Detroit city leaders are bracing for what most see as the inevitable passage of a state law giving more powers to Emergency Financial Managers.
Detroit’s Lansing lobbyist, Ken Cole, briefed the City Council about the package of bills Wednesday, as the State House voted to approve them.
Ken Cole told the Council he thinks the legislation is meant to work in tandem with Governor Snyder’s proposed budget.
Cole described that budget’s impact on Detroit as “bludgeoning.” Among other cuts, it would lose $178 million in state revenue sharing.
But Cole says the Council shouldn't focus on not stopping the EMF legislation. He says there’s little hope of that in the Republican-dominated state legislature.
“Because in the words of the former late state senator David Holmes of Detroit, ain’t no substitute for votes. You either got ‘em or you don’t. Make no mistake, wedon't.”
Detroit City Councilman Ken Cockrel Jr. agrees that some political gamesmanship is in play when it comes to emergency financial managers.
“I think part of what is going on here, part of the approach of the Snyder administration is to try to leverage cities to do what they need to do to fix themselves financially. Or face the risk of somebody coming in and doing it for you.”
Cockrel and Cole say Detroit officials should focus on amending aspects of the legislation they really don’t like.
That includes a provision that would let firms, as well as individuals, act as emergency financial managers. Cockrel says that would be “crazy.”
