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U.S. Mayor's Survey Shows Main Street America Still in Recession; Cities in Dire Need of Jobs

Survey on City Fiscal Conditions, November 6, 2009

  • “During the annual Fall Leadership Meeting of The U.S. Conference of Mayors, held October 1-3 in Seattle, mayors from cities of all sizes in all regions of the country described the severity of both the unemployment and fiscal problems they are experiencing as a result of the nation’s severe economic downturn. Mayors spoke of difficult actions they have been forced to take to mitigate projected budget shortfalls that are resulting from declines in the revenues on which their budgets depend – actions such as layoffs and furloughs of personnel, cuts in public services and programs, and increases in taxes and fees…Two-thirds of the survey mayors (66 percent) project that they will experience a budget shortfall in the current fiscal year. For cities anticipating budget shortfalls this fiscal year, the average shortfall is expected to be about 6.5 percent of the total (operating and capital) budget. The expected shortfalls range from 20 to 30 percent of the budget in a few of the cities; they are 10 percent or more of the budget in nearly 27 percent of them.”
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