An Op-Ed by Bruce Katz in the Baltimore Sun calls on Congress to provide states and cities necessary fiscal relief and to reverse its drift toward unfunded mandates and programmatic inflexibility.
"For those who haven't been watching, the new year marks a troubled passage for the nation's cities. New York City just raised property taxes 18 percent as it struggled to contend with sagging tax revenues. Los Angeles is out $70 million it poured into protecting transportation and shipping hubs from terrorism. And stalled budget bills keep billions of federal dollars for cities in limbo, including needed funding for homeland security. Granted, cities' return to fiscal stability will depend mostly on the wider economic recovery. Yet federal choices, on fiscal matters as well as major programs such as homeland security and welfare, will massively impact localities, regardless of national trends."
Thanks to Kurt Sommer
FULL STORY: American Cities: Federal Neglect Imperils Their Rise
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