‘Dire’ Situation Forces Rhode Island City of Central Falls Into Bankruptcy

(Bloomberg) Central Falls, Rhode Island’s poorest city, filed for Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection as it struggles to meet its pension obligations.

The petition was filed today after state officials failed to persuade unionized police, firefighter and municipal retirees to accept voluntary benefit concessions, according to a statement from Robert Flanders, a judge appointed to oversee the city’s finances. Flanders said he asked the court to reject existing collective-bargaining agreements with the unions.

“The current situation is dire, and necessitates decisive steps to put the city back on a path to solid financial footing and future prosperity,” Governor Lincoln Chafee, who joined Flanders in announcing the bankruptcy petition today, said in the statement. “We will be exploring all options to provide quality services at an affordable cost to all taxpayers.”

Central Falls, a city of about 18,000 located about 6 miles (9.7 kilometers) north of Providence, is the fifth municipal entity to file for bankruptcy this year, compared with six in all of 2010, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The filing followed last week’s move by lawmakers in Jefferson County, Alabama, to postpone a vote on proceeding with what would be the biggest U.S. municipal bankruptcy. ..............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-08-01/-dire-situation-forces-rhode-island-city-of-central-falls-into-bankruptcy.html

they want all municipalities to take a 50% cut in their pensions, which would be between 15,000-20,000 a yr. they did not participate in the SS system. This is just so sad...

She also opposes regulating the market.