Since 1998, Oakland County has been awarded a AAA bond rating by Wall Street (Moody's Investors Service and Standard & Poor's). Only 34 of the more than 3,000 U.S. counties have this rating. Such a rating not only proclaims that we're among the best government performers, it also translates into a financial benefit.
Those bonds are sold on Wall Street. In the case of stocks, traders establish the sale price on the trading floor. With bonds, it's the interest rate that gets established. The lower the interest rate, the less interest expense we have to pay, and thus, the lower the tax burden on County residents and businesses.
Shrinking Tax base results in less revenue for government services. The County is faced with further budget reductions over the next two years. Cuts will include every area of County government. The challenge is finding cuts that will not reduce the quality of service delivered to Oakland County citizens and businesses. Yet cuts will be felt across the spectrum. Where would you cut and/or how would you go about looking for effective ways to cut the budget while maintaining or improving levels and quality of service?
Study Up/Related Information:
Granholm puts pique ahead of good policy (file size 13k; January 12, 2007, The Detroit News article reprinted with permission) Governor vetoes Patterson's plan to fund retiree benefits out of spite. Financing Health Care for Oakland County Retirees (file size 55k)
Report provides a brief history and overview detailing Oakland County's plans for addressing retiree benefits. (Updated July 24, 2006)
Communicating with Rating Agencies (file size 299k)Powerpoint presented by County Executive L. Brooks Patterson and Laurie Van Pelt, Management and Budget Director, at the Bond Buyers OPEB 3.0 Conference in Chicago, March 17, 2008, on the topic of retiree health care.
Business-Wise Approaches to Government: Privatization at Oakland County You've heard the old axiom of 'win, win' applied to circumstances where two parties benefit from doing something together. Well, over the last 12 years, Oakland County has undertaken nearly a dozen 'win, win, and 'win' opportunities where the county, the public, and private business all benefit. (Updated: April 1, 2005)
Broadening the State Sales Tax: An Oakland County Perspective(Impact Analysis) The State of Michigan proposes a change to the State sales tax structure enabling a tax on services in order to alleviate looming budget shortcomings in the next several fiscal years. (Updated: October 25, 2004)
