Showing posts with label miami. Show all posts
Showing posts with label miami. Show all posts

Tuesday, March 3, 2026

The Race To Bankruptcy Court - New York City Tax Stream and Population Continue To Get Hollowed Out and Chicago Has Yet Another Financial Liability

It seems we are in a little bit of a rut in that we seem to be getting overwhelmed with news about our choice for states and major cities that are likely to go bankrupt relatively soon. As always, our top state governments that we think are nearing bankruptcy include New York, New Jersey, Illinois, and California. Our top major cities we think are rapidly approaching bankruptcy include New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.

Before reviewing the latest news and seeing which state or city is making the best progress towards government bankruptcy, let’s review how these cities and states got themselves into this financial death spiral position to begin with:

  • A government entity keeps expanding its budget, eventually putting pressure on the tax revenue stream it receives.
  • At some point, rather than cut government spending or make its programs more efficient financially, the politicians in charge raise taxes to meet the ever growing government expenditures.
  • The raising of taxes causes some residents and businesses to leave the city or state for less tax burdensome areas, reducing the tax base and reducing the revenue stream.
  • Rather than cut expenses and become more efficient to match the reduced tax revenue stream, politicians in the above cities or states raise the tax burden even more.
  • This causes more residents and businesses to flee the city or state, further reducing the tax base and tax revenue stream.
  • At some point politicians panic and raise taxes more and start cutting vital government services (e.g. police, fire, education) in order to try and balance government spending against the shrinking tax base and revenue stream.
  • The reduction in quality of government services in particular and quality of life in general drives more residents and businesses out of the area.
  • Eventually, the expenses, costs and financial liabilities outstrip the reduced tax stream and bankruptcy occurs.
Okay that’s the process, now lets check the progress some of the above listed government entities are making to achieve this bankruptcy goal:

1)One of the major indicators that a city is heading towards bankruptcy, as listed above, is that residents and businesses leave that teetering state or city for other areas. The New York Post recently ran an article that highlighted how this is happening in New York state and its cities including New York City:
  • More than 125,000 New York residents have left the state and resettled in Florida over the past five years.
  • Those folks have taken about $14 billion worth of income with them that can no longer be taxed in the state of New York.
  • Over 41,000 of those migrating out of New York ended up in the greater Miami metro area, an area that has seen tremendous growth from out of state people moving in.
  • These numbers come from an analysis done by the Citizens Budget Commission (CBC).
  • Of the $14 billion that left the state, a whopping $10 billion is estimated to come from New York City residents hitting the road.
  • A CBC spokesperson cited affordability, quality of life, and safety from crime as primary drivers for those leaving for Florida.
  • The CBC also noted that the percentage of New York City residents who said life in the city was “good or excellent” dropped from 50% prior to the pandemic to 30% in 2025.
  • Not only does New York state and New York City lose the tax revenue stream from those leaving but overall economic growth is stunted as these mostly higher income folks that are leaving spend their wealth on restaurants, clothes, and other needs outside of the state and city.
  • About 26,000 of those people that left New York for Florida had incomes roughly three times the national average.
  • Since the top 1% of earners in New York City pay 40% of the state’s income tax, the loss of higher earning and higher taxed residents is particularly harmful to the tax base.
  • But those leaving New York City for Florida are not the only ones leaving the city and taking their tax dollars with them since 138,000 city residents have left the city for Long Island, taking over $11 billion in income from the city according to the CBC.
  • Another 120,000 former city residents of the city have moved to Westchester County, NY, Fairfield County in Connecticut, and Bergen County in New Jersey, taking another $11.7 billion in income with them.
  • The average income for these migrants was over $100,000.
  • In 2010, New York City was home to almost 13% of the country’s millionaires but by 2022 that percentage had dropped to under 9%.
Keep in mind that much of this migration of wealthier residents from the city and the state happened before the current administration of Mamdani took over city hall in New York City. And if the state legislature does not raise the income tax rate on wealthy city and state residents, Mamdani has threatened to raise the city tax burden even more across the city by raising the property taxes by over 9%.

