Toledo's Financial Resilience
Today I’m returning to Toledo following our annual bond rating hearing in Chicago. Each year, this rating provides us with an independent assessment of the financial health and economic conditions of our city.
As Mayor, maintaining a healthy financial position for the city, including an adequate rainy day fund, has always been a priority. In 2009, our rainy day fund was -$16,300,000, representing a deficit that was unsustainable coming out of the financial crisis in 2008. In 2016, our rainy day fund was just over $10 million, and I’m thrilled that this year, even in the aftermath of the COVID pandemic, our rainy day fund is over $62 million. That's six times more than it was the day I took office.
While we won’t have the results of this year’s ratings for a while, last year Moody’s rated Toledo at "A2," while Standard & Poor rates us at "A-" with a stable outlook. These ratings reflect an upper-medium-grade investment quality for our city. They also acknowledge that we are susceptible to economic conditions, especially given our reliance on the manufacturing industry.
What does this mean for Toledoans? These ratings are a testament to our prudent financial management and a vote of confidence in our city's financial stability. They reaffirm that our fiscal policies are responsible and that we are well-prepared to navigate economic challenges.
Shifting gears, so to speak, the UAW strike has put Toledo in the national spotlight for the last several days. As I speak to reporters across the country, the question on everyone’s mind is “how will the strike affect Toledo’s income tax revenue?”
We have about 10,000 UAW members living and working in Toledo. While I don’t have a crystal ball, I can tell you that if all 10,000 workers strike for a month, the impact on our income tax collections is about $1.5 million. This is not an insignificant amount of money, but it is exactly the reason we’ve worked so hard to build our financial reserves.
I’m proud to support the UAW workers who are striking for a fair contract. Toledo wouldn’t be the city it is today without the auto industry and it’s incumbent upon all of us to stand in solidarity with the workers who carry on that legacy.