Nashville is labeled a "sinkhole city," one of 5 worst financially managed city in the country, according to Truth in Accounting.

by Rod Williams - Truth in Accounting has released its fifth annual Financial State of the Cities report. This comprehensive analysis surveys the fiscal health of the 75 most populated US cities prior to the coronavirus pandemic.  Nashville does not fare so well.  Nashville is labeled as a "sinkhole city," one of the five worst fiscally managed cities in the nation. 

The report finds that 62 cities did not have enough money to pay all of their bills. Most of the cities were ill-prepared for any crisis, much less one as serious as what we are currently facing. Total debt among the 75 cities amounted to $333.5 billion at the end of the fiscal year 2019, which will only worsen as the cities face varying and unpredictable effects from the global pandemic, says the report.

Here is a page from the report listing the top five and worst five cities studied. 

A few days ago I wrote a post titled Nashville ranked as 8th best-performing city.  some asked how could this possibly be so and Nashville be broke.  Two things can be true at the same time and they do not contradict each other. The report that ranked Nashville as the 8th best performing city, ranked our economic vitality and economic growth and job growth.  This study ranks cities for the financial management of the city.  The fact that we are the 8th best performing city in the nation makes it even more of an outrage that we are the fifth worst financially managed city. 

Here are the details of the report on Nashville's financial status.  Please read this.  As many of us have been saying for years, Nashville's unfunded retiree health care benefits are a serious problem.  Not only do we need to adequately account for this obligation but we need better day to day management. 

To read the full report, follow this link. 

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