Which, if that happens, the increased tax burden will drive more New Yorkers out of the city and further accelerate the city’s financial death spiral into bankruptcy. In our last post we came across a detailed analysis that forecasted Chicago will go bankrupt in 7-12 years. Given the out-migration of wealth and residents from New York City, it is still our contention that New York City will get to bankruptcy court faster than Chicago, given the above wealth migration trends.

2)Let’s take a look at another recent New York Post article that further reinforces the trend of city residents actually leaving the city or thinking about leaving, given the cost and quality of life issues in the city today:

  • According to a recent Marist opinion poll, one in three New York City residents plan on leaving the city and state within the next five years.
  • Reasons cited most often of those desiring to leave include the cost of living and declining quality of life.
  • 86% of those polled said the state is no longer affordable for the average family, up from 82% in 2025.
  • This desire of 33% of those polled planning on leaving the state is up from 27% that planned to leave 15 years ago.
  • According to the United Van Lines 2025 Movers study, more people moved out of New York and New Jersey than any other state.
  • 56% of those polled said they think New York is heading in the wrong direction.
More bad news for the city and state: not only are people already gone or are leaving, many claim that they also will be leaving shortly, hollowing out the tax base and the tax revenue stream, an omen of an impending financial death spiral.

3)Our strong candidate for going bankrupt is the city of Chicago. Our previous post explored that real possibility in depth, including an analysis that forecasted the city would go bankrupt within seven to twelve years, given the shrinking tax revenue base and the unfunded liabilities the city is committed to paying.

While the following financial it is pretty small int he big picture, it certainly does not impede the city’s drive to bankruptcy:
  • A city judge recently ruled that the revenue-strapped city of Chicago will have to refund $163 million to residents due to the fact the city had overcharged them on parking fines.
  • Another $94 million in uncollected fees and fines was also wiped out.
  • According to state law, there is a $250 cap that can be charged for illegally parked vehicles.
  • For years, the city of Chicago violated that state statute.
Again, these millions of dollars are relatively small compared to the billions and billions of dollars of future and current costs and liabilities the city will have to pay for. But this is just another example of bad financial mismanagement by the city’s political class, that is symptomatic of their larger financial incompetence that they have shown over the decades.

That will do it for today: lots of people and tax dollars have already left New York City, a lot of New York state and New York City residents say they are going to leave and take more tax dollars with them, and Chicago finds itself with even more liabilities that have to be paid.


**********************

If you agree that we need to deseat every member of Congress for their lack of success and accomplishment, then please consider going to the following petition link to help the cause:


https://www.change.org/p/deseat-congress-reset-freedom



**********************


Our book, "Love My Country, Loathe My Government - Fifty First Steps To Restoring Our Freedom And Destroying The American Political Class" is now available at:


Posted by at No comments:
Labels: , , , , , , , ,

Tuesday, June 29, 2021

The Failing Biden Presidency - Part 10

This is the tenth in a series of posts that document the idiocy and total failure of the Biden Presidency so far. After being in the Oval Office for a few months, the world is in much worse shape both domestically and internationally due to the failed and idiotic leadership and actions of Joe Biden. His approval ratings are sinking faster than the increase in violence and price inflation that he has caused to happen. Today’s discussion does not provide any hope that things will improve under his leadership anytime soon.

To read previous posts and examples of Biden's failures and cognitive decline, just type in “The Failing Biden Presidency” in the search box above.

Note: We keep trying to move on from Biden's almost daily screw ups and sad cognitive state but the idiocy, the sadness, and dangerous behaviors that he and his handlers go through every day make that task of moving on very difficult. That is why we are on the tenth installment chronicling the failure of the Biden Presidency.

