Mount Vernon reveals financial status of city for 1st time in years

The Mount Vernon comptroller is opening its books and revealing the true financial state of the city for the first time in four years.

News 12 Staff

Jul 13, 2022, 12:14 AM

Updated 876 days ago

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The Mount Vernon comptroller is opening its books and revealing the true financial state of the city for the first time in four years.
The city is reporting more than $60 million in unpaid liabilities, including $21 million in state health benefits, $12 million to the local school district, and $8 million in outstanding vendor and legal obligations. This was according to the newly released financial report looking at the first quarter of this year.
City Comptroller Dr. Darren Morton found the city fell about $5 million short of its revenue projections for the first three months of the year, which could lead to budget cuts down the line.
Overtime costs are still a key area of concern for the city, according to Morton.
Morton says the lack of financial transparency over the last decade has led to crumbling city services and infrastructure including, flooding, canceling garbage pickup, and potholes.
Morton called the road to financial recovery "an evolving process" and is committed to public transparency going forward.
"While the financial information is sobering with due diligence, collaboration, and controlled spending there is a pathway to financial recovery,” he says.
Morton said the city must implement several strategies to improve the city's financial stability going forward, like completing the 2016 city audit before the third quarter of this year, identifying non-property tax revenue streams and selling city-owned properties to restore the tax roll.