ensure a greater degree of public scrutiny and accountability.

Stanton said the judge's Feb. 15 decision did not affect the review team's process or stall its meetings.

"It's not that any [meetings] were canceled in face of or as a result of the judge's decision," he said. "There simply were none scheduled."

The team is set to meet at 1:00 p.m. on Tuesday, in Room L-150, 1st Floor of Cadillac Place, 3044 W. Grand Blvd. in Detroit.

Its first public meeting comes as opponents of the emergency manager law are set to turn in a petition with more 200,000 signatures to the Secretary of State to freeze the law pending a November referendum. If the petition drive is successful, the emergency managers currently in place in five Michigan municipalities and school districts would lose their authority.

Emergency managers have unilateral power to oversee municipal bodies and can fire elected officials, sell public assets and break contracts. Opponents, including Rep. John Conyers (D-Detroit) have asserted Michigan's emergency manager law is unconstitutional.

Comments

[bassmeant1]

09:19 AM on 02/28/2012

For god's sake... just get the emergency manager in place and start fixing things! The same people who voted the criminals into office are the same people against a financial manager. "Don't let the suburbs run the city!" they say. Well guess what? When Detroit goes bankrupt, the debt will be spread across ALL of Michigan. If Detroit is broke then it's a big stretch to figure out who will be paying that bill: The suburbs! C'mon man. It's not racism, it's not a social thing. Detroit is a mess, has been a mess and will continue to be a mess until true leaders are put in office not criminals who run the city like it's their private record label. And for the record, I'm non partison. Peace

[kemcha]

09:05 AM on 02/28/2012

Rick Snyder continues his rampage throughout Michigan to kick out every Democrat that was elected into office. He's playing a very dangerous game and it's going to bite him in the arse.

[jgallery]

08:16 AM on 02/28/2012

Years of Dem 'leadership' has brought Detroit to this -

[JDLA]

11:57 PM on 02/27/2012

Snyder, bringing you Michigans first budget surplus since Granholm took office

[Toka313]

12:11 AM on 02/28/2012

That's a dumb argument. Michigan is required to submit a balanced budget every year. It's a part of the state constitution.

[JDLA]

12:30 AM on 02/28/2012

and it is the first year in the last ten Michigan has not had to resort to using accounting tricks, rainy day funds, federal stimulus money or other gimmicks to show a balanced budget.

[Freedland]

10:02 AM on 02/28/2012

So why is Detroit alone in the hole for almost fifty million dollars and may need a "financial manager"? How much of this surplus came from revenue from the auto industry revival and improved employment in the car industry? How much came from taking from teachers, police and fire fighters and other public employees? How much came from letting our roads and infrastructure continue to deteriorate? And how much from an improved economy and car sales? We will have to pay for this one day in the future, we are only delaying the pain not eliminating it. Snyder has expertise in accounting and tax matters, is that a surprise?

[JDLA]

11:53 AM on 02/28/2012

Snyder is rapidly addressing the shortfalls left by the previous Granholm administration. He had to first get the budget under control, get the state out of crisis mode and is now pushing for a fully funded 1 billion dollar per year increase in road and infrastructure spending.
http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20111026/FREE/111029933/snyder-state-should-spend-1b-more-a-year-link-spending-to-road-use#

His 2012-2013 budget is also increasing funding for K-12 schools, higher education, roads and public safety and putting 130 billion in the states rainy day fund.
http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20120210/METRO/202100382

Its amazing what you can do when you rein in excessive, wasteful spending and take the pay as you go approach,

As far as an improving economy, Granholm had a robust economy during the first 6 years of her term as well as national car sales that were 40% higher than now yet could never bring in a year end surplus.

[jmdziuban1]

07:44 PM on 02/27/2012

This is supposedly such an important issue, that the review team scheduled no meetings, or at least no public meetings.

[Oginikwe]

01:35 PM on 02/27/2012

Synder: taking over a town near you.

[jmdziuban1]

07:45 PM on 02/27/2012

The Snyderland.

[Oginikwe]

09:50 PM on 02/27/2012

Snyderigan.

[hypyrwyf]

01:35 PM on 02/27/2012

The state owes Detroit millions of dollars. I hope they take that into account when they do their evaluation.

[mgtom]

02:44 PM on 02/27/2012

Under the prior, democratic, administration there was a deal cut that if Detroit would reduce their city income tax, the State would supply some money to make up the difference. Detroit did not reduce the city income tax so the democratic governor did not authorize the payment.

[Toka313]

04:36 PM on 02/27/2012

Actually, they did. http://www.crcmich.org/column/?p=207

[Tim Janssen]

08:29 PM on 02/27/2012

I see you're into comedy.