1) In a recent post we discussed the reality that Biden’s approval numbers are cratering access to the country. Higher and higher inflation, a humanitarian disaster at the border, an embarrassing showing on the world stage at the G7 conference, the list of Biden failures is becoming epic. A recent poll found that his popularity is fading especially fast in Iowa:
  • The latest poll from the Des Moines Register found that Biden's approval ratings continue to fall in the state.
  • The latest iteration of the poll found that 43% approve of Biden’s job performance while a majority, 52%, already disapprove of his performance just five short months into his term.
  • In March, two short months ago, Biden actually had a higher approval rating, 47%, than a disapproval rating, 44%, in the state.
  • Apparently, his failure on the economy/inflation and immigration are the main causes for his disappearing approval ratings.
  • Only 40% approve of his handling of the economy while 56% disapprove of his behavior.
  • But it gets worse on the immigration disaster at the border with only 29% approving his handling of immigration and a whopping 63% disapproving.
Five months in and things are going south real quick.

2) It has been pretty clear for a while that Joe Biden is in the middle of a pretty steep cognitive decline. As a result, his staff gets up tight every time he goes off of the very strict, detailed process that want him to go through in public because he usually says something stupid.

And at the recent G7 Conference he did just that at the beginning of a press conference. He actually admitted that he had a list of pre-selected reporters that he would only call on, leaving the impression that these “special”/ pre-selected reporters had been screened and prepped by his staff and would not ask him any difficult or controversial questions.

Specifically, he stated: “I’ll take your questions and as usual, folks, they gave me a list of the people I’m going to call on.” How sad and pathetic is this? A President who isn't allowed to field questions from any valid member of the press. A mainstream media that kowtows to his staff and him and sets him up with softball questions as opposed to what real journalists are supposed to do, ask the hard questions that Americans deserve to get an answer to.

The Internet exploded at this abridgment of freedom and stonewalling:
  • John Cooper of the Heritage Foundation thought that one of the biggest tyrants in the world, Russia’sValdimir Putin had a better, more open session with reporters than the leader of the free world did: “It’s frankly embarrassing watching Vladimir Putin take questions from the press for 45 minutes, and then Biden comes out with a preset list of reporters he’s allowed to call on.”
  • Kyle Martinsen of the Republican National Committee: “Someone needs to ask Jen Psaki why they make Biden do this. Do they think he’s incapable of calling on reporters without a list?”
  • “Putin, the leader of a country with some of the greatest restrictions on press, took questions from all reporters,” observed Lesley Fulop Byers, the Communications Director of the House Homeland Security Committee Republican, “The leader of the free world only calls on a handful of reporters from a list his staff pre-approved. Yikes.”

Go to the attached video where Biden explains that he is not cognitive or smart enough to take unscripted questions form the press:


3) In a very freaky show of cognitive decline, in a recent press gathering Biden abandoned his regular speaking voice and started answering questions in dramatic whispers. Seriously creepy. I am pretty old and I've never seen a President act so bizarrely in front of the press and the American people. Judge for yourself, I bet you cannot come off thinking, ``What is wrong with this fellow?”:


4) In that same press conference there was another example of cognitive decline. After it almost wrapped up, with Biden cutting it short to catch a helicopter ride, Kamala Harris had to remind Biden to go back to the podium and say something, anything about the tragedy unfolding in Miami where a condo building had collapsed and likely killed over 150 Americans while they slept.

This is major, international news and Biden completely slipped up in not at least offering support and condolences to the families who lost loved ones in the tragedy. It should have been in his opening remarks in the press conference, not something he haphazardly addresses as an afterthought. No, he had to be reminded to do so. So sad.

Even worse, after Harris reminded him to say something, anything, he returned to the podium with an awkward laugh and the phrase: “Oh yes, I apologize. Yes, thank you.” This is obviously not a laughing matter but somehow he found humor in it. Again, how sad.

The decline of Joe Biden the man and Joe Biden’s Presidency continues unabated despite the best efforts of his staff to make him look strong, intelligent and involved. I feel sorry for his staff since it looks like their efforts will always be a losing battle.

