The original content of Democracy Now! Headlines appears under the Creative
Commons BY-NC-ND 3.0 License (United States). For more, including their other
shows and media, visit www.democracynow.org.
November 10, 2014

Detroit Judge Approves Bankruptcy Deal Cutting Pensions and Freeing Up New Spending 
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


 
A Detroit judge has approved the city's effort to restructure finances
and shed around $7 billion in debt under its bankruptcy filing last
year. The plan includes cuts to retiree pensions for city workers and
around $660 million in funding from state and private sources. Detroit
City Council President Brenda Jones said the city's next phase of
recovery should focus on community improvement.

Brenda Jones: "We must empower and employ the long-suffering people of
Detroit. Just as we will work through a plan of adjustment after
bankruptcy, a plan for our people is critical. So while we celebrate our
city's exit from bankruptcy, let's refocus our efforts on getting
citizens back to work, making our streets and neighborhoods safer, and
rebuilding our population by creating a thriving and growing city."

The deal ends 16 months of bankruptcy proceedings. It will let Detroit
spend nearly $2 billion to restore some of the basic public services
that have all but disappeared in recent years.

 

.