From the article:
A train wreck is coming, and, because of my position, I think it's my duty to alert people," said George Cornelius, secretary of the state Department of Economic and Community Development. "Some of these municipalities may get into a situation where they have no choice; bankruptcy is the only option left.The article takes a look at some others states and how many townships/municipalities they have. The authors are not-too-subtly suggesting that Pennsylvania has far too many municipalities to be efficient and that at some point, a point just before or after bankruptcy, municipalities will be forced to merge in order to gain efficiencies. For an even lengthier explanation of Chapter 9 filings, see this article.
This is not too different an argument than the one made by Governor Rendell when he suggested that there are too many school districts in the Commonwealth. I posted about plan here and here. It has since died down but we must not think that it will go away. With Harrisburg about ready to file for Chapter 9 protection (along with many other municipalities across this country), we may be looking at the beginning of a move to consolidate services not just in Pennsylvania, but across the country as well. In April of 2009 I raised the alarm when Vallejo, CA decided to file for bankruptcy protection. Vallejo was granted bankruptcy protection and as a result was able to get out from under its existing union contracts.
How much longer before we see towns follow Harrisburg's lead. Too much debt has officially become too big a problem.
Thanks for reading.
James
