Truth In Accounting: Mesa Is A Sinkhole City Without Enough Assets To Cover Its Debt

While local mainstream media reports about "A Grab-Bag of Goodies for Everybody" promised by City Manager Chris Brady during Mesa City Council meetings this week,Truth In Accounting's State Data Lab tells a totally different story.
As the City's Chief Executive Officer for the past 12 years, the public debt has skyrocketed from less than $40,000,000 in January 2006 to over $760,000,000 in January 2018.
2016 Financial State of Mesa (Released 1/24/2018)

So why aren't taxpayers here in Mesa
FREAKING OUT?
Decisions by elected officials have led to a Taxpayer Burden™, which is each taxpayer's share of city bills after its available assets have been tapped.
Mesa is a Sinkhole City without enough assets to cover its debt.
Mesa's Taxpayer Burden™ is -$5,900, and it received a "D" from TIA.
Because Mesa doesn't have enough money to pay its bills, it has a $784.6 million financial hole. To erase this shortfall, each Mesa taxpayer would have to send $5,900 to the city.
_________________________________________________________________________

Let's try to be as clear as possible and give it to you in black-and-white from this source:
https://www.statedatalab.org/state_data_and_comparisons/city/mesa
_________________________________________________________________________________
HERE:

 

__________________________________________________________________________________
AND HERE:

  

Mesa's Taxpayer Burden™ is -$5,900, and it received a "D" from TIA.

Mesa is a Sinkhole City without enough assets to cover its debt.

Decisions by elected officials have led to a Taxpayer Burden™, which is each taxpayer's share of city bills after its available assets have been tapped.

TIA's Taxpayer Burden™ measurement accounts for all assets and liabilities, including pension and retiree healthcare debt.

Mesa only has $903.1 million of assets available to pay bills totaling $1.7 billion.

Because Mesa doesn't have enough money to pay its bills, it has a $784.6 million financial hole. To erase this shortfall, each Mesa taxpayer would have to send $5,900 to the city.

Thanks to an accounting rule implemented in the 2015 fiscal year, Mesa must report its pension debt on its balance sheet. However, the city still excludes $170.3 million of retirement obligations, which consist mostly of retiree healthcare liabilities. A new accounting standard will be implemented in the 2018 fiscal year that will require governments to report these liabilities on the balance sheet as well.

The city's financial report was released 168 days after its fiscal year end, which is considered timely according to the 180 day standard.