North Smithfield Running a Deficit
Central Falls, Providence, East Providence, Woonsocket…now North Smithfield can be added to the list of Rhode Island municipalities running a budget deficit, according to Sandy Phaneuf of the Valley Breeze…
The benefits in contracts for town employees are growing at a faster rate than the town can legally afford to cover them, warned the North Smithfield Budget Committee in a communication to the Town Council this month. The gloomy prediction foreshadowed even more bad news this week from auditors: North Smithfield ended fiscal year 2011 with a deficit.Rhode Island is way past the point where its fiscal crisis can be believed to be confined to a few, historically unique situations.
ADDENDUM:
Via Twitter, Ted Nesi of WPRI-TV (CBS 12) reminds me that I left Pawtucket off of the above list.
But we need to limit the Governor’s municipal pension reform plan only to those cities and towns currently on fiscal life support. We wouldn’t want to prevent even more municipalities from getting pushed into the financial ICU.