D.C. financial board disbands
The financial board that has controlled Washington, D.C.’s finances for the last six years is no more. The D.C. Financial Responsibility and Management Assistance Authority officially disbanded on Sept. 30, leaving the city with an improved credit rating, repaid federal loans and a balanced budget.
According to the Washington Post, the board, put in place by Congress in April 1995 to direct the nearly bankrupt, politically corrupt city out of its distress, has succeeded in turning the city around. The city had suffered from a $4.9 billion pension shortfall and was unable to pay most of its bills before the Congressional rescue plan was implemented. Now, the Post says, residents are flocking into its upscale neighborhoods, and city services have been restored.
The relationship between the board and city leadership was often contentious, according to the newspaper. The board seized control of the public school system in 1996, wrested operational control of the city from then-Mayor Marion Barry in 1998, and shut down D.C. General Hospital in 1999, claiming it was overcharging patients for poor care.
The city’s present mayor, Anthony Williams, has been closely linked to the board and has discussed presenting its 30 members with keys to the city.