Pick a city in California. Pick a county in California. Odds are, they could be the topic of this analysis instead of Richmond. But Richmond is the focus of arecent analysispublished inReasonentitled “Richmond, California’s Finances Remain Shaky,” and that work provides solid data from which to take a deeper look at what’s truly driving their financial challenges: compensation and pensions.

To summarize theReasonanalysis, their mostrecent financial statementsinclude the following excerpt from the auditor’s comments: “If deficit spending continues in the funds that continue to borrow from the General Fund and other funds, it reduces the likelihood that the City will be able to continue as a going concern.”

In plain English, what the auditor is saying is that the City of Richmond is spending more than they’re taking in, and they’re at risk of running out of cash. Reason’s senior policy analyst and the author of the report, Marc Joffe, writes: “Richmond’s… Read More