Is Harrisburg's Nightmare America's Future?

The city of Harrisburg is Ground Zero for America's municipal debt crisis.

Pennsylvania's capital city has liabilities estimated at $610 million, which is nearly ten times its annual budget. The city is so deep in the red that last year it attempted to file for bankruptcy. Reckless spending did more than ruin Harrisburg's balance sheet; it crowded out private industry and distracted from the city's core functions. Today, Harrisburg is a dangerous, poverty-stricken city, with failing schools and a shrinking population.

Harrisburg's fiscal nightmare may be a harbinger of things to come for American cities. In the mid-90s, local governments embarked on a spending binge, bringing total municipal debt in the United States to more than $2.8 trillion. Along with Harrisburg, Jefferson County, Alabama, Vallejo, California, and Central Falls, Rhode Island have filed for bankruptcy in the past few years. Several more cities are on the brink of default, largely thanks to taxpayer-financed stadiums, museums, housing, commercial complexes, other misconceived economic development projects, and runaway public sector salaries, pensions, and benefit packages.

Is your hometown the next Harrisburg?

Shot, edited, written, and produced by Jim Epstein, who also narrates.

Approximately 7 minutes.

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• Category

  News & Politics

[richfisherman]

Ha, never mentioned "Democrat", "Statist" or "Liberal" once.

Enjoy Libtards!

[jri350]

And you just know there was some idiot watching this and thinking that the mayor only ruined the city because he didn't spend enough.

[decoweeds]

Soooo glad i dont live there. I wont even go there for anything

[Sarah Bouachir]

Reed was an idiot and anyone who has been elected anywhere in HBG is an idiot. The museums suck, theres nothing here, but the biggest problem is that the city is just full of azzholes. the city gives tickets to people for nothing, there is no room or reason to live here.

[Radetzky19]

what was there to say? All you said was that I was spreading propaganda to americans..am I supposed to take that statement seriously?

[George Bush]

No, I was being intellectual and you took shots at a screen name because you had nothing else to say back to my comment. You sound stupid

[Radetzky19]

do you not know how stupid YOU sound for actually believing that I think you are George Bush...it's called being facetious

[George Bush]

Do you know how stupid you sound thinking I am George bush

[Radetzky19]

you should be imprisoned for war crimes.

[Radetzky19]

lol the tea party is pathetic.. you guys are tools to the tobacoo industry and the Koch brothers...they manipulate idiots like you to carry out their doing in order to expand their plutocracy. Good going, you are a total moron

[George Bush]

You are spreading propaganda about Americans.

[Eugenia Arkward]

i live in harrisburg and im getting my money who ever made this is smoking