Yeah, it looks like the capital construction spending is high now and supposed to go down a bit over the next two years. Obviously that fund is being used to build something, not sure what though.
Allowing cities to levy income taxes is a really bad idea. Look at Detroit. Way back when, the state decided to let Detroit levy an income tax. Guess how that worked out? Nobody, but nobody, wants to pay an extra level of income tax if they can avoid it. And it turns out it’s not hard to move jobs to other nearby cities. Ford’s headquarters is in Dearborn, not Detroit. Chrysler’s headquarters is in Auburn Hills, not Detroit. General Motors’ headquarters is in Detoit, but the Tech Center (with all GM’s engineering & development – basically most of the white-collar work) is in Warren, not Detroit. On scales large & small, jobs fled the city to the surrounding suburbs that can’t levy their own income tax.
I agree with that, although some States all the local municipalities will levy a tax. In Ohio most regions, all the little towns levy income taxes and usually within +/- 0.5% of each other in terms of rate. I’m not sure if they collude to get that done or it’s just happened over time.
I still don’t see any evidence that the government officials are being personally enriched by these fines. It’s not like the Mayor and Police Chief and spending the money on hookers and blow in Vegas.
The Mayor and City Council are elected, and I believe the Police Chief, along with other city officials, are appointed, probably by the same Mayor and City Council. The answer, then, is at the ballot box, not the DOJ.
Update (just came across an article about “Ferguson, five years later”):
In terms of overall municipal spending, the budget took a huge hit when fines were cut back, but since made it up with an increased sales tax (including a countywide “Proposition P”), and revenue is back to where it was before the fines were cut back. Cite
While the overall revenue is roughly the same as it was before the fines were cut back (though higher than it was at the time the consent decree was promulgated, via the sales taxes), the parts of the consent decree to which the city objected to on cost grounds - mainly increased police salaries - have not been implemented. Cite
So it sounds like the question in the OP is still unresolved, though that itself may say something.
since you live in SoCal, how do you know what crime rate is?
where is your cite for your assertion?
like st louis is unique in structure? Cleveland has not succeeded in consolidation
You’re replying to people who haven’t posted here in years.