Mesa City Manager Chris Brady appeared nervously relieved last week at a City Council Study Session 22 Jan that a final budget audit became what he wanted to call "A Non-Issue".
At Truth in Accounting (TIA), we believe that taxpayers and citizens deserve easy-to-understand, truthful, and transparent financial information from their governments.
Because government financial statements do not report all liabilities, elected officials and citizens are making financial decisions without knowing the true financial condition of their government. The lack of accuracy and transparency in government accounting prevents even an experienced user of government financial documents from understanding and evaluating a public-sector entity’s financial health.
TIA believes it is imperative to provide an honest accounting of each city's financial condition.
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Time-and-time again, city officials don't appear to rise to the challenges of shining some sunlight on what they do behind-the-scenes resorting to tactics creating confusion in a fog to deter scrutiny of any kind whatsoever - disclosure is denied.
And that's so easy-to-do when the public is dis-engaged.
Blogger's Note: The issue of unfunded municipal debt was one of the main platform issues in Jeremy Whittaker's 2106 election campaign to unseat the incumbent representing District 2 on the Mesa City Council.
January 24, 2018
On January 24, Truth in Accounting released its second Financial State of the Cities report, a comprehensive analysis of the fiscal health of the nation's most populous cities based on fiscal year 2016 comprehensive annual financial reports. This year, we have expanded our study to include the 75 most populated cities.
The study found that 64 cities do not have enough money to pay all of their bills, and in total, the cities have racked up $335.4 billion in unfunded municipal debt. The study ranks the cities according to their Taxpayer Burden or Surplus™, which is each taxpayer's share of city bills after available assets have been tapped. Check out the data for your city at the State Data Lab.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Government reports are lengthy, cumbersome, and sometimes misleading documents. At Truth in Accounting (TIA), we believe that taxpayers and citizens deserve easy-to-understand, truthful, and transparent financial information from their governments.This is our second Financial State of the Cities (FSOC) report, a comprehensive analysis of the fiscal health of the nation's most populous cities based on fiscal year 2016 comprehensive annual financial reports. This year, we have expanded our study to include the 75 most populated cities.
Here's a brief upload announcing the release of the report on 25 January
Report findings
- Sunshine and Sinkhole Cities
- Top 5 Sunshine Cities
- Bottom 5 Sinkhole Cities
- 75 city ranking
- TIA grades the cities
- Does your city balance its budget?
- How timely is your city financial report?
- Retiree healthcare debt reporting rule will take effect in two years
- Why is truthful, transparent, and timely information important?
- Bring Full Accrual Calculations and Techniques (FACT) to budgeting
Phoenix, Mesa earn 'D' grades in financial-health review due to pension debt
Jessica Boehm, The Republic |
"The Valley's two largest cities earned "D" grades in an annual review of government financial health because they don't have enough money to pay their bills.
Truth in Accounting, a national fiscal watchdog non-profit, released its "Financial State of the Cities" report this week, which analyzes the financial audits of the 75 most populous cities in the country . . "
'Phony government accounting'
Cities often consider their budgets "balanced" even though they have millions — and sometimes billions — of dollars in unfunded pension and retiree healthcare liabilities, because they consider it a debt that can be paid down the road.
That's "phony government accounting," Weinberg said.
Report slams Mesa’s pensions liability as city says it’s coping
"Mesa and Phoenix have earned “D” grades from a national watchdog group that monitors the finances of state and city governments.
The report, released Jan. 24 by a Chicago-based organization called Truth in Accounting, said Mesa and Phoenix finances are tottering largely because of unfunded obligations for pensions and retiree health care.
“Large sums of money have been pledged to city employees, teachers, police officers and other public servants, but the funds have not been set aside to finance the programs adequately,” the report said. . . "
