Public Money Pod

We visit with Yale law professor David Schleicher about his new book, In a Bad State: Responding to State and Local Fiscal Crises . We talk about why the tradeoffs when cities address fiscal distress, how the Chapter 9 process could be improved, and why Arkansas is the American Argentina. In Ripped from the Headlines, Liz talks about her reporting on Chester, Pennsylvania's receivership and the po...

We talk to state budgeting expert (and Public Money Pod fan!) Lucy Dadayan from the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center about all things state revenues. She explains the wide variation in revenue trends across sources and states; the many challenges of inflation; and her best predictions for FY24 and beyond, among many other topics. In the Ripped from the Headlines segment, we take a closer look at...

We talk to Mitchell Smith, Director of Government and External Affairs for the Council of Development Finance Agencies. We cover the history and development of Community Development Finance Institutions; how CDFIs finance everything from tractors to solar panels; how new finance tools are a lot like old finance tools; and exciting pending legislation that would expand opportunities for CDFIs. In R...

We kick off season 2 with Glen Lee, the CFO of Washington D.C. We talk about the federal government’s role in D.C’s finances, the challenge of reviving D.C’s downtown and transit system, and why D.C is similar and different to other cities we’ve heard about. We again revisit the transit discussion in Ripped from the Headlines to learn more about the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (...

In our second episode recorded live at the Government Finance Officers Association 2023 annual conference in Portland, OR - and our final episode of Season 1 - we visit with Katie Johnston, Budget Manager for the City of Tacoma, WA and Professor Matthew Stitt, Director and National Lead for Equitable Recovery and Strategic Financial Initiatives at PFM. We discuss why financial sustainability is an...

We caught up with Ben McAdams, Senior Fellow at the Sorenson Impact Center at the David Eccles School of Business at the University of Utah, at the Government Finance Officers' Association 2023 annual conference in Portland, OR. We discuss how states and localities can evaluate the value and opportunity costs for capital assets, how to retrofit downtowns in the post-Covid, and why real estate asse...

We continue our conversations with state/local CFOs, this time with City of Houston Controller Chris Brown. He explains Houston's remarkable $6 billion pension reform, why other post-employment benefit (OPEB) liabilities are the next big fiscal challenge, what other CFOs can learn from Houston's experience, and why "Structurally-Balanced Budget" is a hot new drinking game, among other topics. In R...

The White House just released a progress report on its plan for more than a trillion dollars of new infrastructure spending (Spoiler Alert: A lot of work remains!). That report reminded us of one of our favorite episodes - Eric Horvath from the City of South Bend, Indiana. In that episode, Eric described how South Bend reinvented its wastewater/stormwater management infrastructure using lots of da...

We examine the ever-evolving relationship between state/local procurement and finance. Mariel Reed of Pavilion joins us to explore the interface of state/local procurement, technology and public finance. She explains how procurement can be a strategic resource and change agent, when procurement can make money, and what state/local government and tech companies can learn from each other, among many...

We take a deep dive on all things Medicaid, starting with its outsized impact on state budgets. Richard Auxier from the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center walks us through the state-federal Medicaid funding partnership, why "redetermination" matters, the Medicaid policy trade-offs states will face in the near future, and why FMAP rates should be part of everyone's dinner conversation, among many ot...

We continue our conversations with state treasurers, this time with Nevada's Zach Conine. He explains fiscal policy for financial booms and busts, the promise of baby bonds, how the Treasurer can build bridges within state government, why anti-ESG legislation complicates his fiduciary duty, and why COBOL programming is still sexy. In Ripped from the Headlines we discuss Indiana's emerging anti-ESG...

We mull over the past, present and future of blockchain technology in public finance. Steve Winterstein from Alphaledger breaks down what it is, what it means for public finance professionals and taxpayers, why state and local governments are slow to adopt new technology, and why "complete provenance" and "genesis record" are coming to a municipal bond transaction near you. In Ripped from the Head...