Our book, "Love My Country, Loathe My Government - Fifty First Steps To Restoring Our Freedom And Destroying The American Political Class" is now available at:

Please visit the following sites for freedom:


Posted by at No comments:
Labels: , , , , , , ,

Sunday, February 5, 2017

February, 2017, Part 4, Political Class Insanity: Fiscal Mismanagement At Every Level Of Government, Obama's Golf Tally, and More

It has been several weeks since Donald Trump has been sworn in which means at some point in the future we may run out of material to talk about. With the demise of the Obama administration, eight years worth of wasteful and excessive spending for nothing in return, foreign affairs blunders, Obama Care disasters, and assorted other administration and government blunders and screwups might end with the onset of a new administration. Trump may usher in a new paradigm of government actions that are limited, effective, cost efficient, and protective of the Constitution. If so, then this blog would run out of material to discuss and would have to be shut down.
But I doubt it. Even if Trump is truly a different type of President, he is still fighting over 500 embedded and entrenched politicians in Congress and thousands and thousands of government bureaucrats who will not go peacefully into the night for the good of the country. I wish him well and hopefully he can fix at least some of the myriad of problems the American political class creates everyday but until then, enjoy the latest political class insanity from Washington and beyond:
1) Democrats and liberals often trumpet the empty slogan to “tax the rich,” as if confiscating even more from the more fortunate in the country will solve all of our issues. We have often shown how absurd this is, that this country cannot resolve its fiscal crisis by raising taxes, the problem can only be resolved by reducing out of control government spending. Let me explain.
According to a recent BBC article, that was summarized in the January 27, 2017 issue of The Week magazine, the three richest people in this country, Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, and Mark Zuckerburg have a total net worth of about $181 billion. That seems like a lot of money but it really is not when compared to out of control government spending.
The Federal government spends about $10.4 BILLION a DAY. If you confiscated and liquidated every asset of these three billionaires, leaving them with nothing, the total amount of wealth you would then have could run the Federal government for about...17 days, or about two and a half weeks. Not very long. I addition, by confiscating all of their wealth, you would no longer receive the billions of dollars in taxes they pay over the years, forcing the tax rates for the rest of us to go up to cover their shortfall.
So if confiscating ALL of their wealth has virtually no effect on government spending, imagine how little effect there would be by raising their tax rate on their income, not their wealth. It would be lost in the rounding. And speaking of being lost in the rounding, all of their wealth if used to pay down our $20 TRILLION national debt would pay off less than 1% of the national debt. Proving once again that we do not have an under taxation problem in this country, we have a government overspending problem in this country.
2)As an FYI, Obama played 306 rounds of golf while President, the most rounds played by any President since Eisenhower 60 years ago. This was a Presidential candidate that promised to devote 24 hours a day, seven days a week to his Presidential duties and take no vacations or time off for himself. Yeah.
3)While some liberals and Democrats hail Obama as an economic wizard for his economic recovery, we have often pointed out that his recovery was one of the worst economic recoveries ever, based on the following realities:
  • Six years after the Obama recovery started, annual national economic growth has not come close to the long term average of just over 3%.
  • For this anemic growth rate, Obama doubled the national Federal debt by a whopping $10 TRILLION that will hinder future economic growth and burden future generations of Americans with the interest bill due on that incremental $10 TRILLION in debt.
  • Job creation during the Obama recovery did not even keep up with adult population growth.
  • And those millions of jobs that were created during the Obama recovery were mostly temp jobs, short term contract jobs, and jobs in low paying industries.
  • Wages and household income have been stagnant for most of the entire recovery period, only recently having started to increase a bit.
  • The labor participation rate is at very low levels, levels that have not been seen since the dark days of the Carter “stagflation era.”
  • Over 94 million American adults are currently not in the workforce.
  • As a result of poor quality jobs and low/stagnant wages, young adults are still living with their parents at levels not seen since the Great Depression and more seniors are working past the retirement age than ever before.
