Alaska’s Gloomy Economic News; Flint Water Crisis Lawsuit Looms
Lake Huron supplies Flint, Michigan's water. ehrlif / Shutterstock.com
Also: Houston’s looming pensions problem and Portland’s new giant homeless shelter.
Here’s some of what we’ve been reading today ...
ANCHORAGE, Alaska: In a state that’s highly dependent on energy as a foundation of its economy, Alaska has gone through boom and bust cycles. And the economic skies in the Last Frontier are certainly gloomy right now. As Alaska Dispatch News reports, “[s]tate jobs and population numbers show Alaska may be on the cusp of an economic recession or already in one.” Alaska’s population has been declining for the first time since the 1987-88 recession. [Alaska Dispatch News]
FLINT, Michigan: The American Civil Liberties Union and the National Resources Defense Council have signaled their intent to sue Michigan’s state government and Flint’s city government over the municipal drinking water lead crisis.
As The Flint Journal reports:
Filed today, Nov. 16, the notice says a federal lawsuit will be filed if state and city officials "fail to cure their noncompliance with the (Safe Drinking Water Act) within 60 days." The notice is required before seeking relief in federal court under the SDWA and names members of Flint's Receivership Transition Advisory Board, City Administrator Natasha Henderson, new Flint Mayor Karen Weaver, Gov. Rick Snyder, Michigan Department of Environmental Quality Director Dan Wyant and state Treasurer Nick A. Khouri.
High lead levels have been recorded in local drinking water after the city disconnected from the city of Detroit’s water system and utilized river water as a drinking source, prompting offcials to switch back to Detroit’s water, which is sourced from Lake Huron. [The Flint Journal / MLive.com]
ALBANY, New York: Plenty of fantasy sports fans in New York state were angered with state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, who last week ordered fantasy sports operators to shut down business in the Empire State. As The Buffalo News reports, a Republican state senator, Michael Ranzenhofer, has introduced legislation to clarify that fantasy sports are not games of chance, which the attorney general has labeled them. [The Buffalo News]
HOUSTON, Texas: Houston, you have a problem. As The Wall Street Journal reported, there are a number of warning signs when it comes to municipal pensions:
Those include a rapidly growing gap in funding its retirement plans for public workers and a limit on its revenue-raising capabilities imposed by a voter-approved cap on property taxes. The $3.2 billion pension-funding gap is threatening Houston’s Aa2 credit rating from Moody’s Investors Service, hurting demand for its debt and emerging as an issue in the city’s mayoral race. Moody’s this summer warned it may downgrade the city’s debt if Houston fails to address its pensions, noting the cap limits the city’s financial flexibility.
What’s the source of the problems? A downturn in global energy prices and a reluctance to “support any tax increases, including raising the property-tax cap.” [The Wall Street Journal]
PORTLAND, Oregon: Like many West Coast cities, Portland has struggled to accommodate its homeless population. But the city hopes to open a new shelter by Thanksgiving that can house up to 200 people. The Oregonian points out that the facility is twice the capacity of the largest downtown shelters. [The Oregonian / OregonLive.com]
Michael Grass is the Executive Editor of Government Executive’s Route Fifty.
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