DiNapoli: Majority of Cities and Villages Statewide Below Fiscal Stress Threshold

State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli’s Fiscal Stress Monitoring System has identified seven villages and three cities in New York in some level of fiscal stress in 2018. DiNapoli evaluated all non-calendar year local governments and designated two cities in “significant fiscal stress,” three villages and one city in “moderate fiscal stress” and four villages as “susceptible to fiscal stress.”
“Our indicators show fiscal stress remains relatively low among New York's villages, while some cities continue to struggle,” said DiNapoli. “Local officials are encouraged to continue to be mindful about how budget practices today impact budgetary solvency in the future. This system is designed to help keep local officials and the public informed on the financial and demographic drivers of fiscal stress.”
DiNapoli’s office evaluated 526 villages, which predominantly have a fiscal year ending on May 31. The 2018 scores are the most recent round, which also includes the 17 cities in New York with non-calendar fiscal years.
The system, which has been in place since 2012, assesses levels of fiscal stress in local governments using financial indicators including year-end fund balance, cash position, short-term cash-flow borrowing and patterns of operating deficits. DiNapoli’s monitoring system generates an overall fiscal stress score which ultimately drives final classifications.
For the fiscal year ending 2018, the cities of Amsterdam (Montgomery County) and Long Beach (Nassau County) are designated as being in “significant fiscal stress.”
The villages of Island Park (Nassau), Maybrook (Orange) and Valley Stream (Nassau) and the city of Yonkers (Westchester) were listed in “moderate fiscal stress.” The villages of Catskill (Greene), Canisteo (Steuben), Fultonville (Montgomery) and Sackets Harbor (Jefferson) were designated as “susceptible to fiscal stress.”
The fiscal stress scores also show that in 2018:

• Five villages moved out of fiscal stress and three villages moved into a fiscal stress category;
• The city of Yonkers moved into the “moderate fiscal stress” category, up from “susceptible to fiscal stress;”
• Catskill and Canisteo remain in the “susceptible to fiscal stress” category;
• Valley Stream remains in the “moderate fiscal stress” category; and
• Fifty-one villages and three cities failed to file the necessary and required annual financial reports and did not receive a score.

In January, DiNapoli released fiscal stress scores for school districts. In September, his office will release scores for municipalities with a calendar-year fiscal year, which includes all counties, towns, the majority of cities and 10 villages.
For a full list of villages and cities in fiscal stress, visit: https://www.osc.state.ny.us/localgov/fiscalmonitoring/lists.htm