To add to these very bad economic results, Annie Lowrey, writing an article for The Atlantic, that was summarized in the January 13, 2017 issue of The Week magazine, revealed these sad Obama recovery results:
  • In rural America, the employment rate is 2.9% LOWER than it was before the recession started while in metro areas, the employment rate is 4.8% HIGHER than it was before the recession started.
  • Businesses are adding jobs at twice the rate in metro areas vs. rural areas.
  • Unbelievably, only 20 counties out of 3,000 counties across the country accounted for fully half of the net new businesses added between 2010 and 2014.
  • And these 20 counties came from only three metro areas, New York, Los Angeles and Miami.
  • The counties that Hillary Clinton won last November accounted for two thirds of the nation’s economic output while the counties that Trump won accounted for only one third of the nation’s economic output.
Thus, although Democrats are always crying about economic inequality, it seems that their candidates and their geographic strongholds are the richest of each in their respective categories. In other words, listen to what I say and not what I do….or where I live or how much money I make.
4) We often talk about how the Washington political class has spent and wasted so much taxpayer money that we are now stuck with a massive $20 TRILLION national debt (with virtually nothing to show for it), burdening every living American with about $63,000 of debt, as the fiscal solvency of the country is quickly becoming a disaster. Earlier this week we talked about how the state government of California has over $400 billion on uncovered liabilities, saddling each one of its residents with almost $12,000 worth of state debt, all of which is threatening the fiscal solvency of that state. And also earlier this week we talked again about how fiscally mangled the state of Illinois is, so mangled that it is refusing to pay off state lottery winners.
But it is not just liberal politicians operating liberal states and cities that are in big trouble. Consider an analysis from the latest issue of Reason magazine where it shows that two cities that have enjoyed incredible financial, economic, and population growth still had politicians that managed to screw up excellent financial opportunities and conditions:
  • You can see why Detroit actually filed for bankruptcy since its population over the past 60 years decreased by over a million people, severely depleting its tax base and revenue stream while Dallas saw its population triple over that timeframe from 434,000 to 1.2 million residents.
  • Despite the tripling of the tax base and revenue stream potential, Dallas is $5 billion short in its pensions fund for retired police and fire personnel.
  • Moody’s credit rating service estimates the pension funds will be dry and bankrupt within about 20 years unless current taxpayers and politicians allocate much more money to the pension funds.
  • Which is not a surprise since in 2015 the city contributed $115 million to the pension funds while retirees took out $283 million in benefits.
  • In a weird loophole of the pension’s fund rules, retired police and fireman can pull their money out of the funds early (which resulted in $230 million being pulled out in just six weeks in 2016) which many are doing, anticipating the coming fiscal storm, making matters even worse.
  • And another high growth Texas city, Houston, is not much better fiscally since it has the fourth worse pension debt problem of all U.S. cities despite very robust economic and population growth over the past few decades.
Which proves once again that we do not have an under taxation problem in this country: at every government level, Federal, state, and municipal, American politicians do not know how to develop, manage, and live within a budget despite sometimes being given a rapidly growing economic and tax base.
That will do it for today’s insanity: fiscal mismanagement at every level of government, Obama made the rich richer despite being a liberal, and he played a LOT of golf for a President while accomplishing very little when he was not playing golf.

 More insanity tomorrow.
Our book, "Love My Country, Loathe My Government - Fifty First Steps To Restoring Our Freedom And Destroying The American Political Class" is now available at:


www.loathemygovernment.com

It is also available online at Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Please pass our message of freedom onward. Let your friends and family know about our websites and blogs, ask your library to carry the book, and respect freedom for both yourselves and others everyday.

Please visit the following sites for freedom:


http://www.reason.com
http://www.cato.org
http://www.bankruptingamerica.org
http://www.conventionofstates.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08j0sYUOb5w







Posted by at No comments:
Labels: , , , , , , , ,
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)