One of the main points I have raised repeatedly since the passage of Michigan’s Emergency Manager law, Public Act 4, is that the imposition of an Emergency Manager (EM) does little, if anything, to solve the underlying problems that bring municipalities and school districts to the crisis point where an EM is deemed necessary.
With Joe Harris set to depart Benton Harbor sometime in the first few months of 2012, for example, what has he done that will prevent that town from simply returning to the same place it was when he entered the scene? The answer is, of course, little to nothing.
It is my contention that systemic problems plaguing Benton Harbor and other Michigan towns & school districts that are staring down the barrel of the elimination of local democracy are not solved by an EM. Widespread poverty, diminishing revenues both from a shrinking tax base and a Republican state budget that robbed them of revenue sharing and school fund monies, poor education and a lack of trained leaders coming up through the system all conspire to keep these towns and districts from extricating themselves from the problems they face.
It’s worth looking at some of the Michigan cities that have had EMs in the past. First, let’s take a look at Highland Park. Highland Park first had an EM appointed under Republican Governor John Engler in 2001. The first EM Arthur Blackwell was later replaced after it was discovered that he had been taking unauthorized payments for his services after publicly agreeing to an annual salary of $1. A jury determined this past summer that he would have to repay over a quarter million dollars in back pay he paid himself.
So, what has become of Highland Park since 2009? Well, sadly, it is back in the red again. In August of this year, DTE, the electricity supplier for Highland Park, took out 1,400 street lights because the city owed $4.5 million on its power bill. This is simply a symptom of a much greater problem: Highland Park is once again in debt. Soon after he was elected this past November but [...]
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