Sustainable State and Local Budgeting and Borrowing
The Critical Federal Role
To anchor the Richard Ravitch Public Finance Initiative effort's to prevent and ameliorate state and local fiscal crises, the Volcker Alliance commissioned an issue paper to frame key issues in a historical context.
The paper, entitled Sustainable State and Local Budgeting and Borrowing: The Critical Federal Role, is authored by longtime municipal finance experts Matt Fabian and Lisa Washburn of Municipal Market Analytics Inc. The authors examine why federal oversight of budgeting and borrowing is so limited and recommend steps Congress and regulators should take to bolster fiscal sustainability, improve transparency, and avert future fiscal crises at all levels of government.
About the Richard Ravitch Public Finance Initiative
The central goals of the Richard Ravitch Public Finance Initiative are twofold: (1) encourage implementation of effective federal strategies and actions to promote sustainable fiscal practices at all levels of government; and (2) train and educate Congressional and Executive Branch leaders about the imperative of heightened oversight of state and local budgets and finances. The initiative will play a key role in catalyzing federal action to improve state and local budget practices that present looming risks to the federal system and economy.