We look back on our first 25 episodes and focus on lessons learned and surprising moments. Key themes include: the expanding definition of infrastructure, the expanding role of big data in state/local finance, the ongoing effects of economic uncertainty, and the human side of financial leadership.

We continue our conversations with state Treasurers, this time with Michigan Treasurer Rachael Eubanks. She explains how appointed treasurers are different, how her office is helping to "Fix the Damn Roads," forecasting revenues in an uncertain economy, and why spiffing up your vacation cottage is good tax policy, among lots of other topics. In Ripped from the Headlines we discuss South Carolina's...

We reflect on the "plus ça change" of state and local tax incentives. Professor Nathan Jensen of the University of Texas-Austin (and Justin's fellow Wisconsinite/Green Bay Packers shareholder) explains why tax incentives are "bad policy but good politics," with focus on why elected officials can't seem to get enough of them, why less is more for incentive transparency, and how the federal governme...

We discuss the challenges of engaging elected officials in their community's financial story. Legendary City Manager Mark Scott explains how the Los Angeles Riots transformed Beverly Hills, how municipal bankruptcy transformed San Bernardino, how to engage elected officials in financial decisions, and the public finance of Coachella, among many other topics. In Ripped from the Headlines we enumera...

We take a walk down Memory Lane, reminiscing on how the Great Recession shaped today's municipal credit analysis and financial disclosure. Suzanne Finnegan from Build America Mutual (BAM) explains the renaissance in municipal bond insurance, how bond insurance benefits issuers of all sorts, insuring and investing for sustainability, and why she's watching emerging trends in the housing market, amo...

We take apart the "three-legged" stool of public pension funding, and explain why taxpayers should care about wonky details like discount rates and private equity fees. Natalie Cohen from National Municipal Research, Inc. walks us through the current public pension landscape, including into who decides where pension money goes, pension investing in the face of market volatility and normalizing int...

We unpack the many hats worn by our state/local treasurers and comptrollers. Pennsylvania Treasurer Stacy Garrity joins us - accompanied by Dr. Kyle Kopko from the Center for Rural Pennsylvania - for a careful look at the urban/rural savings divide in 529 college savings plans, building trust in financial institutions, and George Clooney's starring role in unclaimed property. In Ripped from the He...

We give special treatment to special district finances, motivated by Disney's special district kerfuffle in Florida. Professor Chris Goodman from Northern Illinois University walks us through the history and development of special districts, where their money comes from and where it goes, whether they're effective and accountable, and why Mickey and Donald might appear at a special district board...

We continue our ongoing deep dive on the public finance of post-pandemic downtowns, including insights from Liz on neighborhood-downtown relations, and research findings from Justin on local lodging taxes. Sam Hecker from the Seattle Convention Center explains how SCC managed through a pandemic with no conventions, why natural amenities are the key to healthy post-pandemic downtowns, and the futur...

We explore the surprising disconnect between accounting and accountability, especially for federal money now flowing into local governments. LaShon Ross from the City of Plano, TX describes the human capital challenges and opportunities in local government today, and explains why coaching, hard conversations and "multi-directional" accountability are essential to effective local government budgeti...

We continue our discussion of what the work from home revolution means for state and local public finance. Scott Pattison from the Multistate Tax Commission - "the most important public organization you've never heard of" - walks us through MTC's mission and work, and explains how technology, digital commerce, and sweetened cranberries are reshaping state tax policy. In our new "Ripped from the He...

We describe the confluence of fiscal stress and high technology that's reinventing aging infrastructure in post-industrial cities. Liz highlights her recent work on chronic fiscal stress, and makes clear that getting to bankruptcy is a group effort. Eric Horvath from the City of South Bend, IN tells the story of how South Bend used artificial intelligence and big data to tackle an $800 million sto...

We devote all our bandwidth to broadband as an infrastructure investment. Pari Sabety and Krista Canellakis from US Digital Response walk us through USDR's work on broadband expansion and access, including how local government can access billions of new federal money, the FCC challenge process, and broadband as an education finance policy issue, among many other topics. Elliot from Florida asks: "...