Detroit Consent Agreement Approved By City Council

[Eugene]

Source: Huffington Post

Posted: 04/ 4/2012 6:56 pm Updated: 04/ 4/2012 8:19 pm

Detroit City Council on Wednesday voted 5-4 to enter into an agreement with the state of Michigan that will radically alter the structure of the city's government. Proponents said the agreement will help the struggling city's finances and pay off its longterm debts, but opponents said the measure was forced on Detroit by the state and undermines local democracy.

The agreement allows city officials to retain their powers, but puts city operations and budgeting in the hands of a nine-member financial advisory board, chief financial officer and program management director. It also abrogates the city's duty to bargain with its public employees.

Deputy Mayor Kirk Lewis signed the consent agreement document on behalf of Mayor Dave Bing, who is back in the hospital following an earlier surgery. The financial review team voted 7-0, with three members absent, to approve the consent agreement Wednesday afternoon. It now goes to Gov. Rick Snyder.

"The council has acted responsibly to put Detroit on the path to financial stability," Snyder said in a statement. "Approval of the consent agreement is a positive opportunity for the city and our entire state."

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Read more: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/04/detroit-consent-agreement_n_1404140.html

[annabanana]

1. Minor adjustments on the disenfranchisment of Benton Harbor, I think

Kills the Unions, removes fiduciary authority,.. Just exactly which "powers" have the city officials retained?

[freshwest]

2. In Flint, they overturned this, per the stories posted a while back:

http://www.thetimesherald.com/article/20120320/NEWS05/120320006/Judge-puts-Flint-mayor-council-back-charge?odyssey=nav|head

But I guess Detroit's problems are different. We did have a thread a while back about how the RW was using religious gathering in Detroit to promote their governmental ideology and that may have played a part.

Michigan seems like most states now, of two different and vigorously opposite mindsets. They benefitted from Obama saving the auto jobs, but still elect the GOP.

[Festivito]

3. The water department, owned by the people of Detroit.

They will sell it into private hands.

Water is the next oil.

[HeiressofBickworth]

4. I can see the meeting now...

The state and local GOP with their corporate sponsors:

We can own all the water!
They will have to pay whatever we ask to use it.
Oh, and by the way, it's illegal to collect rain water.
And forget maintenance costs -- eats into profits.
And we can reduce wages to next to nothing -- people are desperate for jobs, any kind of jobs.

Yup, I can just picture it.

[annabanana]

5. Sounds about right to me. . . .. .n/t