Gov. Snyder Confirms Financial Emergency In Wayne County; Bankruptcy On The Horizon?
DETROIT (WWJ/AP) - Gov. Rick Snyder has confirmed a financial emergency in Wayne County.
The determination Thursday leaves county officials seven days to choose one of four options to fix the fiscal troubles.
The choices are a consent agreement, a state-appointed emergency manager, a neutral evaluation, or Chapter 9 bankruptcy.
County Executive Warren Evans had asked the state to declare a financial emergency. Evans said he wants to enter into a consent agreement with the state that will allow the county to impose health care and pension savings, if necessary.
Snyder initially made the financial emergency determination on July 22 after a review team reached the same conclusion.
Wayne County has 1.7 million residents. It faces a projected $171 million deficit by 2019 if remedial measures aren't taken.
The county seat is located in Detroit, and Wayne's financial troubles follow the city's emergence late last year from the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history. Detroit shed or restructured $7 billion in debt during its bankruptcy.
Evans announced a spending freeze in March, which blocked the filling of vacant positions and pay raises for current employees unless mandated by union contracts. It also restricted overtime, travel and major repairs. At the time, the county's pension system was less than 50 percent funded.
Evans was elected in November and inherited an unfinished downtown jail project that ran nearly $100 million over budget. Work has been stopped on the jail.
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