A recent report from New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli shows an increase in the number of local governments designated as fiscally stressed for the fiscal year ending in 2024. According to the report, 23 local governments were identified as being under fiscal stress, compared to 14 in the previous year. The findings are based on scores from the State Comptroller’s Fiscal Stress Monitoring System (FSMS).
“The number of local governments designated in fiscal stress, while still low, rose over the prior year, as federal pandemic relief funding was winding down,” DiNapoli said. “Local governments now facing volatility in revenue sources and uncertainty from significant shifts in federal spending should remain vigilant and pragmatic when spending and planning for the future.”
The FSMS, established by DiNapoli in 2013, evaluates local government finances using indicators such as fund balance at year-end, operating deficits, cash-on-hand, short-term borrowing, and fixed costs. The system is intended to give early warnings to officials about potential financial problems and inform residents about their community’s financial health.
Fiscal stress scores are released twice annually for municipalities other than New York City. The current scores cover all counties and towns across New York state that operate on a calendar-year basis for FYE 2024, including 44 cities and 13 villages. In this round of assessments, four cities, nine towns, and one village were designated as being under fiscal stress. Earlier this year in April, nine villages with non-calendar fiscal years were also identified as fiscally stressed.
Among those classified with “significant stress” are the City of Little Falls (Herkimer County) and the villages of Cambridge (Washington), Island Park (Nassau), and Saugerties (Ulster). Cities placed under “moderate fiscal stress” include Albany (Albany County) and Poughkeepsie (Dutchess County), along with Massena (St. Lawrence County), Yates (Orleans County), Coxsackie (Greene County), South Blooming Grove (Orange County), and Washingtonville (Orange County).
Municipalities labeled as “susceptible to fiscal stress” include Elmira (Chemung County); Bennington (Wyoming County); Canton (St. Lawrence County); Centerville (Allegany County); Kent (Putnam County); Louisville (St. Lawrence County); Schroeppel (Oswego County); West Turin (Lewis County); Chateaugay (Franklin County); Huntington Bay (Suffolk County); Kaser (Rockland County); and Liberty (Sullivan County).
The accompanying report provides a summary of results for both calendar-year and non-calendar-year municipalities. It includes analysis by municipality class, review of FSMS indicators, and highlights areas of concern.
The number of municipalities failing to file required annual financial reports with DiNapoli’s office declined slightly from 264 in 2023 to 240 for FYE 2024; however, this figure remains nearly double what it was ten years ago. In response to ongoing compliance issues, DiNapoli’s office has increased outreach efforts and training initiatives aimed at helping local governments meet reporting requirements.
A failure to submit timely financial reports can signal weak financial management practices within a municipality. This lack of transparency may hinder officials’ ability to prevent or address potential crises and can erode public trust.
Three municipalities newly designated as fiscally stressed had not received an FSMS score for several years due to late filings: Island Park did not receive a score between FYE 2020–2023 but is now listed under significant stress; Massena missed scores from 2018–2023 before being classified under moderate stress; Washingtonville also missed multiple years before its moderate-stress designation this cycle.
Additional resources related to these findings include lists of municipalities designated as stressed or delinquent filers for FYE 2024; an Excel spreadsheet detailing all municipal scores statewide; a full report on FSMS results; and an online interactive visualization tool providing further statistics.
