New Orleans leaders say a threat of the state taking over the city drove them to change course on how to handle a $160 million budget deficit.
"The Attorney General had made up her mind, so to speak, that it didn't matter what we did; it was fiscal administrator or bust," City Council President JP Morrell explained. "That was her hill to die on."
Morrell told WWL's Newell Normad that it just didn't make sense to continue the load request before the Louisiana Bond Commission at that point.
"We decided that it was not in the city's best interest."
The president of the council says a complete state takeover of city government is not worth the $125 million in bonds.
Morrell insists the state had "no skin in the game," and the city was on the hook for the money.
But he stressed, "It is not worth putting our sovereignty as a city on the line to get a $125 million loan."
So now how does New Orleans function with no money?
Morrell said they are looking to
"If we stop paying vendors, if we cut all programming, if we do nothing else but make sure that people who are employees are made whole; we are hopeful that we can eke through the end of the year."
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