Fiscal stress in local governments has reached catastrophic levels in Michigan, which has implemented emergency management legislation in an attempt to keep apace of the problems it faces, including Detroit’s bankruptcy. It is time to consider what kind of public administrator is needed to address the problems of modern fiscal distress. Whereas the political approaches and policies for emergency financial management across the country may differ, the emergency manager can still bring successful generalized approaches and practices to many problems. This research studies two such bureaucrats in Michigan, one who has been instrumental in the development of emergency management policy for decades and one who is bringing his skills in corporate bankruptcy counsel to task.
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