Detroit Mayor Dave Bing Open to Being Emergency Manager

DETROIT (AP) - Mayor Dave Bing said Detroit's continued financial struggles may require the intervention of an emergency financial manager and he would consider filling that role if asked by the governor.

Bing made the remarks Wednesday in an interview with The Detroit News. He said he was troubled by a confidential Ernst & Young report showing Detroit could run out of money by February. And he told WWJ-AM that the city needs concessions from its employee unions.

Bing, a Democrat, said in April that Detroit faced a possible state takeover if the city couldn't make improvements to its finances. A state law passed on March gives state-appointed financial managers more power when fixing the finances of municipalities and school districts.

"I'm giving that serious thought," Bing, who is more than two years into his term as mayor, told The News. "With an emergency manager it gives you, I think, authority and leverage to do some of the things that need to be done.

"I think whether it's me or somebody else, it's going to probably happen. Now, would you rather deal with the devil that you know or the devil that you don't know?"

Sara Wurfel, a spokeswoman for Republican Gov. Rick Snyder, told The News "there is absolutely no predetermination on Detroit's financial status or any next steps." She said Bing and Snyder have discussed the city's financial situation numerous times.

"As the governor has been very clear, our first and foremost goal is to avoid the need for an emergency manager for any Michigan community, including Detroit," she said. "There's a definitive process that will be followed if we get to any point like this. That point is certainly not now."

Detroit's budget deficit has been estimated around at least $155 million. Bing has given City Council a five-year deficit elimination plan that accounts for declining revenues from state and federal sources. The plan relies in part on concessions that city employees and retirees that haven't been made.

"If we don't get some concessions, there's no doubt in my mind the governor has the hammer to come in with an emergency manager if that's what he wants to do," Bing told WWJ.

Some say other steps need to be taken, such as layoffs, department consolidations and outsourcing, before an emergency manager is considered.

"The biggest question is: What has he done with the powers that he already has?" said City Councilman Kenneth Cockrel Jr. "And I don't think that he's done enough. So before that trigger ought to be pulled, do more with the powers you've already gotten."

Bing said his concern grew after City Council members held a closed session that outlined cash-flow problems in the Ernst & Young report.

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UPDATE: City Council says Detroit does not need an emergency financial manager.  Council members held a news conference Thursday arguing the city can solve its own money problems.

"We feel like we have the resolve.  We feel like we have the expertise, and we have the confidence of the people of the City of Detroit. We understand the priorities of this community, and that is what we will use to guide this process, but we also know that we can handle this situation ourselves," explained City Council President Charles Pugh.

Pugh also said some key players have been meeting recently and have come up with a plan to solve the city's cash flow problem.