Financial Indicators

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Chicago at bottom of fiscal scoreboard for cities-analysis

This article covers the release of the Civic Federation’s Financial Indicators report, which measures the financial condition of 13 U.S. cities between FY2009 and FY2013. The findings rank Chicago’s financial performance during that time period as low and suggest the need for Chicago to better align its revenue or spending structure with the demands of both current service needs and long-term…

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Chicago beats Detroit—but not other big cities—in study of fiscal recovery

This article reviews the Civic Federation’s second Financial Indicators study, which uses indicators of financial condition to measure the financial performance of Chicago and 12 other major U.S. cities over a five-year period. The financial trends for FY2009 through FY2013 show that Chicago’s financial condition was consistently less favorable on average than the majority of cities studied.

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Chicago, New York and Detroit are Lowest Performers on Average in Financial Trend Analysis for FY2009-FY2013

A report released today by the Civic Federation uses nine indicators of financial condition to measure the relative financial trends of Chicago and 12 other major U.S. cities from FY2009 to FY2013. The financial trends for Chicago, New York and Detroit were consistently less favorable on average than the other 10 cities during this time period, which marked the end of the Great Recession and…

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Indicators of Financial Condition: A Comparison of the City of Chicago to 12 Other U.S. Cities from FY2009 through FY2013

Financial Indicators Report, FY2009 to FY2013 Financial Indicators Executive Summary, FY2009 to FY2013 This report uses nine indicators of financial condition to measure the relative financial performance of Chicago and 12 other major U.S. cities from FY2009 to FY2013, which marked the end of the Great Recession and beginning of recovery for most cities. The financial trends for Chicago, New…

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Report Shows Chicago's Finances Fared Poorly Relative to Other Large U.S. Cities from FY2007 to FY2011

Over the past few years, the Civic Federation has blogged about financial indicators that can be used to measure the fiscal condition of local governments. The blogs were part of a larger ongoing project to assess the City of Chicago’s finances compared to twelve other major U.S. cities. On Friday, November 8, 2013, the Civic Federation released the product of this ongoing research project: a…

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Chicago is worse off than most other big cities: report

This article covers the Civic Federation’s Indicators of Financial Condition report, which uses nine indicators of financial condition to compare Chicago to 12 other U.S. cities. The report covers FY2007 through FY2011 and found Chicago experienced a steeper financial decline than most of the other cities during the time period, with the exception of Boston and Detroit.

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Chicago’s finances among the worst after 2008 recession: study

This article covers the Civic Federation’s Indicators of Financial Condition report that analyzed 13 major U.S. cities and found that Chicago’s relative financial performance between FY2007 and FY2011 consistently ranked in the bottom half of the cities analyzed. Chicago’s poor performance was characterized by a structural deficit and high debt levels, challenges the city is still facing today.

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City of Chicago Fares Poorly Relative to Other Cities in Trend Analysis of Financial Indicators, FY2007—FY2011

A report released today by the Civic Federation uses nine indicators of financial condition to measure the relative financial performance of Chicago and 12 other major U.S. cities from FY2007 to FY2011. Of the cities analyzed, only Boston and Detroit consistently performed worse than Chicago by these metrics during the five-year period that encompasses the Great Recession and slow recovery. The…

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Indicators of Financial Condition: A Comparison of the City of Chicago to 12 Other U.S. Cities from FY2007 to FY2011

This report uses nine indicators of financial condition to measure the relative financial performance of Chicago and 12 other major U.S. cities from FY2007 to FY2011. In addition to Chicago, the other cities analyzed were Baltimore, Boston, Columbus, Detroit, Houston, Kansas City (MO), Los Angeles, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh and Seattle. Of the cities analyzed, only Boston and…

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Working Capital in Large Cities

This blog continues the Civic Federation’s examination of indicators that can be used to measure the financial health of local governments. In order to measure financial condition, it is important to assess the direction and magnitude of changing ratios over time. The Federation is analyzing the five most recent Comprehensive Annual Financial Reports (CAFR) of thirteen large U.S. cities, most of…