Increasing transparency in how local government works got a boost when the U.S. Congress passed the Financial Data Transparency Act (FDTA) on December 15, 2022. The act requires the Securities and Exchange Commission to adopt data standards related...
Through a Michigan pilot program, Stephanie Leiser and the Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy are building a taxonomy for machine-readable local government financial documents.
"Transparency into local government fiscal health is needed to...
Governments, standard setters, regulators and analysts encouraged to provide input
A pilot project involving the University of Michigan and others is exploring whether a new fiscal reporting mechanism for governmental entities can help create...
The turmoil surrounding the City of Flint, MI – most infamously the Flint Water Crisis – has become a cautionary tale for other Rust Belt cities struggling to balance their budgets, provide services, and attract new business. A 20-year review of the...
A new report from CLOSUP illustrates how data found in basic financial statements may be used to understand how Flint’s financial condition has changed over time. We draw on data from Flint’s Annual Comprehensive Financial Reports from FY 2000 to...
Many Americans use the analogy of a pie to think about the government budget. But, Sarah Leiser, lecturer of public policy and leader of the Michigan Local Government Fiscal Health Project at CLOSUP, says there's another way to think about it.
"It...
The water crisis in Flint and the bankruptcy in Detroit were separate events that had a common theme -- they had been caused in part by fiscal challenges decades in the making. Avoiding similar tragedies in the future could be tied to greater...
The Ford School’s Michigan Public Budgeting and Finance Planning class invites Ford students to join them for a conversation with guest speaker Janani Ramachandran Yates, Deputy Budget Director of the City of Detroit (and Ford School alum).
Join XBRL US for a session to explore government data standards, find out how governments can create their own machine-readable financial statements, and discover what impact this legislation could have on government entities. Most importantly, discover how machine-readable data standards can benefit state and local government entities by reducing costs and increasing access to time-sensitive information for policy making.
This case study examines the fiscal health of Ogemaw County, Michigan, a mostly rural county in the northeast lower peninsula of Michigan, using data from the County’s annual audited financial reports. We find that while Ogemaw County has struggled...
This case study examines the fiscal health of Pine River Township, Michigan, a mostly rural community in central Michigan, using data from the Township’s audited financial reports. We find that Pine River Township has a sizable and growing General...
Over the past twenty years, few cities have experienced as much fiscal stress as Flint, Michigan. After decades of economic decline, two periods of state receivership, the water crisis, and the COVID-19 pandemic, the City of Flint is trying to shore...
Christen Richardson and Capri Backus, Policy Analysts
This case study takes an in-depth look at the fiscal health stress of two tourist cities (City X and City Y) using a wide range of financial and demographic factors as well as findings from the Michigan Public Policy Survey. This case study...
In this case study, we analyze the financial health and Michigan Public Policy Survey (MPPS) responses for two municipalities in Michigan: Cities X and Y. Although both municipalities experienced industrial decline throughout the late 20th century,...
This case study compares two municipalities (Counties X & Y) with similar demographic characteristics and economic growth trajectories across objective and subjective indicators of fiscal health. After studying the financials of Counties X and Y, we...
As part of CLOSUP's project to modernize financial reporting and transparency in Michigan, we have used data from 20 years of Annual Comprehensive Financial Reports (ACFRs) in the City of Flint to conduct a detailed review of Flint's financial...
