Detroit bankruptcy: Governor authorizes filing, declaring 'no viable alternative' (+video)

Two lawsuits are already underway; one filing, representing three retirees and two city workers, is scheduled for a Monday hearing in Ingham County. Another lawsuit, filed by both the General Retirement System and the Police and Fire Retirement System of the City of Detroit, was filed on behalf of more than 32,000 active and retired city workers.

Under Orr’s proposal, current retirees enrolled in the city’s health-care system will be offered a new program that relies mainly on provisions of the US Affordable Care Act, also referred to as Obamacare. Orr also wants to stop payment on unsecured debt to fund safety services; pay creditors, including pension funds, less than 10 cents or less on the dollar; and restructure the city water department into a regional authority.

Besides saying that the state does not have the legal authority to make their pensions vulnerable in bankruptcy court, the unions also complain that the city has been wasting money over many years on high-paid consultants and six-figure salaries for top officials, at the same time that unions have been asked to make concessions.

They say that, under Orr, bargaining sessions have been perfunctory, and that they suspect Snyder’s authorization to force Detroit into bankruptcy was inevitable. 

“I have yet to sit down at a negotiating table with Orr to find out what is going on. He’s not really trying to sit down and bargain with anybody,” says Ed McNeil, of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 25 in Detroit.

“Everybody is getting rich off the city of Detroit, and you want workers to pay for it. If you are so broke, how do you consistently pay money out to vendors and consultants?” Mr. McNeil adds.

Another group likely to feel the pain of bankruptcy is the city’s unsecured creditors, who will receive $2 billion on the $11.5 billion owed. Orr wants to use $1.25 billion for enhanced safety and security measures, such as blight removal, street lighting improvements, and police and fire enhancements.

Bankruptcy also inevitably widens the racial and partisan divides between Detroit, which is ruled by Democrats and has a majority black population, and the rest of Michigan, which leans Republican and is majority white.

“There’s so much partisanship, not to mention racial politics embedded in this decision,” says Vincent Hutchings, a political scientist at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.

“[Detroit] is still the biggest city in the state, so improving the fortunes of the city would have positives for the state, but it’s going to be tough,” he says. “Even if we leave aside the underlying racial dynamic, the partisan divide is so sharp. It’s tough for a Democratic city to look favorably upon the actions of a Republican administration.”

Snyder sought Thursday to reassure Detroit residents that, despite the hard news, “tomorrow is a regular day,” and that a positive outcome was possible.

The bankruptcy offers an “investment for better services to citizens, which is clearly something citizen deserve … by resolving the city government issues, hopefully this is the last obstacle for the city of Detroit,” he said.

The psychological toll of living in a city that’s officially bankrupt is significant, but not much different than most residents have been living with for years, says Charles Ballard, an economist with Michigan State in East Lansing.

“So much psychological damage has already been done. It’s widely understood that Detroit is in a severe crisis. Is it that much worse than we already knew? I don’t think so,” says Professor Ballard. “I actually think the upside is substantial. You have a clean slate.”

Previous

1 | 2